Along with the launch of the new complex at La Motte last week, we unveiled the Hanneli R: La Motte’s flagship wine made in honour of my wife Hanneli Rupert-Koegelenberg who sets the standard of excellence that guides everything we do at La Motte. Below are extracts from the wine’s tasting notes.
This wine is a blend of 55% Shiraz, 29% Grenache, 8% Cinsaut and 8% Cabernet Sauvignon. The Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon originate from Bot River in the Walker Bay region, the Grenache from Darling and the Cinsaut from Paarl.
The Bot River vineyards for this wine are trellised and grow in shallow shale with clay deeper down. The area is very windy. Vineyards are managed organically. The result is grapes with a very good colour and an exceptional tannin structure.The Grenache and Cinsaut originate from dry-land bush-vines and grow in deep Clovelly (weathered granite) soil. Grapes with an attractive fruity character are yielded in this area, while the diverse terroirs ensure wines with depth and complexity.
The wines in this blend are made from grapes that were picked and sorted separately and were also fermented and matured separately. After 30 months in new 500-litre French oak barrels the wines were blended and then returned to the barrels fora further six months. The wine was filtered and finally bottled in September 2008.
Only 3 000 bottles were produced.
The combination of a good vintage and maturation in new wood has produced a wine with exceptional depth, complexity and personality. The first impression is that of floral perfume and pot-pourri, combined with the flavours of sweet stewed prunes and liquorice, backed by caramel wood flavours. The tannins of the wood and grapes are combined, to form a highly structured, surprisingly soft palate. The wine leaves a minty freshness on the palate
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