The Foundry label was established by Chris Williams (before he joined Meerlust as Head Winemaker) in 2001. He made the first vintage at Joostenberg Wines in an old farm workshop that became affectionately known as “The Foundry”.

The Grenache Blanc, being a multiple Platter’s 5 Star award winner, is The Foundry’s most well known wine. Grenache Blanc is the white mutation of the much more common red grape, Grenache Noir. Typical varietal characters are ripe stone fruit and floral notes with a touch of rich texture on the palate with a mineral finish.

From the early 2000s until 2019 the wines were made at Meerlust in Stellenbosch. As of vintage 2020, when he left Meerlust, Chris has been devoted to The Foundry full time, and has moved the winemaking to the farm based on the Voor-Paardeberg next to the Grenache Blanc vineyard.

The grapes are sourced from a vineyard next to The Foundry’s home farm in Voor Paardeberg and managed by Chris Williams. Grown on Malmesbury shale and decomposed granite, these trellised vines allow us to precisely manage the canopy to enhance fruit, complexity and balance.

Hand harvested and cooled overnight, this was whole-bunch pressed to restrain phenolics, yet was fermented with a high percentage of solids to give breadth and definition to the palate. 55 % was fermented in seasoned tight grain French oak Allier and Compiègne hogsheads and 45% of the wine in 500 and 1000 litre terracotta clay doliums preserving the crystalline purity and minerality of the wine before bottling after 7 months elevage on lees.

The Foundry Grenache Blanc 2021 has lifted floral aromas with hints of lemon cream and white stone fruit and an ethereal crushed rock minerality. The palate is linear and focused with clean grapefruit and quince fruit flavours, minerally mid palate with characteristic rich, fleshy mouthfeel and texture and has a long finish with a pleasant lingering pithiness.