The range, named after the highest of the Darling Hills at 459m above sea level where some of the estate's best grapes are grown, comprises of a Sauvignon Blanc, a Chardonnay (wooded) and a Pinot Noir. Kapokberg, translated as ‘snowy mountain’, got its name from the tapestry of white spring flowers covering the hill year after year, resembling a snow capped mountain.
Groote Post’s Kapokberg Vineyard Selection Sauvignon Blanc is produced from a specific low-yielding vineyard block on the Kapokberg that consistently yields grapes with the most intense fruit concentration, pronounced minerality and green notes. Only free-run juice is used and longer lees contact imparts impressive palate presence and complexity. Fresh cut grass and green aromas are prominent on the nose, while citrus and quince abound on the palate. Well-integrated acidity and abundant flavours give the wine great length.
Chardonnay grapes with small berries from high-lying vineyards are left hanging late into the season to become fully ripe. The juice was fermented in 300-litre French oak barrels and aged on the lees for 10 months, 25% new oak and 75% older oak. This wine has an appealing golden straw colour and an enticing nose of toasted almonds with lashings of butter and zesty lime marmalade on the palate. An elegant chardonnay, it is well-integrated with the wood and has a creamy palate.
The wine was fermented in open barrels and also in stainless steel tanks. The wine spent 15 months in 500-litre French oak barrels - 15% new oak and the rest in older barrels. A delicate musky aroma welcomes you, stemming from the French Oak used. An abundance of cherries greets you on the palate accompanied by dried-beef and savoury flavours, rounded off with notes of fresh herbs. A subtle hint of forest floor underpins the earthy character of the cultivar, yielding a full juicy wine.
According to the Vitis Vinifera Awards, 2016 saw a big surge in the amount of entries from the previous year, with a wide spectrum of quality wines entered into this year’s competition. The Cape Wine Academy handled the extensive logistics to ensure smooth running and the double blind tasting on 9 September. The goodwill experienced from every sector showed that this competition will be a benchmark to consider in years to come. A competition driven by the consumer, wines are tasted blind by a group of qualified consumers. Each judge possesses at least a Cape Wine Academy certificate, or a similar qualification. Entries are judged in category, randomly but in order of vintage, with a different tasting order assigned to each judge in order to minimise the shadow effect within a flight.
