Today I am writing after one of my more thorough visits to a winery. Just down the 'road' from Kleinood (more of a rough dirt track) is the Keermont wine estate, situated far up the valley with one foot on the Helderberg and one foot on the Stellenbosch Berg with vineyards creeping well up the slopes.
Originally this was a bottling plant for natural spring water, though since becoming a winery the spring still serves as a source of irrigation water in dire circumstances and fills the jugs on tasting tables. At the top of the vineyards the reservoir is said to be about the best swimming pool on a hot day, with clean cool fresh water, and no doubt a great source of drinking water for the wildlife of the mountain.
Wine maker Alex Starey took me for a drive up the steep winding track that weaves through the vineyards on the Stellenbosch Berg and there we got a look at the kind of biodiversity the area can claim. A male baboon, likely with his family in tow scampered into the bushes, dropping a bunch of grapes as he fled. This is one of the not so subtle reminders that I am in a very different kind of wine region, where the animal hazards are unique, and not limited to bugs and birds.
All the same, the team here at Keermont maintain that this biodiversity is part of an important balance they must strike with the land they work. They limit irrigation, avoid fertilisers and don't put up the electric fences that some vineyards use to keep out the well organised baboon raiders. I think that this is an excellent approach to winemaking and most importantly of all, it turns out that the wine is very very good as well.
I tasted a good range of wines, and had the chance to try several vintages each of their Syrah and the white blend. This wasn't so much to show me the effects of time on the wine, though that w evident, but more to show me how Keermont is adjusting its style and fine-tuning it's still-new output. After all, the Keermont label is only five years old and they are still very much in the experimental stages. The white blend from 2009 was big and fully rich with honeyed Chenin characters that I can only compare to an off dry Vouvay, though I hesitate to compare between regions. The current 2011 is more restrained, a crisp, minerally blend of Chenin, Viognier and Sauvignon Blanc with just a hint of oak, but avoiding the vanilla driven style that can be so tempting for a new operation.
The Syrah was excellent stuff with vintage variation on full display in the two bottlings I tried. The 2009 was chunky and tannic, with big fruit and big acidity meant for a bit of time resting in bottle, while the 2010 was more approachable in youth. Present but silky tannins meant for a very satisfying mouthfeel alongside the lovely nose of black cherries, violets and spices. Both were very beautiful examples of Syrah which show the potential of this marvellous variety. I have said more than once that I believe Syrah is the most inherently beautiful grape I've ever tried.
The tasting finished with a proprietary red blend based on Merlot with Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Syrah simply called the Keermont. It was a lovely Bordeaux style blend with great richness and spice and plenty of acid and fruit for a hearty meal. To finish off that meal there is the natural sweet Sauvignon Blanc, made from vine dried grapes. It was bright, clean and light with a nice peachy, cotton candy like sweetness that was ever so pleasant to drink.
Wile the wines I tried were excellent, and entirely merit the increased attention they are receiving, what made me most excited about Keermont is the the planning for the future. They are toying with single vineyard bottlings of Cabernet Franc which thrives so well on their slopes, they are planting new varieties, such as Roussanne and working with some Petit Verdot. All in all they have an adventurous spirit that is so valuable in a country like South Africa, and I believe that they have the potential to be (/are already) one of the great names in South African wines.
Much Love,
George
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