Fairview Barbera 2008

Posted in Previous Vintages

With the maturation of our Barbera vineyards, we have decided to introduce this varietal under our standard Fairview label. A combination of grapes from Paarl and the Swartland regions.

IN THE VINEYARD

The grapes for this wine are sourced from two sites. Barbera is grown in one of the highest vineyards at Fairview, 250m above sea level, near the farm’s orginal manor house. The soils are decomposed granite and the vineyard is trellised. This Barbera vineyard was planted in 2001 and receives supplementary irrigation.
The second site is on the farm Amoskuil, in Malmesbury. It is a dryland bushvine vineyard planted on koffieklip soils in 2000.

HARVEST DATE

11 February 2008 (Malmesbury) and 25 February 2008 (Paarl).

WINEMAKING

Paarl grapes were hand harvested at 24.5 degrees balling. Seven tons of grapes were harvested from this 1.2 hectare vineyard. The yield on the Swartland vineyard was just 4.5 tons per hectare.
The grapes were cold soaked in stainless steel tanks for 48 hours and then allowed to warm up and were inoculated with BM45 yeast. Fermentation took place in tank and lasted approximately ten days, before the wine was pressed off the skins and sent to older French oak barrels for malolactic fermentation (MLF). After the MLF the wine was racked off and sent back to barrels for a further 12 months.

WINEMAKER’S COMMENTS

As our Barbera vines have matured, the quality of the wine has improved and this now sees us introducing Barbera under the Fairview label for the first time. This variety shows great natural acidity and a good balance between fruit and gentle oaking. While the style of this wine lends itself to enjoyment within a year of bottling, I am confident that it will age well for at least five years. Anthony de Jager

TASTING NOTE