2017 Olifantsberg Silhouette

Olifantsberg Family Vineyards is less than an hour's drive from Cape Town, in the middle of the South African wine region Breedekloof. This small five-hectare winery has been owned by the Dutch Leeuwerik family since 2003. The Olifantsberg vineyards are located on the slopes of the Brandwacht Mountains. Thanks to the high location and the almost constant blowing wind, there is a cool microclimate. Ideal conditions for the production of top quality grapes! The vineyard is worked with respect for nature. The vines are fertilized organically and the yield in the vineyard is deliberately kept low. All this with the aim of harvesting optimally ripe, healthy and concentrated grapes of high quality. After the manual harvest, these grapes are taken to the newly built vinification cellar. Here too, winemaker Elizma Visser lets nature do its work. After crushing the grapes, a traditional skin soaking follows and the grapes are fermented. After this, they are aged in oak barrels, of which about a third are renewed annually. The Olifantsberg wines are therefore perfectly balanced with beautifully dosed oak in smell and taste.

This handmade wine is based on Syrah with small additions of the bush grapes Grenache, Carignan and Mourvèdre. Natural fermentation took place in open barrels. The maturation took place in French oak Foudres and barrels for 10 months. This is a great Syrah with the typical spiciness and a nice minerality as a result of the almost unique terroir. In the glass the wine has a beautiful deep red color with beautiful tears. It is concentrated, almost opaque in color and has a luscious bouquet of red currants, ripe cherries, plum compote, black olives, graphite, and an array of herbs and spices that even a Hermitage would be proud of. The wine is very pure and clean with red fruit in the nose such as blackberry and raspberry, herbs and a pepper. The wine is also in a class of its own in the mouth: spicy, but ripe tannins, a firm structure, beautifully integrated and dosed wood tones and a restrained fruitiness. Of course, this powerhouse also has the spiciness that is so typical for syrah dominated wines. These spices even add a sexy touch to the rousing finale. A top wine!

The Silhouette has won gold at the most prestigious wine competition in South Africa, namely The OLD MUTUAL TROPHY WINE SHOW and has won the 1st prize for Best Shiraz-based blend and received no less than 93/100 points. This is very special for a young wine estate such as Olifantsberg. In addition to the focus on quality, low returns and passion, it certainly plays a role in the fact that these wines receive these high ratings, the most important thing in a good wine, namely the Terroir. In contrast to Stellenbosch, for example, which is located on the other side of the gorge, the Breedekloof is an almost Priorat-like terroir with a lot of slate. This explains the beautiful mineral tones in the wines of Olifantsberg.