De Grendel Secures a Place in FNB Sauvignon Blanc Top 10 Competition
With the 2022 Sauvignon Blanc from De Grendel fresh out of the starting blocks, it added the coveted FNB Sauvignon Blanc Top 10 award to its existing list of accolades during the awards ceremony held on 13 October. This is no small feat, considering 161 wines were entered for this year’s competition.
The 2022 vintage of premium De Grendel Sauvignon Blanc also received a 90-point score from the International Wine & Spirit Competition, a 91-point score by Tim Atkin’s South African Report, and 90 points from the Winemag Sauvignon Blanc Report.
The expert panel of wine judges at this year’s FNB Sauvignon Blanc Top 10 competition was convener, Dr Winifred Bowman (Cape Wine Master, wine judge and writer), Fiona McDonald (wine judge and writer), Johann Fourie (head winemaker at Benguela Cove), Morgan Steyn (winemaker at De Grendel), René Groenewald (Cape Wine Master), and aspirant judge Mahalia Kotjane (assistant winemaker at Lievland).
De Grendel cellar master Charles Hopkins said a fourth Top 10 place in this renowned competition is testament to the exceptional quality, complexity and reliability of Sauvignon Blanc that is grown in the cooler region of Durbanville across multiple vintages.
De Grendel’s Sauvignon Blanc vineyards are planted in well-drained blue shale at 200 meters above sea level on the Western slope of the Tygerberg, 7 kilometers from, and in sight of, the Atlantic Ocean, making it a very desirable terroir to grow this sensitive grape variety.
“This year’s Top 10 is exciting and particularly striking,” says RJ Botha, Sauvignon Blanc SA’s Chairman. “It’s amazing how our winemakers take advantage of their particular terroir to produce their distinctive styles of Sauvignon Blanc.”
Previous De Grendel wines that secured a Top 10 spot are De Grendel Sauvignon Blanc 2016, Koetshuis Sauvignon Blanc 2017, and Koetshuis Sauvigon Blanc 2019.
Using analysis, phenolic ripeness and flavour compositions, grapes for the 2022 Sauvignon Blanc were handpicked in batches over a three-week period. When crushed, the grapes delivered a yield of 630 liters per ton. Following 6 hours skin contact, the juice was settled, racked, and inoculated to ferment in tank at 14°C for 22 days. 80 Days’ lees contact improved the wine’s flavour and body, followed by blending, protein stabilisation, cold stabilisation, and bottling.
A complex wine with layers of minerality and an ensemble of lime, tropical fruits, and fresh herbs delivers a well-balanced and delicate palate with a layered, long finish which can be enjoyed with Cajun-spiced calamari tubes, grilled cod, goats’ cheese, or tempura prawns.
The De Grendel Sauvignon Blanc 2022 is available from the De Grendel tasting room, restaurant and online shop at www.degrendel.co.za at R110 per bottle.