Van Loggerenberg Vintage 2020

Ex Animo is pleased to facilitate the release of the 2020 vintage from the cellar of Lukas van Loggerenberg. The early reviews so far have been extraordinary, with Christian Eedes giving the Trust Your Gut Chenin Blanc 98 points.

The 2020 vintage enjoyed the benefit of being made in Lukas’s new, more spacious cellar space in Paarl, with fruit being sourced mainly from Stellenbosch, but with additional important blocks from the Swartland.

On the down side, Lukas has said goodbye to the vineyard in Paarl that had supplied the fruit for the famed Kameraderie Chenin Blanc. A combination of fire (smoke) damage and a change of ownership has unfortunately put a line under that chapter of Van Loggerenberg Wines. But all is not lost! Lukas has sourced another spectacular old Chenin Blanc vineyard to continue the Kameraderie label. This one is in the Paardeberg, and will feature from the 2021 vintage. There are also plans underfoot to expand the Van Loggerenberg top range by a couple of new wines, but more on that at a later date.

Lukas: “The winter leading up to the 2020 ripening season had a better rainfall compared to the previous 4 vintages resulting in slightly larger crop for our growers. The vintage was tricky but through continued involvement in the vineyards we were able to pick the grapes at the optimal time in order to create wines that have great freshness, finesse and beautiful fruit generosity.“

Notes by Lukas

From Stellenbosch bush vines planted in 1992 on decomposed granite in close proximity to the ocean and farmed specifically for the production of Blanc de Noir. In the cellar, the wine is fermented in 500l old oak  barrel and left on the lees for between four and eight months before bottling.
“Subtle aromatics of red cherry, apple, orange and spice. The palate is juicy and fresh – there’s a slight impression of sweetness upfront but the finish is gently savoury. Very open and engaging.” – Christian Eedes, Winemag

From fruit on the Polkadraai Hills grown on decomposed granite soil, whole bunch presses and naturally fermented in stainless steel tanks at a cool temperature. After malolactic fermentation, the wine spent 10 moths on the lees before bottling. 0% oak.
“The nose shows some struck-matched reduction before pear, lemon with a little oatmeal character in the background. The palate shows wonderful balance with lovely fruit purity, zesty acidity and a pithy finish. Light-bodied and ultra-refreshing.” – Christian Eedes, Winemag

Fruit sourced from dryland farmed vineyards in the Upper Blaauwklippen valley of the Helderberg. De-stemmed grapes were naturally fermented with a single pump over every day for two weeks. After pressing, the wines went through malolactic fermentation in 2nd fill French barriques before bottling in December 2020.
“The nose shows dark berries plus subtle notes of violets and fresh herbs while the palate has good fruit density, bright acidity and a nicely dry finish (alcohol is 14% so by no means under-ripe). While so many local examples have something more or less discordant about them, this is really well judged.“ – Christian Eedes, Winemag

The grapes for this Chenin Blanc is sourced from 2 different regions , 60% of the wine from the Paardeberg area of the Swartland (farmed by Theuns Muller) and about 40% from Karibib Farm (Jozua Joubert) in the Polkadraai Hills area of Stellenbosch. The Paardeberg vineyards is planted on decomposed granite and adds to the wine’s focus and elegance whereas the Polkadraai vineyards which are planted on granite soils lends characteristics of yellow fruit and depth to the wine. Grapes were whole bunch pressed and fermented naturally. The wine was aged in 500L french oak barrels for 10 months. We would suggest ageing a few bottles for a couple of years as the previous vintages are really only showing their true colours after a few years.
“The nose shows citrus and peach with slight notes of struck match, wet wool, and talcum powder in the background. The palate, meanwhile, is extraordinarily compact and concentrated with bracing acidity and a finish that goes on and on. It’s a wonderfully precise, well-proportioned, and nuanced wine. 98/100“ – Christian Eedes, Winemag

This vintage is probably the most concentrated yet and has beautiful flavours of red fruit with spice to end off. 100% Cinsaut from 2 different parcels planted on Rustenhof farm in the Firgrove area of Stellenbosch. The bush vine vineyards were planted in 1978 and 1992 and are dryland farmed. The soils are decomposed granite with underlying sandstone. The grapes were fermented naturally (60% whole-bunch) with one punch down per day. The wine was then aged for 9 months in old French barrels and bottled slightly earlier than our other wines to capture the crunchy fruit vibrancy of the cinsaut.
“Subtle and ethereal aromatics – initially pretty notes of rose, herbs, red currant, raspberry, and plums but darker berries, olive, and spice come to the fore with time in the glass. The palate has pure fruit, invigorating acidity, and fine yet grippy tannins. Great structure – neither too frivolous nor too brutish. Very well-judged. 95/100“ – Christian Eedes, Winemag

We are inspired by the Cabernet Francs of the Loire region and strive to make a wine that is true to the vintage and terroir without interfering too much in the cellar.
The wine is made from 2 sites in the Polkadraai area of Stellenbosch, farmed by Danie Carinus and Pierre Winshaw. The vineyards are planted on decomposed granite with a koffieklip top layer. 50% of the grapes were whole bunch fermented and aged in 500L old French oak barrels for 10 months. The destemmed portion was left on the skins for 2 weeks to add depth of flavour.
“Striking aromatics of red and blackberries, olive, herbs, tomato leaf, and a hint of violets. The palate is medium-bodied and nicely poised – good fruit definition, fresh acidity, and some crunch to the tannins (alcohol is 13%). 94/100“ – Christian Eedes, Winemag

The grapes from this vineyard continue to astound us and picking day is always one of the highlights of our harvest. Grapes for the wine come from a farm called Karibib in the Polkadraai Hills which is farmed by Jozua Joubert. The soils are granitic in nature. The fruit was 100% whole bunch fermented and aged in French barrels for 10 months. The wine is made in very limited quantities.
“On the nose, a heady mix of red and black berries, pepper, dried herbs, olive, and violets while the palate has good weight, fresh acidity and firm but by no means coarse tannins – a dense and savoury affair (alcohol is 13.5%). 95/100” – Christian Eedes, Winemag