ABOUT
Cultellus is a derivative of the Latin word ‘culter’ meaning knife. It means a small knife or dagger, referring to the appearance of the razor blade looking schist in the vineyard. Francois has had an unbelievable run with this wine starting with the 2015 vintage. The 2017 is a long overdue release of a Platter 5-star Syrah, showcasing the iron-rich, minerally schist of the Papkuilsfontein Vineyard just southeast of Malmesbury on the Kasteelberg.

The bunches were handpicked and 40% were destemmed with the rest left as whole bunches. The destemmed fruit was placed in the bottom with the whole-clusters on top in a single one-ton fermenter and fermented without any additions. Manual hand-plunging was used to keep the ferment going and for extraction. After three weeks the wine was pressed directly to old 300L French barrels. After 18 months the wine was racked off the fine lees and bottled without fining or filtration and just a small addition of sulfur.

DATA
Grapes: 100% Syrah
Vineyard: Papkuilsfontein Vineyard
Vine Age: 18-years-old
Soil Type: Iron-rich schist
Viticulture: Practicing Organic – dryfarmed
Fermentation: Native – stainlesssteel (60% whole-cluster)
Skin Contact: 3 weeks
Aging: 18 months in old 300L French
oak
Alcohol: 13.7%
pH: 3.8
Total Acidity: 6 g/L
Total SO2: 50 ppm
Total Production: 100 cases
UPC: 6009879826012

TASTING NOTE
In the glass, the wine is filled with notes of cassis, blackberry, smoked meat, and lavender. It transforms in the mouth to reveal plenty of underlying black pepper spice, further showcased by firm tannins. It is incredibly savory with a beautifully silky finish.