Alheit Vineyards 2022 Monument Semillon

£63.00
In stock
SKU
SAWCWALMO22B

Monument is the new name from Chris Alheit's La Colline Semillon, a necessary change since another winegrower had trademarked the name. Now named for the Huguenot monument in Franschhoek. The wine is sourced from the upper slopes of a farm called La Colline in Robertsvlei Road. The vines from the lower slope are used in Cartology. The wine is fermented and aged in 7 year old barrels and kept on its primary lees for 18 months, bottled without fining or filtration. The wine itself is a pure, singular expression of Semillon. A variety which has centuries of heritage in the Cape. There are very few places in the world where one can find Semillon

This Month's Mixed Cases

The Producer

Alheit Vineyards

As one of South Africa’s newest producers, Alheit Vineyards declares its aim as being ‘to vinify extraordinary Cape vineyards’. The fact that Chris and Suzaan Alheit set out on their venture to make only white wine, is a testament to their commitment to seek out some of the oldest vineyard blocks in the country. Using the knowledge and contacts of leading viticulturist, Rosa Kruger, within two short years, Alheit Vineyards has established itself as the most talked about winery in the Cape, with its limited releases being highly sought-after.

The Vintage

Alheit's Stunning 2020s

Alheit Vineyards 2022 Releases

We are delighted to introduce the new vintage from Alheit Vineyards. It's always an exciting time in the calendar of South Africa releases.

Chris Alheit is the figurehead of the Cape's New Wave of producers, specialising in old vine, dry-grown Chenin Blancs and Semillons. Chris has built an enviable reputation based on his flagship wine, Cartology, which debuted with the 2011 vintage.

2022 started with a rainy spring, followed by three consecutive heatwaves. The conditions starkly contrast the three preceding vintages, marked by meagre yields. 2019 - 2021 saw yields of 1 - 2 tonnes per hectare; 2022 is between 2 - 3 tonnes. This has given Chris a broader palette to work with. Despite the higher yields, Cartology remains at the same level of production due to a harsher selection. Many old vine parcels that are usually destined for Cartology have ended up in the 2022 Hereafter - a cuvee generally reserved for younger parcels of vines. The resulting wines are similar in style, particularly their ripeness, to 2018.

The wines were tasted in September 2023, and we are incredibly pleased with this vintage.

The Country

South Africa

South Africa

South Africa is developing at break-neck speed, so much so that I find it difficult to keep up with all the new, young, driven producers making the next big thing from old-vine Chenin or Chenin blends. There are many high points in our range, but worthy of particular mention are the cool, coastal wines of Newton Johnson, makers of Noble Grape’s favourite best value Pinot Noir, and the quite incredible wines of Chris Williams from The Foundry. From time to time we will have parcels of the aforementioned parcel wines, so keep checking out our latest releases.

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