The Topside Syrah vineyard is situated high up on the West facing midslopes of the Stellenbosch Mountain range (Elevation 350m). It was planted in 2006 on rocky soils consisting of clay shale, sandstone, and granite, weathered from the peaks above. Vines are unirrigated, trellised and run with the contour in a North South direction. The elevation, soil and aspect all contribute to spicy character, racy acidity, and fine-grained tannin structure of this wine. The West facing position on the mountain means that the vineyard only receives direct sunlight later in the morning than a lot of the other vineyards. The soil is therefore cool in the early morning, warming up with the later afternoon sun. 

Topside vineyard sits on a terrace completely surrounded by pristine mountain fynbos and proteas, with views west to Table Mountain that are simply breathe taking.

Vinification: All grapes used in producing this wine come from our Topside vineyard (1.7Ha). A small parcel of grapes was specifically selected, harvested by hand and vinified separately. Fermentation was carried out by yeast which occur naturally on the grape skins and in the winery. Our red wines spend three to four weeks fermenting and macerating on the skins in small open top tanks with one or two gentle ‘punch-downs’ performed per day. After fermentation, this wine spent 20 months maturing in seasoned 500 litre French oak barrels before being bottled by hand without filtration. Only 1867 bottles and 50 magnums were produced.