"Created in honour of our farm's architectural legacy. Besides pouring passion and commitment into every wine that bears our name, we also put a lot into the preservation of our farm’s cultural heritage. The Spier farm has 21 architecturally significant gables – the most on any wine farm in South Africa and all meticulously restored. This passionately made wine is named in honour of these gables."
The vineyard is planted in the high hills of Tygerberg. The landscape is characterized by very old geological formations and the soils are mainly Malmesbury shale. The proximity to the cold Atlantic Ocean is roughly 15 km.
Dryland, semi-trellised vines with an age of 36 years yielded the grapes for this wine. The cold ocean breezes tempered the heat, enabling the berries to hang on the vine for longer. They were picked in 4 parcels in late February, at a yield of approximately 8 tonnes per hectare.<br /><br />Grapes were hand-harvested in 10 kg lug boxes and pre-cooled before hand-sorting, destemming and crushing. Skin contact was limited to 6 hours and the free-run juice drained off to settle overnight before inoculation. The fermentation took place in a combination of 300L, 400L, 500L and 2500L tight-grain Frenchoak barrels. The wine matured for 14 months in barrels; 60% were new fill, while the balance was second fill.
Spier is one of South Africa’s oldest wine farms with a recorded winemaking history dating back to 1692. The winemaking team is committed to crafting wines truly expressive of their terroir, with minimal interference.
While rooted in this heritage, they have a vibrant and conscious energy. Their Growing for Good initiatives empower communities to make positive social and environmental change. Ranging from art and entrepreneurship to regenerative farming and ecological restoration, these projects and partnerships are creating a ripple effect of lasting and meaningful impact.