The Sadie Family - Rotsbank 2023
The Sadie Family Estate is located in the Swartland region of South Africa . Prior to his career as a winemaker and after a stint as a surfer, Eben Sadie travelled and worked in several wine regions around the world, including Germany, Austria, Italy, Oregon and Burgundy. Returning to South Africa, he found employment alongside Charles Back at The Spice Route in 1998. The Sadie Family was founded in 1999, with the two first vintages produced at The Spice Route facilities. The company consists of three employees, in addition to Eben Sadie, his brother and sister and the vineyards extend over some 24 hectares, including mountain plots and plains coastal. Due to the diversity of the terroirs, a wide range of grape varieties can be planted, such as Palomino, Tinta Barroca or Sémillon. All vineyards are managed according to the principles of organic and biodynamic viticulture . Different fermentation tanks are used in the cellar: from classic oak barrels and tuns to concrete amphorae or ovoid tanks.
Rotsbank is made from Chenin Blanc , grown in the Paardeberg on a terroir of decomposed granite on a shallow bedrock (30 to 50 cm in some places). The whole bunches are put into direct pressing and then the juice is transferred to old tuns for fermentation. The wine is aged for 12 months on lees in tuns .
Grape variety: 100% Chenin Blanc