Testalonga The Dark Side Syrah 2022
Type: Red
Country: South Africa
Region: Swartland
Grape Variety: 100% Syrah
Viticulture: Natural Wine | Biodynamic | Organic Farming
Climate: Dry Mediterranean climate
Terroir: 35 years old vines planted on granite, gravel soil
Winemaking: 100% whole bunches in open 1500 litre tanks, pressed after 10 days and then matured four 500L old French oak barrels
Color: Deep red
Nose: Subdued with subtle notes of red and black fruit, flowers and white pepper
Palate: Floral with violets and white pepper sailing on a sea of crunchy red fruit. Slippery tannins and pure, precise fruit seam together effortlessly with a super finish
About the Winery:
The wines of Testalonga defy convention in a lot of ways. Craig and Carla Hawkins have never been accused of being “followers” and their wines represent the avant-garde of South African wine.
The Testalonga wines in some ways have come a long way since the first vintage, and in other ways, they remain steadfastly true to the principles upon which the project was established 12 years ago. In our opinion, they are the leaders in natural wine production in South Africa.
Craig and Carla seek purity, precision and brightness in their wines and only work with vineyards that can produce high-quality grapes (with relatively low pH) ensuring that there is minimal need for intervention in the cellar. A herbicide- and pesticide-free approach in the vineyard is essential to their goals. They work with cover crops rather than chemical fertilisers in the winter to ensure moisture retention and general soil health in the dry Swartland climate. Expressing vineyard is key, so all the wines are a single variety from a single site.
In the cellar, there is no yeast, enzymes or acid added. The whites are whole-bunch pressed and then fermented in either stainless steel, Foudre or small oak. The skin fermented white wines are destemmed and then fermented on skins for 7-14 days in wrapped open-top fermenters before being pressed to old wood. The reds are fermented whole-bunch and usually pressed after 3-4 days. A minuscule amount of SO2 may be added before bottling.
