Porseleinberg 2022

"Produced in the teeth of what Callie Louw calls a "crazy year", with lots of winter rain and one of the hottest Januarys ever, this is the latest in a series of world-class Syrahs from the brilliant Callie Louw. Fermented and aged in foudres and 15% concrete, using the submerged cap technique that has transformed the style here, this has 95% whole bunches, fynbos and Mediterranean herb aromas, sculpted, detailed tannins and layers of plum, blackberry and raspberry and impressive freshness for a wine with a pH of 4.1. A refined wine from a brutal site. 
Drink 2025-40" 99 points, Tim Atkin

A little shy at first but opening up to reveal gorgeously spicy fennel salami, dried bay leaf and rosemary notes, moving from a ferrous character to violet-infused perfume with time in glass. The fruit profile starts in the red spectrum – tangy red cherry and raspberry, with a citrussy, pink-grapefruit tang – and moves towards wild blueberries. It demonstrates a wonderful peppery tension on the mid-palate and fine-grained, mouth-coating tannins. A linear, tightly-packed Porseleinberg – lithe and slender with tonnes of energy, and with that signature stony grip on the finish.

The farm enjoyed a cold, wet winter with 390.5mm of rain for the year. Budbreak was approximately 2 weeks later, starting during the first week of October. Cool, dry growing conditions kept disease pressure at bay, resulting in a smaller berry-set, with smaller bunches. Some 34mm of rain during early November was the mere difference between a difficult and a great vintage as from there on, we only received 14mm between mid-November and the end of harvest, in March. A cool summer with minimal heat waves resulted in a long, drawn-out vintage, allowing us to pick when grapes were at optimal ripeness. The harvest started on February 5th and finished on March 3rd. Grapes were hand-picked and crushed as whole bunches into concrete fermentation tanks. Minimal pump-overs were performed with the cap submerged; the ferments ran cool and dry within ten days. Maturation occurred over 12 months in 95% foudre & 5% concrete egg. Bottled June 26th, 2022 in the new facility.