Pilgrim Wines Weisser Riesling 2024
Historic old soils sites being used for decades as wheat fields in the ever-changing landscape of the Agronymous past of South Africa, now playing host to some of the most aromatic Sauvignon Blanc’s, Viognier’s and even Syrah’s in the Viticultural sitemap of the country. This is the backdrop story of the Groenekloof ward in Darling, where this wonderful find of Weisser Riesling hails from.
These old wheat fields have soils of which the pH is just slightly more elevated naturally, and this plays into the hands of the aromatic development of certain varieties, of which Riesling is one. Bring in the fact that these sites have a natural cooling agent in the proximity of the mighty Atlantic crashing on the shores of the West Coast, and you have a viticultural recipe for aromatics – second to none!
Tasting Notes
Historic old soils sites being used for decades as wheat fields in the ever-changing landscape of the Agronymous past of South Africa, now playing host to some of the most aromatic Sauvignon Blanc’s, Viognier’s and even Syrah’s in the Viticultural sitemap of the country. This is the backdrop story of the Groenekloof ward in Darling, where this wonderful find of Weisser Riesling hails from.
These old wheat fields have soils of which the pH is just slightly more elevated naturally, and this plays into the hands of the aromatic development of certain varieties, of which Riesling is one. Bring in the fact that these sites have a natural cooling agent in the proximity of the mighty Atlantic crashing on the shores of the West Coast, and you have a viticultural recipe for aromatics – second to none!
The 2024 growing season offered a diverse mix of weather patterns. We experienced a particularly wet spring (September 2023 was the wettest September in 50 years!), which kept us on our toes managing vine health and mildew prevention.
As summer arrived, warm and dry conditions prevailed, allowing our grapes to ripen beautifully. This combination of weather has resulted in exceptional grape quality, with an ideal balance of sugars and acidity.
After a combination of whole-bunch and freshly destemmed grapes, the press was initiated to separate the skins from the juice immediately. The juice was lightly settled in two small stainless-steel tanks.
Fermentation began and went on for quite a while. After slowing down for a few weeks, we decided to start cleaning up the wine, even though it still had some RS, we stopped the fermentation before oxidation and spoilage could set in.
The wine was given a light filtration and made microbiologically stable to prevent any future spoilage in bottle. Bottled on the 30th of May 2024
Color: Light gold with green hue
Nose: Rose blossom and jasmine perfume sweetness, some pineapple and ripe pear notes. This Riesling has more sweet aromatics than terpene characteristics.
Pallet: As these grapes we picked early, we were successful in preserving a tantalizing freshness and purity of fruit, but also keep a hold of some good tart acidity needed to balance the aromatic power of the wine. Flavor development will result in some terpenes to form with time, but there is so much freshness and zip to look for now, not to speak about the flinty minerality and earthiness of the latter pallet.
Alc: 11.5 %
pH: 3.27
TA: 6.4 g/l
VA: 0.73 g/l
RS: 4.2 g/l
