Thelema Riesling 2018

4.5 Stars - Platter's Wine Guide 2022

Made in off dry style, with delicious lemon fruit, hints of stony minerality, citrus blossom and a clean, crisp finish. The wine shows a delicate balance of sweetness and acidity.

Food Pairing

An excellent aperitif. Also with salads, chicken and mildly spicy dishes.

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R150.00

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Tasting Notes

Viticultural Practices

Varietal	Riesling – clone 239
Root stock	R99
Soil type	Hutton – Decomposed granite
Age of vines	Planted in 1984
Plant density	3704 vines per hectare
Trellising	Vertical hedge
Pruning	2-bud spurs every 12cm
Yield	Approximately 6.6 t/ha
Irrigation	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	16th February 2018
Grape Sugar	20.5°B
Acidity	6.5 g/l
pH at harvest	3.2

Winemaking Practices

Yeasts	QA23
Fermentation temp	14 °C
Method	The grapes were gently de-stemmed, pumped through our mash cooler, (Glycol set at 5°C) to cool the fruit down, receives a dose of pectolytic enzymes as well as a small amount of SO2 to aid in the juice clarification process, prevent oxidation and spontaneous fermentations. Overnight skin contact to aid in the de-juicing process, the grapes are then pressed first thing in the morning. Juice clarification takes place via cold settling, the juice is allowed to settle overnight, then racked to its fermentation tank early the following morning. We inoculate with a commercial yeast strain, the ferment runs at 14°C, to maintain a progressive yet stable fermentation curve. The resultant wine is left on its gross lees for 6 months after which we rack it and add a light fining to clean them up a bit for evaluation after which it is bottled.