Luddite Chenin Blanc 2021

Rich, pale straw hue. Spicy, greengage, savoury and nutty. After a while nose opens up to give hints of white fruit;  pears and peaches. Grippy textured entry.  Amazing palate weight and mouth feel for the low alcohol.  Finishes with white fruit, spice and a salty minerality.

“Our 10th vintage . . . hooray!?  We continue to polish our established house style that works for our Chenin Blanc.  Keeping it simple, crush, destalk and allowing it to naturally ferment in open fermenters.  This vintage saw the added excitement of our new Chenin block bearing its first real crop and then the pressure to see if it would be good enough to make it into the final blend.

Once fermentation starts, we punch down twice a day to keep the ferment homogenous. After fermentation, we seal the bins and allow post maceration for as long as we can sleep comfortably without wondering what’s happening inside the bins_ This vintage took 21 days on skins before our nerves broke.

We press directly to barrel with as much sediment as possible.  This allows the wine to fill out and add texture with our regular batonnaging.

The Chenin is an outlet for the geek in Niels, allowing him to remember himself as a stamp collector. Precise, patient but allowing the wine to speak for itself. The 2021 vintage is leaner than most years due to a higher natural acidity which seems to be coming from the new “Dog Block” portion and this balances out the slightly riper fruit than previous vintages. This wine still remains a very thought-provoking wine.”