wine info
Cederberg, South Africa
The redoubtable David Nieuwoudt took over the Cederberg estate from his father in 1997. We first visited David in 2003, when he was in the midst of his planting programme, and have worked with him ever since then.
The Cederberg vineyards here are 1100-1150 metres up in the Cederberg mountains, most of them on dramatic shale slopes. Good natural rainfall, around 550-600mm, cool temperatures (occasionally there are snow-showers in winter), with plenty of wind, mean that Cederberg enjoys a near perfect climate, in particular a long ripening period. The whites are mountain-fresh, with plentiful natural acidity, and carefully crafted using reductive winemaking to preserve that brightness of fruit. In recent years we have also shipped more of David’s impressively concentrated and well-oaked reds.
David is a restless perfectionist. In pursuit of new projects he has bought land in windswept Elim (see below) in the far south of the country on slate and granitic soils: from there tons of Ghost Corner grapes are trucked up to the state of the art winery at Cederberg. On the side he also makes wine in Chile. But just as important is his fine tuning of the vineyards at Cederberg. Old blocks are being ripped out, replanted with the right vines (on, vitally, the right acid-tolerant rootstocks) in the right sites: Sauvignon Blanc on sandstone, Syrah on schist and Cabernet on clay. The rows are being subtly realigned by 8 degrees; and he has made the aesthetically pleasing but costly decision to take down the baboon fences on his isolated parcels, instead employing staff to keep them away. Here are wines made by a very focussed winemaker at the peak of his game.
Related Wines
-
Cederberg, Bukettraube, Cederberg, 2019 (Screwcap)
“"Cederberg produce a well-made, exotically-fruited version with around 25g/l residual sugar", Jancis Robinson , Wine Grapes, 2012. We...”
-
Cederberg, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cederberg, 2018
“In the cool mountain vineyards Cabernet enjoys a long ripening period, excellent for aromatics. From twenty year old vines on largely west-facing...”
-
Cederberg, Chenin Blanc, Cederberg, 2019 (Screwcap)
“Always our benchmark wine at this estate - this is the 17th continuous vintage we have shipped. As usual, almost water white. Open, appealing scent...”
-
Cape Atlantic, Sauvignon Blanc, Western Cape, 2019 (Screwcap)
“We are the sole importers of this brilliantly charged and zippy SB, made by top Cape winemaker David Nieuwoudt at Cederberg. Although there is no...”
-
Cederberg, Shiraz, 2017
“David’s Shiraz is unfailingly spectacular: given plenty of extraction and 60% new oak, it’s deeply coloured, concentrated and well-structured but...”
-
Cederberg, V Generations Cabernet Sauvignon, 2017
“There’s usually only around 500 dozen released of David Nieuwoudt’s top red, based on a selection of the best barrels from one parcel of vines...”
-
MAGNUM Cederberg, Shiraz, Cederberg, 2016
“David Nieuwoudt's’s 2016 Shiraz won a slew of awards: SAwi (South African Wine index) 2018 Platinum, 100 points; Six Nations Wine Challenge...”
-
Ghost Corner, Wild Ferment Sauvignon Blanc, Elim, 2018 (Screwcap)
“From vines on slate, koffieklip and gravel at cool Cape Agulhas, this is David’s top Sauvignon: the 2017 vintage won the Sauvignon Blanc trophy in...”