Fusion News

THE NEWSLETTER OF           

DE TOREN PRIVATE CELLAR

August 2003

"Show time" for De Toren Private Cellar

Decanter on Fusion V 2000

The second part of the year is usually show time in South Africa. With very little  Fusion V left to sell, the upcoming shows will allow you to taste the 2001 vintage just before it is all sold out. We decided to show our wines only at 3 very prestigious events in South Africa.

· Caroline's Red Wine Review: Caroline Rillema of Caroline's Fine Wine Cellars, annually selects her choice of the 50 best red wines in South Africa. These producers showed their wines this year at the Holiday Inn, Cape Town on 30 July  2003.

Michael Fridjohn organises this premiere event in both Cape Town and Johannesburg. The Cape Town show will be from 3 to 5 September at the new Cape Town Convention Centre and from 28 to 30 October in the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg.

We have also just returned from the Aspen Food and Wine Show in Colorado USA (12 - 14 June 2003) and we will also be exhibiting at Wijnbeurs in Utrecht, Netherlands on 7 and 8 September 2003. Please diarise the future dates and events. We will be there personally to meet you and introduce you to our new Products - Diversity and De Toren Blackberry Liqueur and of course to taste De Toren Fusion V 2001.

In July 2003 Decanter Magazine gave a Guide to South African Cabernets. Following are excerpts from the article, relating in particular to De Toren Fusion V.

"Fine, elegant Cabernet bouquet. Elegant style, fine and good depth, (very) good in this range - good touch of terroir; 2 -10 years"  Stephen Spurrier's description of Fusion V 2000.

Cabernet Sauvignon has vastly improved in South Africa over the last decade, although STEPHEN BROOK feels that the grape's future lies in blends.

Fusion V 2000 was awarded ˜˜˜ ˜ and was "Highly Recommended" by Decanter Magazine in July 2003.

"Although there is no doubt that spectacularly tasty Cabernet Sauvignon can be produced in South Africa, I suspect the future lies in blends, such as among others, the gorgeous Fusion V from De Toren" writes Stephen Brook in the same article (July 2003).

DIVERSITY is fast following in the footsteps of big brother Fusion V. Wine Magazine S.A. in its May 2003 issue recommended DIVERSITY BETA (2001) as a "smart investment". "Who knew that De Toren had a second wine? The story's in Update (page 81) but the wine is a worthy stable companion to Fusion V - complex poised, concentrated and elegant." writes the panel who selects the canniest purchases from all the wines reviewed. At around $ 22.00 a bottle, a smart investment. DIVERSITY ALPHA (2000) garnered ˜˜˜ Stars from the same panel and was released in June 2003. See the Dutch review on Diversity Alpha, paired with game on page three.                                                 We have a couple of cases left!

Selecting only the very best (The Secrets of our Success, Part 4)

The 2003 harvest saw high tech harvesting methods for the first time. We subscribed to "aerial imaging." Aerial imaging is when low flying aircraft take high resolution photographs of your vineyard. The imaging is so good that each individual vine can be examined. The technology is very new for vineyards and we are still learning, with the University of Stellenbosch, on how to interpret the results. Photographs are taken with various lenses and filters to give different interpretations in the vineyard. These filters can express vigour in the vineyard as well as infra red emissions from the vineyard.

We initially employed the technology to establish unevenness in a block. From the image above and the colour variations in the block, various patches of different colours can be observed. Soil analysis were done in these areas and this identified certain chemical deficiencies.

Over the next couple of years these areas will be treated and the aim is to get the same colour throughout the block. More important and with immediate results was the decision by our viticulturist Ernest Manuel to demarcate the areas just prior to harvesting. Each area was harvested separately and vinified separately. Twelve parcels of this 6 ha block was vinified separately and with stunning results. We have now managed to separate top quality Cabernet Sauvignon from good quality. 2003 should see us moving up the quality bar once again.

