South African Wines Part Three: A visit to the De Toren private cellars

in front of the vines of S.P. Drummer

Wine making is both an art and a science. We enjoy sampling wine in the tasting room but we also enjoy going backstage and learning about the intricacies of the art and science of wine making. I am lucky to know a winemaker in California who gave me a very inside look at the wine making process there from start to finish.

Scott Peterson has a degree in Enology from the University of California, Davis (the science) and more than 25 years of wine making experience in California, Europe, and South America (the art). He is the owner and winemaker for S.P. Drummer and Rumpus Cellars Wines in Sonoma and Napa Valleys. The name S.P. Drummer derives from an important part of Scott’s childhood. Growing up in Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia, Scott played the drums for six years as a member of the Fife and Drum Corps. He became attached to the drums, which were reproductions of the original drums used during the 18th Century.

this vat is being pumped and aerated

Among the wines that Scott produces are from Napa, the S.P. Drummer Napa Valley Blair Vineyard, a blend of  Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc grapes; and the S.P. Drummer Oakville District, a  single varietal Cabernet Sauvignon; and from Sonoma,  the Rumpus Cellars Sonoma Coast Red; and an  S.P. Drummer Sonoma County Red.  

Scott in action

The next time you are in Sonoma, stop by the Rumpus Room in Sonoma Plaza  and taste where art meets science. You might even get to meet Scott!












 
We try to take cellar tours whenever we can while visiting wine regions, and this weekend we were lucky to be able to visit the private cellars of De Toren wines in Stellenbosch and get more insight into the wine making process of this fine South African wine. De Toren is the darling of our local expat community and one of our favorite wines we have tasted so far in South Africa. Not surprising since we love Bordeaux wine and they produce two fabulous signature Bordeaux style blended wines, the De Toren Fusion V and the De Toren Z.

Started in 1999, De Toren came on the scene with a drastic new method and philosophy of wine-making for South Africa. First up, the idea behind De Toren wine to create blended wines in the Bordeaux style. They grow five different varieties of grapes, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Merlot and Malbec. But instead of bottling them individually by grape variety as many SA winemakers do, they set out from the get-go to create Bordeaux style blends using all five varieties. Secondly their handling of the wine is different. The wine is moved through the wine-making process from tank to tank by gravity and siphoning instead of by pump. Pumping produces oxidation thereby changing the chemistry of the wine and they feel they have better control by using the more gentle means of gravity. The folks at De Toren can afford this luxury because of the size of the property and the focused concentration on their two primary wines.

To understand the difference in the goals of their two signature wines, we need a little French geography lesson. The main river running through Bordeaux is the Gironde; two smaller rivers, the Dordogne and the Garonne, feed into it. Together, the rivers are shaped almost like an upside-down Y. If you're standing in Bordeaux facing west, toward the ocean, the "Left Bank" is south of the Garonne and Gironde rivers, and the "Right Bank" is north of the Dordogne and Gironde Rivers. (The area in between is known as Entre-Deux-Mers "between two seas.")

Vince and Albie Koch, the De Toren Cellarmaster

While red Bordeaux wines are blended together from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot grapes, the Left Bank vineyards are dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon, while the Right Bank ones focus more on Merlot. This means that the Cabernet-based Left Bank wines tend to be a bit more tannic, while the Merlot-based Right Bank wines tend to have more restrained tannins. De Toren Fusion V, dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon, is made in the Bordeaux Left Bank style, while the Merlot-led De Toren Z, is made in the Bordeaux Right Bank style.

De Toren Fusion V was the first wine released, with the maiden vintage in 1999. The name refers to the ‘fusing’ together of the five Bordeaux varietals; Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Merlot and Malbec. The Fusion V vineyards have soils with a higher gravel content, favoring the growing of Cabernet Sauvignon, and receive long afternoon sun exposure resulting in deeper color and flavor intensities. Cabernet Sauvignon is the backbone of this wine and it makes up between 50-60% of the final blend.

just barreled 2013 vintage

De Toren Z was the second wine released, with the first vintage in 2004. The name “Z” refers to the ‘Zephyr’ wind; the cooling sea breeze that sweeps its way through this specific vineyard block, which has adopted the same name. Similar to De Toren's Fusion V, the blend comprises the five noble Bordeaux varietals, but the block’s soil, which is higher in clay content, lends itself more to the flavor profiles of Merlot. Its early ripening characteristics, lower tannin content and more fruit-forward flavors make up the backbone of this wine; a minimum of 50% of the final blend.

They had just finished crating up their 2011 vintage so we ordered a case each of the 2010 Fusion V and the 2011 Z to be sent back to Joburg. Our little expat community will be so very pleased at our next braai!