TOKARA Reserve Collection Elgin Sauvignon blanc 2017
The wine displays a stunning depth of colour, vibrant gold with hints of green. The aromas are that of intense citrus preserve, hints of blossom with underlying notes of toasted brioche and roasted almonds. The flavours on the palate are that of ripe yellow fruits; papaya and pineapple; with a textured mid-palate leading to a clean crisp citrus finish that lingers forever.

• Alc. Vol (%): 13.5%
• Residual Sugar: 2.3g/L
• Total Acidity: 7.3g/L
• p H: 3.22

ORIGIN
This is a blend of 98% Sauvignon blanc and 2 % Semillon from grapes grown on Tokara’s Highlands farm in Elgin. Only the best fruit from the best performing blocks on this property are used.

CROPPING AND HARVESTING
The vines cropped between 7 to 12 tons a hectare. The grapes were hand picked at optimal flavour ripeness at sugars of between 21.5 and 23 Degrees brix and acidities of between 6.5 g/l to 9.5 g/l. The grapes were then transported in a closed truck to our winery on The Helshoogte Pass in Stellenbosch.

WINEMAKING
The grapes were destemmed and crushed and pressed immediately in our inert press. The press juice and free run juice were kept separate and settled overnight, before the clean juice was racked off. Only the free run juice from the best blocks is used for the Reserve Collection Sauvignon blanc. The juice was fermented at 15 degrees Celsius in stainless steel tanks with selected wine yeast. 8% of this blend is made up of wine fermented in old larger format barrels and matured there for four months. After fermentation the wine was sulphured and left on the lees for five months with regular lees stirring before stabilization, filtration and bottling. 42 000 bottles were produced.

TASTING NOTES
The wine has a stunning vibrant straw colour with tinges of green. The aromas are abundant with pungent notes of fresh guava’s, asparagus, lemon grass and fresh cut grass. There is an amazing freshness as the wine enters the palate, with fresh citrus, grapefruit flavours leading to a creamy mid-palate and a lingering crisp finish. This wine drinks well now but will benefit from ageing until 2027.

• Food pairing: Best served cold and drunk as an aperitif or served with fresh wild oysters, asparagus with hollandaise sauce or fresh grilled yellowtail with salsa verde.