Bruce Jack – Clairette Blanche ‘Off The Charts’ – 2023-24

PRODUCER NOTE:
Bruce Jack Wines is made up of a small, dynamic team which aims to celebrate authenticity and provenance, not just in the wine they craft, but in everything they do. Head winemakers Bruce Jack and Marlize Beyers have worked together for over two decades, since 2002, and both have extensive experience in many winemaking regions around the world. Human culture started at the tip of Africa, despite it being ‘off the charts’, so it is fitting that something as culturally rooted as wine should thrive there, inspiring the ‘Off the Charts’ wine range, crafted from grape varieties and regions that are South Africa’s viticultural cornerstones. The labels draw inspiration from the untamed majesty of the wilderness and the symbolic Basotho blanket. In 2023, Bruce Jack featured for the fourth consecutive year in the World’s Most Admired Wine Brands, an accolade awarded by the Drinks International.

VINTAGE:
Generally, winter was dry and warm with budbreak occurring early, around seven to 10 days earlier than usual. Spring and early summer growing conditions were favourable, with abundant rains just before véraison helping fruit quality. A cool and wet summer prolonged ripening and harvest with smaller berry sizes characterising the 2023 vintage in Breedekloof.

VINEYARD:
Some of the oldest Clairette Blanche vineyards in South Africa are found in the Breedekloof and the grapes for this wine come from a 36-year-old Clairette Blanche vineyard. The region is enclosed by three mountain ranges between the cool Atlantic Ocean and the warm Klein Karoo. The climate provides an ideal balance for a long hang time and a slower ripening of the grapes. The warm, ample sunshine allows the full development of the grape’s sugars and aromatic flavour, while the cooling influence from the surrounding mountains help retain natural acidity in the grapes, ensuring a fresh and vibrant wine profile.

WINEMAKING:
The grapes were painstakingly hand-sorted then destemmed into stainless steel fermenters for a cold soak. Fermentation on the skins lasted for six days at 12°C, with one gentle punch-down per day to wet the cap. This is an ‘orange wine’ without the orange colour, partly due to the variety, but mostly because oxygen was kept at bay during fermentation, to prevent the must from browning unnecessarily. The almost complete fermenting must was gently pressed using a basket press and fermentation was finished in neutral 228-litre Burgundy barrels, where a 20% underwent malolactic conversion before the cellar got too cold in autumn.

TASTING NOTE:
Delicious notes of nectarine and citrus layer with hints of vanilla, caramel and a delightful touch of toffee, intertwined with orange peel, almond and subtle hints of clove. Beautifully balanced, with flavours of lime and lemongrass leading to a bright and zesty finish.

GRAPE:
Clairette 85%, Chenin Blanc 15%.

COUNTRY:
South Africa

REGION:
Western Cape

SUB-REGION:
Breedekloof