Testalonga El Bandito Chenin Skin 2019

PERSONAL NOTE:

The “Skin” is our proudest wine being the first wine we bottled and made in 2008. The wine has come a long way and each year provides us with new flavours. We have toned down on the extraction and have now stopped experimenting as much as we used to. We have found our sweet spot that we enjoy for Skin Macerated whites and enjoy the balance we get from these flavours. We have reduced the length of time we leave the wines on the skin as the goal here is to find elegance and focus within this particular style which we love.

NAME OF ESTATE/DOMAINE: TESTALONGA                            

NAME OF VIGNERON: Craig & Carla Hawkins

VINTAGE: 2019

CELLAR LOCATION Bandits Kloof, Eendekuil, Piketberg, Swartland

CLIMATE: Mediterranean

TERROIR: Decomposed Granite, East facing, 200m above sea level, from the Paardeberg.

VITICULTURE: Organically farmed dryland bushvines, planted in 1972, that weren’t suckered to retain leaves that I find balances the acidity and tannin levels. Picked on a balance between taste/feeling and experience we find this helps to maintain the pH/acid/alcohol balance that we love.

GRAPE: 100% Chenin blanc

YIELDS: 40hl/ha

VINIFICATION:

Hand harvested. Destemmed 100% into 1500L open fermenters. Fermented for 8 days on the skins before being pressed into one 3000L Foudre.  No yeast inoculation fermented at ambient temperature. Full malolactic fermentation takes place. 100% malolactic fermentation (not inoculated).

TECHNICAL:

Alc            11.78%
TA            5.5g/l
pH            3.49
RS             2.0g/l
VA            0.57g/l
fSO₂         3ppm
tSO₂         14ppm