KANONKOP KADETTE CABERNET SAUVIGNON

Description

Stellenbosch is among the oldest of the wine producing regions in South Africa, and the decomposed granite, shale, and sandstone-based soils are some of the oldest on earth. Despite its proximity to the False Bay, it sees quite a warm Mediterranean style climate, with the winds from the bay being the only moderating factor, and the majority of the yearly precipitation occuring outside of the growing season. Closer to the bay and away from the mountains, where the cooling winds are strongest, whites are found in a bit more volume; but most of the region does extremely well with Bordeaux varieties.

For being one of the older winemaking regions, Kanonkop are relative newcomers to the scene. They are fourth-generation family owned, and their winemaker is South African born and raised, and trained at the local oenological institute (which on its face doesn’t seem all that remarkable, but winemakers have a habit of travelling around).

The most unique thing about Kanonkop’s wines are their fermentation/maceration regimens. Common practice for Cabernet Sauvignon elsewhere has trended toward cold soak pre-fermentation to ensure good extraction of pigment, and long maceration post-fermention to promote good tannin extraction. Kanonkop does neither. Instead, they elect to allow the grapes a mere 5 – 6 days on skins, but they do a manual punch down every two hours during those days. They don’t seem terribly bothered with pigmentation, and they avoid extracting too many seed tannins as those tend to break down and extract later on during fermention. What they end up with is something a little fresher in style.

Expect notes of black cherries, a chianti-esque dried tomato, a light touch of blackcurrant, and an even lighter tough of herbaceous notes. It still has reasonable weight on the palate, but the tannins are gentler and don’t necessitate protien-heavy dishes for pairing.