After harvesting, the grapes are placed in a cooling room to reduce the temperature since the average temperatures are often 35 degrees or more – pressing warm grapes comes with its series of problems. We then do whole bunch pressing, a process that takes about 3 hours, during which time there is a margin of settling of the juice in the collecting tank. The juice is then transferred to two old foudres for fermentation. The wine is left in a cask on the fermentation lees for the first 12 months, and we bottle from the lees.

The Rotsbank vineyard is located in the Paardeberg in the Aprilskloof on a rock shelf that barely has 30 – 50 cm of soil in most parts. It is incredible to think that this vineyard survives year after year. Many of the roots in the soil have found cracks in this rock shelf, and the limited natural growth of this vineyard makes for incredibly concentrated fruit. Since 2008 we have wanted to produce a Swartland Chenin Blanc, but the 2022 vintage materialised as the first after we were very fortunate to purchase the vineyard. This 2025 Rotsbank is fast out of the gates, with intense mineral, salty, and gunflint characteristics, less reduction than usual, yet still very linear, with the signature “blue steel” orientation of Chenin. It is a very concentrated version with more viscosity than usual but still restrained and not over the top. The wine needs some space in the glass.