Cabernet Sauvignon 54%; Petit Verdot 39%; Syrah 5%; Cabernet Franc 2%   The Keermont Companion Red is a blend of a handful of barrels that were left over after we had made up our Keermont wines for 2021. The components are in no way inferior to the components of the Keermont range, we simply had more barrels of them than were required. Interestingly, the combination has resulted in a very complete, balanced, and delicious wine.

VINIFICATION

All grapes used in producing our wines are grown on Keermont Vineyards. Most of the vineyard parcels grow on deep red clay rich soil derived from sandstone and granite and are surrounded by indigenous ‘fynbos’ vegetation. Our vineyards are planted on steep mid-slopes high up in the valley between the Stellenbosch and Helderberg mountain ranges. Aspects vary from North East through North to West facing between 250 and 400 meters above sea level. Small batches of grapes are specifically selected according to ripeness, harvested by hand and vinified separately. This process is carried out gently and naturally in open top fermenters using traditional methods only. This wine spent 22 months maturing in seasoned French oak barriques before being bottled by hand without filtration on 27/4/23. 1385 bottles were produced.

TASTING NOTE

Dark ruby red in colour, this vintage has a bouquet of red berry fruit, cassis, dustiness, and a hint of black pepper. The pallet is fine and structured. The tannins are firm, while the natural acidity keeps the ripe fruit in check. Notes of red fruit, cocoa and cloves linger into a long focussed finish. Best drinking:2026-2030.  

ANALYSIS

Alc: 14.0% pH: 3.56 TA: 5.3g/L RS: 1.9g/L TSO2: 106mg/L VA: 0.78g/L  

VINTAGE REPORT

2021 will be remembered as an excellent vintage at Keermont. Weather conditions were very favourable beginning with a good wet winter and spring through a very moderate growing season to a late cool and dry harvest. These factors, combined with a lot of hard work in the vineyards led to the development of a healthy, evenly ripened crop. Although our yields per hectare were not particularly high, the quality was very exciting. Grapes came in looking and tasting great with very good acidity and sugar levels. Picking and processing ran really smoothly thanks to lessons learned in previous vintages as well as a massive effort from the picking and winery teams. The Keermont winery crushed a total of 80 tons all sourced from our own vineyards.