Alheit Vineyards : Nautical Dawn Chenin Blanc 2021

The softness and salinity of a white Stellenbosch wine

The property

Located in the Walker Bay region of South Africa, Alheit Vineyards is a family estate created in 2011 by Chris and Suzaan Alheit. After travelling to the world's greatest wine-producing countries (United States, France, Australia, Germany), this young couple settled in 2010 on Hemelrand Farm, with the ambition of revealing the potential of old South African vineyards of Chenin and Semillon grapes.

Convinced that the quality and beauty of a wine comes exclusively from its vineyard of origin, they focus most of their work on rigorous vineyard management. Their minimalist approach to making white wines aims to capture the pure and authentic expression of these great terroirs with their rare and unique soil mosaic. Over the years, Alheit Vineyards has become one of South Africa's most fascinating estates.

The vineyard

Alheit Vineyards' Nautical Dawn Chenin Blanc 2021 is a Western Cape wine that stems from a plot planted in 1978 on the upper part of the Sinai hill near Rustenhof Farm in Firgrove. This sloping hillside is unique in that its shallow granite soil warms up quickly, making it one of the earliest wines on the estate despite the south-easterly wind.

The wine

This Stellenbosch wine is named after the second phase of the dawn just before sunrise, between astrological and civil dawn. This is an ideal time for sailors, dark enough to see the stars and light enough to hoist a sail, and it suits this wine perfectly. The vineyards have small granite domes from which you can see the sea 4 kilometres away.

Winemaking and ageing

After the harvest, the grapes were sorted by hand and pressed in whole bunches. The juice was very lightly settled without any additions. Fermentation with indigenous yeasts in 2000 litre tuns for about two months. Aged on the lees for twelve months, followed by a further six months in vats on fine lees without fining before bottling.

Blend

Chenin blanc (100%)

Characteristics and tasting tips for Nautical Dawn Chenin Blanc 2021 from Alheit Vineyards

Tasting

Nose
The nose entices with its yellow fruit and fine herb scents.

Palate
The rounded and delicious palate unveils a lively and saline expression which draws out to a long and enduring finish.