De Toren Natural Blackberry Liqueur Our Blackberry Liqueur has proved to be very popular. It is great to drink just on its own or have it especially over vanilla ice cream! Some cocktail makers have made some interesting cocktails. Below we have a recipe for one such cocktail. Be sure to try it. Drink: Bramble Glass: Rocks Ingredients: 40ml Tanqueray Gin 15ml De Toren Blackberry  Liqueur 25ml Lemon Juice 15ml GOMME (Sugar Syrup) Method: Fill glass with crushed ice and add Gin, Lemon and Gomme. Stir well, add more ice and float De Toren Blackberry Liqueur on top. Garnish: Lemon slice and fresh blackberry. ------ ENJOY!	OUR NEW VITICULTURIST Ernest Manuel joined us in March 2003 as our viticulturist in charge of all farming related activities. It is not often that one finds a full time viticulturist on a small property like De Toren. In keeping with our philosophy that our wine is made in the vineyard, we could justify such a luxury. Ernest was the General Manager for a 64ha mixed farming practice in Paarl, before he joined De Toren. He is really keen on wine and has already completed various wine tasting courses. He brings with him a wealth of knowledge in grape farming and he faces many new challenges and different strategies at De Toren. The marriage of his experience and our progressive thinking should auger well for the future. We look forward to taste Ernest's contribution from our 2004 vintage.	2003 Harvest Update by Albie Koch New Vines: This year our own Malbec kicked off the harvest. Good intense flavours and deep red color came from this, only our second crop, from our own vines. The first vintage of the newly planted Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet franc resulted in excellent quality. Good management in the vineyard, had us cropping a lot of uneven grapes during verraison and the reward was in the winery with excellent flavours and aromas. Look out for these varietals in 2003 Diversity. Old Vines:Vigorous crop thinning early in the season resulted in a very low yield for our Merlot. All 4 the clones were harvested and vinified separately and it looks very good for Fusion V 2003. Very selected harvesting resulted in10 different tanks of Cabernet Sauvignon from our 14 year old block. This  method of harvesting ensured that we could select only the very best for the 2003 Fusion V. The 2003 vintage wasn’t  the easiest harvest in my short few years experience but in the end the components of the different cultivars really showed their steel Our first barrel tasting was conducted during the first week of August. At this stage we are delighted especially with our Cabernet Sauvignon and Cab franc.
De Toren Fusion V 2002 Blend Finalised The blending process at De Toren differs from most wineries. Although maestro Albie Koch gives direction on the blend, the final blend decision is made by lovers of Fusion V. This year we reached consensus after three tasting sessions with different panels each time. The final blend is Cabernet Sauvignon 60%, Cabernet franc 8%, Merlot 14%, Malbec 14%, Petit Verdot 4%. Below we see this year's panel: L to R: (Back) Kevin Arnold, Emil den Dulk, George Milliotes (USA), Nigel Cattermole, Gary Shearer, Leslie Berman (Front) Allan Mullins, Albie Koch, Henry Kempen, Anelle van der Vyver.	Diversity Alpha pairs well with game dishes. This is the finding of the wine panel of Misset Horeca at Engelenburg in Brumen, Netherlands. South African game is a great challenge for game loving chef’s says Herzog Olivier who presented three game dishes; Carpaccio of Ostrich, Sosatie of Springbok fillet with "chutney" sauce and Blesbok fillet with honey mustard and “Rooibos tea” sauce and carrot salad. The tasting started with 3 pinotages: Kamsberg 2001 from Swartland Winery, Nederburg Pinotage 2000 and Hoopenburg Pinotage 2000. All the pinotages suited game but the Hoopenburg was their choice pairing with the Carpaccio. Out of Shiraz they chose Neil Ellis Shiraz 2001, Stellenzicht Syrah 1999 and La Motte Shiraz 1999. The best shiraz chosen was the Neil Ellis for its matching with the Springbok fillet which had a “rooibos tea” sauce. Meinert Merlot 2000 opened the flight for Merlots, followed by Thelema Merlot 1999 and then Meerlust Merlot 1997. The Thelema Merlot was best in the flight because it went so well with the more complex dishes of Springbok and Blesbok.	For Cabernet Sauvignon they chose Fleur de Cap Unfiltered Cabernet Sauvignon 1998, Kleine Zalze Cabernet Sauvignon 2000 and Diversity Alpha 2000. The Diversity Alpha was applauded for its intense flavours and full body and because it really suited all three the dishes gracefully. Best wine of the 12 to go with South African Game: Diversity Alpha 2000 from Stellenbosch. Price € 7,95 Visit our Website www.de-toren.com Email us at:           info@de-toren.com Phone us at:          +27(0)21 881 3119 Fax us at:              +27(0)21 881 3335   Until next time....               Emil and Sonette den Dulk DE TOREN PRIVATE CELLAR Polkadraai Road, Stellenbosch, South Africa

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