Kershaw Clonal Selection Chardonnay

Kershaw Clonal Selection Chardonnay

VARIETAL INFORMATION: 100% Chardonnay
WINE OF ORIGIN: Elgin, Western Cape, South Africa.
TOTAL VINEYARD PRODUCTION: 15.8 tons selected from 8 small parcels of Chardonnay.
HISTORY: In 2012, owner Richard Kershaw MW, established Kershaw Wines to create clonally selected, site-specific, cool climate wine paradigms from apposite noble grapes i.e. ones with the ability to produce world-class examples. SA’s coolest wine district, Elgin Valley, reflected these principles benefitting from higher altitude, ocean proximity, specific cloud cover sequencing, high cold units and a large diurnal range, enabling the germane grapes, Chardonnay, Syrah and Pinot Noir, to show a sense of place.
VINTAGE: Hand-Picking Dates: 19th February – 27th February 2020 Brix at Harvest: 22.2 – 24.1
SEASON: 2020 was an outstanding year for Chardonnay! Winter preceding the 2020 harvest started off cooler and wetter, helping Chardonnay enter dormancy sooner and a proper accumulation of nutrient reserves. September was dry and, along with the milder conditions, enabled the soils to warm up, and flowering began 2 weeks earlier for Chardonnay. As November turned to December, there were constant
blustery and wet conditions in Elgin that positively affected the restriction of vegetative growth and berry size. Rain still hung in the air, with over 90mm falling over 2 days in Elgin in January. With higher soil moisture going into the back end of summer and further regular rain showers, coupled with relatively cool day and night temperatures during January and into February, the ripening process was significantly
delayed despite the initial earlier expected harvest dates. In the end, we picked most of the Chardonnay in late February/early March in ideal cool, cloudy conditions.
WINEMAKING: Grapes were hand-picked in the early autumnal mornings, placed into small lug baskets and tipped directly into a press before being gently whole-bunch pressed up to a maximum of 0.6 bar or until a low juice recovery of 620 litres per ton was obtained using our Willmes Sigma 5 press. The juice gravity-flowed directly to barrel without settling. The unclarified juice had no enzymes or yeast added to it and therefore underwent spontaneous fermentation until dry, with malolactic discouraged.
The wine rested in barrel for four months before judicious sulphuring and a further seven months’ maturation in barrel before racking, blending and bottling.
BARREL SELECTION: A small number of artisanal coopers were selected, all from Burgundy and only French oak was chosen. Importantly, each clone and soil type was micro-vinified as separate batches. Overall, the average in 2020 was 53% new oak; 100% in 228 l barrels.
WINES OF ELGIN
2020 Kershaw Clonal Selection Elgin Chardonnay
ALCOHOL: 13.85% TOTAL PRODUCTION: 5200 bottles; 20 Magnums.
TASTING PROFILE: The nose emerges with lemon, gardenia, chalk and powdered rock. The palate entry has an incredible depth of flavour and concentration, yet the wine’s athletic gait makes it dance on the palate with an exquisite Alpine-like purity. Incisive acidity underpins a mineral and wet pebble texture. A lifted mid-palate follows, showcasing jasmine, delicate summer fragrances, lemon cream and a touch of white nectarine. The finish is long with cooked oats and creamy lemon biscuits from extended lees ageing. Expect this to complex over the next 3-4 years but last until 2029

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Kershaw Clonal Selection Chardonnay