Spioenkop Johanna Brandt Chenin Blanc 2019

Spioenkop is run by Koen and Lore Roose, a Belgian couple settled in the Elgin Valley on South Africa's cool southern coast. The wine is named for Johanna Brandt, the South African writer and Boer War nurse and spy. Elgin is one of the coolest wine districts in the Cape, high and close to the ocean, and that cool climate slows ripening so the Chenin Blanc holds acidity and orchard fruit definition rather than tropical ripeness. Chenin is naturally high in acid, which lets it take barrel ageing without losing freshness. Eleven months in French oak brings gentle oxygen exchange through the staves, along with lees contact that releases mannoproteins and builds a rounder, creamier texture. The oak reads as spice and structure rather than overt vanilla. It is bright gold in the glass, with pear, baked apple, beeswax and toasted almond on the nose. The palate is textured and dry, with a savoury, nutty finish carried by firm acidity. Serve at 10 to 12 degrees in a larger white glass.