2014  

Western Cape, South Africa Syrah, Grenache, and Cinsault -- Duncan Savage introduced his own label Savage Wines in 2011. Duncan’s goal is to produce classic and elegant wines. Through his time at Cape Point Vineyards, Duncan has grown to understand maritime vineyards and this knowledge led him to source grapes from maritime and high altitude vineyard sites. He was also inspired by many great older reds from South Africa and abroad that have stood the test of time with moderate alcohol and gentle extraction. The small hand selected parcels of fruit are meticulously sourced from a number of vineyards around the Western Cape. About the name Follow the Line, Duncan became terribly lost while going for the first time to have a look at some Cinsault vineyards he was interested in. He called the farmer for directions who just told him to "volg net die f*kken foon lyn," which loosely translates to follow the line, which he did and managed to find the vineyard.

2013  Swartland

A.A. Badenhorst is the result of one family’s long-term love affair with wine. The estate is owned by cousins Adi and Hein Badenhorst - their grandfather was the farm manager of Groot Constantia for 46 years and their fathers grew up on the estate. A graduate of Elsenburg College in South Africa, Adi moved overseas to work harvests at Chateau Angelus, Alain Graillot and Wither Hills in New Zealand. He returned to South Africa and worked at Simonsig, Steenberg and Groote Post before his appointment as winemaker for Rustenberg, the highly regarded estate in Stellenbosch. The Swartland appellation of South Africa has become ground central for a small, but influential group of talented young winemakers who are establishing new boundaries for South African wines. A.A. Badenhorst is located in the Siebritskloof area of the Paardeberg mountain range in Swartland. In 2008, after working with Rustenberg for nine years, Hein and Adi bought a dilapidated 148 acre farm called Kalmoesfontein for its 62 acres of old bush vines. Their Cinsault (Cape Hermitage) and Grenache vines are some of the oldest in the country - the average age is 45 years old and 58 years respectively - and their Chenin Blanc is on average 40 years old. The vineyards are dry-farmed and biodynamic methods are practiced throughout the farm. The vineyards are particularly noteworthy for their exposition - instead of facing one direction; the parcels were planted on east, north and south facing slopes. The soils are composed of low-bearing Paardeberg, Lammershoek or Lemoenfontein granite. While Adi and Hein have modernized the cellar and the 1930’s farm house, Adi’s winemaking methods are traditional. All the wines begin with whole bunches. The white grapes are transferred directly into old casks or concrete tanks for fermentation and aging. The red grapes are fermented in concrete tanks or wood casks. Minimal sulfur is added before and after fermentation, otherwise, no other stabilizers or chemicals of any kind are used. Both A.A. Badenhorst estate wines are made in the same manner. The grapes were sorted in the vineyard and placed in refrigerated containers to rest overnight. The whole bunches were fermented naturally in concrete or wood tanks - the grapes weren’t mechanically crushed, but trodden by foot and minimal sulfur was added. Once fermentation began, the must was punched down twice per day and then left on its skins for six months before pressing. The wine was pressed into 4000L casks and aged for 16 months, during which time the wine was topped regularly but not racked until the final blends are complete.