Thelema Merlot Reserve 2018
This wine is a blend of the best parcels within our merlot vineyards. A wine well structured and showing extraordinary concentrations of ripe berries and cedar wood. Will reward cellaring.
Maturation
Will continue to develop well for 8 years.
Food Pairing
Mushroom risotto, rich pastas and grilled meats.
Winemaker's Comments
This wine is a blend of the best parcels within our merlot vineyards. A wine well structured and showing extraordinary concentrations of ripe berries and cedar wood. Will reward cellaring.
All Vintages
Tasting Notes
Viticultural Practices
| Varietal | Merlot – Clone 192 |
|---|---|
| Root stock | R99 |
| Soil type | Hutton – decomposed granite |
| Age of vines | Planted 1988 |
| Plant density | 3200 vines per hectare |
| Trellising | Vertical hedge |
| Pruning | 2-bud spurs every 12cm |
| Yield | 12 t/ha |
| Irrigation | Supplementary drip |
| Vintage | A warm, dry vintage with a late start, resulted in smaller tonnage but yielding balanced,well structured wines with lovely intensity. |
| Picking date | 21 March |
| Grape sugar | 25.4 °B |
| Acidity | 5.1 g/l |
| pH at harvest | 3.54 |
Winemaking Practices
| Yeasts | Natural occurring yeasts |
|---|---|
| Fermentation temp | 27 °C |
| Method | De-stalked, hand sorted, crushed, pumped into stainless steel fermentation tanks, cold soak for two days, and pumped over twice a day for 5 days, an aerated pump over in the morning and a closed circulation in the afternoon. After fermentation the wine is pressed and racked to barrel for malolactic fermentation. |
| Wood maturation | 18 months in 100% new French oak barrels |
Wine Details
| Residual Sugar | 1.8 g/l |
|---|---|
| pH | 3.41 |
| Total acid | 6.0 g/l |
| Alcohol | 14% by volume |
| Maturation | 2020 – 2029 |
The Current Range
Looking for an older vintage? Please contact us for more information.