Vintage
Terrific winter and spring rains resulted in the growth of big vine canopies, which were more than able to protect the grapes from the spike in heat that occurred in late January. The post January ripening conditions were almost ideal, with lower than average temperatures and no rain whatsoever.
Winemaking
The War of the Rosé was made to be a rosé and not a ‘Saigneé’ style; that is the grapes were picked at about 13° beaumé. They were pressed off and allowed about 45 minutes skin contact with the juice. We were ruthless, and only pressed off about 400 litres/ tonne, to make sure there were no hard phenolics in the wine. The wine underwent a very cool ferment in stainless steel prior to bottling. The War of the Rosé is a dry Rosé style.
Tasting Notes
The War of the Rosé has a bright magenta colour with a touch of purple. The nose shows lively cut grass, red cherry fruit and watermelon rind. The palate is super long, bright and clean, with fresh cherry fruit bound up with perfectly balanced acid and tremendous length. The wine finishes dry, clean and wonderfully fresh.
Technical Details
| Picking Date | 15th March 2006 |
|---|---|
| pH Level | 3.29 |
| Total Acidity | 7.17g/L |
| Alc/Vol | 13.0% |
| Bottling Date | 16th August 2006 |