Prestigious Family Wineries
Live Virtual Auction, 23 July 2023
Prestigious family wineries | Thelema Mountain Vineyards, Raats Family Wines and Savage Wines
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About this Item
Specialising in Cabernet Franc and Chenin Blanc, Raats Family Wines was established by Bruwer Raats at the turn of the millennium. He believes the secret to his Cabernet Francs success is that they are old vines grown on decomposed dolomite granite. This belief was not unfounded, as today, Raats Family Wines is regarded as a leader of South Africa’s Chenin Blanc and Cabernet Franc, receiving consistent local and international accolades. Early vintages are elegant, refined and still remarkably young today.
The Eden High Density Single Vineyard is the heart of Raats Family Wines. The finest expression of Cabernet Franc and Chenin Blanc, Eden High Density Single Vineyard wines, has globally achieved cult wine status.
The Eden High Density Single Vineyard Project originated from the deep passion for mastering Cabernet Franc and Chenin Blanc. In 2004 Bruwer fell in love with a small piece of land in Polkadraai Hills Stellenbosch, called Eden, realising the potential of this tiny pocket of neglected pure decomposed dolomite granite. For four years, he worked tirelessly using site-specific techniques to restore the soil quality through conservation agriculture, integrated nutrient management and continuous vegetative cover to create optimal conditions conducive to creating ultra-premium wines. He then searched for the best low yielding clones to secure maximum flavour concentration and, in 2009, planted the first high density vineyard in South Africa. With 8 000 vines per hectare, he planted only 0,6 hectares of Chenin Blanc and 0,2 hectares of Cabernet Franc in the now revered Eden block. These vines are left to flourish with minimum intervention and a stringent selection process. The Eden vineyard was created with extreme precision viticulture as a key focus, and the results are clear.
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Critics Ratings
'High density means 8,000 vines per hectare in this instance, all planted with the Montpellier clone. The result is a bush vine Chenin of incredible concentration, with subtle oak, layers of pear, quince and tangerine, racy acidity and a finish that lasts for over a minute on the tongue. 2017-25' - Tim Atkin MW, SA Special Report 2017, 94/100
'Restrained, linear 2015 from very low-yielding 0.6 ha single vineyard on Polkadraai Hills. Understated power & elegance, with exotic kiwi, pineapple & ginger complexity mingling with deft touch oak spice (10 months, 50% new).'- Platter's SA Wine Guide 2018, 5* (97/100)
'Matured for 10 months in three 300-litre barrels, one new, one third-fill and one fourth-fill. Top notes of fresh herbs, hay and spice before pear, peach and some leesy complexity. The palate shows astonishing fruit concentration, a lovely line of acidity and a pithy finish. Layers of flavour and great composure. That much more precise than 2014. '- Christian Eedes, Winemag.co.za, 95/100
'The 2015 Eden High Density Single Vineyard Chenin Blanc has a fragrant bouquet with scents of lemon curd, linseed and a touch of candle wax. The palate is well balanced with a slight viscosity, a little more resinous than the debut 2014, a keen line of acidity, touches of nutmeg and walnut flowing towards the finish. Unfortunately, there are only around 1,000 bottles, because one of the barrels that were fermenting naturally went a bit wrong. So try to grab one that went right and afford it one or two years in bottle.' - Robert Parker, Wine Advocate, 91/100 (Apr 2017)
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