Oldenburg Vineyards Rondekop Stone Axe Syrah

Dark purple in colour with ruby hues. The bouquet packed with soft red cherry and blue fruits plus iris, lavender, thyme and delicious white pepper. A small amount of whole bunch fermentation and maturation in a combination of Stockinger casks and smaller barrels, old and new, gives a gorgeous vivid fruit profile and well-judged spice, a glorious backdrop to the gleaming acidity and soft, powdery tannins on the finish.

Nestled in the heart of the Elgin Valley, Spioenkop Wines was established in 2008 with Koen Roose as winemaker. The winemaking philosophy here is low intervention and allowing the wine to have a voice without putting technology and an interfering winemaker in the way. Biodynamic principles have been adopted though they have not sought certification. The winemaker wants a vineyard in rude health, dry farmed and untrammelled by artificial fertiliser, pesticides and herbicides and where working on foot and by hand are the order of the day. They call it balance; ‘balance in the wines, balance in the winery and balance in the terroir’. Koen is obsessive about the relationship of his vines with the environment and the work that he has done and continues to do to get the best from them. With several awards and accolades under their belt, Spioenkop produces wines that have finesse, balance, and purity, with the idiosyncratic character of the winemaker flowing through every bottle.