Tulbagh
Mountain Vineyards
Part 1, the Cape winelands revisited
We
arrive at Tulbagh Mountain Vineyards on a gorgeous early summer's
day. It's a beautifully remote location, fringed by low mountains
– in the distance a tiny cataract can be seen cascading from an
opening in the rockface. There's a special feel about this place.
We're
greeted by husband and wife team Paul Nichols and Rebecca Tanner,
who, interestingly, introduce themselves as ‘winegrowers’. While
I've used this term before – it's liked by those who don't agree
with the implications of the term 'winemaker' – it's the first
time I've heard someone describe themselves this way.
A cow's horn, used for preparing some of the
biodynamic treatments
Paul
and Rebecca are the third team to be given oversight of this
relatively new winery. First it was Chris Mullineux, then Callie
Louw. They started in July, when Callie left after his brief tenure,
and they tell us that they intend to maintain the current style of
the wines.
Rebecca
and Paul met in Margaret River, Western Australia, when she was
working for Cullen (she cites Vanya Cullen as a big influence on
her) and he was up the road at Lenton Brae. Rebecca is actually
Australian, while Paul is South African. Paul's focus here is mainly
the vineyard, while Rebecca's is mainly the winery, 'but we love to
get involved in each other's work,' she says.
TMV
is owned by two couples: George and Vanessa Austin, and Jason and
Jennifer Scott. [Note added later (July 2011): see the update at the
end of this article.] It's a 180 hectare property, with just 16 hectares
of estate vines, all run along biodynamic principles. Further grapes
are purchased to supplement the estate production. Some of the vines
here are grown as low bush vines; others are trellised.
Paul
shows me a block that is struggling with an as yet unidentified
insect pest: he picks off a few of the small beetles that are busy
eating the foliage. He's not tempted to spray with insecticide,
though, because the problem is just limited to a small section of
the vineyard.
Paul
says that one of the reasons he initially left South Africa for
Australia is the lack of opportunities in his home country to work
with wineries that shared his values. It's only recently that
properties such as TMV, with such a terroir-driven approach and
farmed using biodynamics, have sprung up on the South African scene.
Rebecca says that, 'when I was in Australia, I'd never had a good
South African wine,' but she's now delighted to find that there are
lots of pockets in South Africa with special terroirs that are
beginning to emerge. 'It can only get better,' she says.
The soil here is mostly schist
They're
currently practicing biodynamics on the farm, which is certified
organic. 'A lot of our work in the vineyard and the winery is
dictated by what is going on in the stars,' says Rebecca. They buy
in white grapes and also the grapes for the Swartland Syrah, but
these are not organic/biodynamic. Now that the estate vines are
getting older, they are trying to focus more on these wines, and are
currently getting 45 tons off the property each vintage. The
youngest vines are used to produce the Raptor Post wine, which is an
entry level label of 15 000 bottles, using estate fruit only.
Both
Paul and Rebecca are currently doing a four-year postgraduate course
on sustainable development. They describe the course, offered by the
University of Stellenbosch, as 'amazing'. It's part time; basically
they use their holidays and weekends to study.
TMV
White 2008 A
blend of Chenin Blanc, Chardonnay, Grenache Blanc, Roussanne and
Viognier. Lovely fresh bright minerally nose is quite lemony. The
palate is delicate but very fruity and expressive, with lovely
purity and freshness. Quite complex with a hint of nuttiness to the
lemony fruit. 92/100
TMV
White 2007 Clairette,
Chenin Blanc and Roussanne. Smooth mineral nose is lively with a
hint of matchstick. The palate is bright, lively and minerally with
lovely fruit flavours. Expressive. 91/100
The
Raptor Post 2007 A
blend of Cabernet and Syrah; organic. Lovely focused blackcurrant
and blackberry fruit with hints of cured meat. The palate is fresh
and fruity with a nice meaty savoury dimension. Finishes dry. 90/100
TMV
Swartland Syrah 2007 Aromatic,
meaty and perfumed with lush liqueur-like richness. Rich yet fresh
palate has lovely sweet fruit purity and savoury, meaty notes. A
lovely elegant expressive wine. 93/100
TMV
Syrah Mourvèdre 2005 Perfumed,
intense, savoury and meaty yet with sweet berry and plum fruit, as
well as some floral notes. The palate is smooth and elegant with a
pronounced spiciness under the ripe fruit. Finishes savoury. Complex
and brooding with real personality. 94/100
TMV
Theta Syrah 2006
Dark, brooding nose. It's fresh, intense and savoury, with spicy
tight-wound red and black fruits. The palate has firm structure,
with bold but fine-grained tannins backing up the still-elegant,
fresh fruit. This has real potential for future development. 94/100
TMV
Vin Pi This
is a sweet wine made in a solera system, and as such it is a blend
of six or seven vintages. It's made from Chenin Blanc that has been
air dried for a couple of weeks. Deep orange/gold colour. Complex
lime, marmalade and apricot nose leads to a viscous palate that's
sweet and intense with nice acidity. 93/100
A
short film of the visit:
Update: Since this visit, TMV has
changed ownership. It was bought by an American group, headed by
Charles Banks, who was for a few years the owner of Screaming Eagle.
It is now called Fable Wines (www.fablewines.com),
and they've been dropped by their UK distributor Richards Walford
because of their ambitious pricing strategy.
Part
1, 
Part 16, 
Part 17,