Quinta Essentia is a partnership between Betz Family Winery, Carl van der Merwe, a leading winemaker in South Africa and Wendy Appelbaum, the owner of DeMorgenzon. We've set out to re-discover and resurrect compelling low yielding old bush vine Chenin Blanc vineyards in Stellenbosch South Africa. Our vision is to craft wine that expresses this unique terroir. Chenin Blanc is quintessentially South African- distinctive, aromatic, intense on the palate with an acid backbone that leaves you wanting more.
Date Founded: 2015
Why Quinta Essentia:
Ancient wisdom held that four elements, Air, Earth, Fire and Water, constitute the world, and that various combinations of these elements could create all objects and substances. The existence of the four elements implied that there must be an additional “fifth element", the “Quinta Essentia”. The Quinta Essentia was the aether itself; the substance that the heavens were made of. It was considered to be eternal, immutable and the source of all things. Philosophers have debated Quinta Essentia for centuries. No-one has managed to explain it conclusively. The search for vineyards with the potential to make an ethereal wine is just as elusive. Trying to solve this mystery is what makes winemaking so special. It’s about possibility and the journey, not the destination. We invite you to be part of our voyage of discovery.
The Search for our First Vineyard:
The road winds between towering trees, heading towards the majestic Helderberg mountain. The foothills come into view, clothed in the rich diversity of the fabled Cape Fynbos. Cossetted in the natural shrubbery are a number of carefully laid out vineyards parcels. One wonders what motivated the people who originally planted these vineyards in such a beautiful corner of the Cape. The vines, all Chenin Blanc, have now reached a gentle old age. The unspoilt valley has served as protection from the winds that can devastate some vineyards on the Helderberg. This site is famous for fat, but deadly, puff-adders and Cape Cobras who find their way out of the mountains hunting mice in between the vines. Marauding baboons are summer visitors when the heady scent of the ripening grapes call, and the rare Cape Leopard still stalks here. Walking through the vines, the scent of the embracing fragrant fynbos and the buzz of bees and cicadas abound in this habitat supported by the wealth of diversity offered by the unspoilt mountains. Were just about to discover our first vineyard....
4 vineyards:
Electric Granite:
The hill provides a great vista of False Bay which is less than 3 miles away. A persistent breeze blows off the ocean. We find ourselves experiencing the breeze before it has been tempered by the hills and warmth of the interior. The wind blows here incessantly, and at times can be fierce. The vineyards are diminutive, 35 year old bushvines, grown on a structured 100% weathered granite soil. Their leaves are the smallest of all the vineyards. They have thickened in response to the constant pressure of the wind. In addition to the incessant wind off the ocean, low soil nutrient have constrained the growth of these vines. The bunches are small and very compact with hard crunchy berries full of freshness and brightness. One can almost taste the crispness of the sea air in the fruit. This combination of yellow fruit and this freshness gives the resultant wines a natural tension, almost a nervousness, that can only be attributed to the windy conditions and granitic soils, hence the name Electric Granite. Electric granite brings a tension and mid palate structure to the wine. The finished wine displays a caramelized honey character and a wonderful taught mouthfeel.
Mountain's Edge: Fortitude:
A parcel of vines here exemplifies the most beautiful of vine structures - old bush vines that have been trained into basket shapes. These gnarled old vines exude a sense of gravitas and strength. With strong upright limbs they bear their bunches high off the ground and, with open arms, receive the sun from above. This sunlight penetrates the fruiting zone, whilst the height of the vine structure bears the fruit away from the heat radiating off the soil surface allowing preservation of tropical fruit flavours. The bunches are slightly larger here, and the vines seem to have more access to water and nutrients. This is evident in the size of the vines and the general strength of the block. There is a feeling of youthful vigour and vivacity here despite the fact that these vines are over 35 years old. The grapes burst with flavor and this same heady fruit character, of tropical fruits and yellow stone fruit is transferred into the resultant wine. The palate shows breadth and weight and serves as a fuller more fruit concentrated component in The Aether.
Mountain's Edge: The Sands
In the valley below us a timeless stream flows, having left large deposits of weathered sandstone on top of a bed of granite bedrock. Close to the stream there is one particular vineyard that shows a particular will to survive. Sand drains quickly, with the result that these vines have had to force their roots deep between the fissures of the weathered granite to search for valuable water needed during the growing season. The bunches and berries are smaller than usual. The berries show exceptional turgor and having developed a very thick skin in their struggle for survival in these dry alluvial deposits. They taste wonderfully balanced with a scintillating acidity. Pressing these grapes in the cellar confirms the same freshness and and taste. The fruit from ‘The Sands’ gives Quinta Essentia a persistant acidity and base of white fruit. Whilst the fruit profile is under played, it’s the incredible persistence and length of the wine that makes this vineyard such an important component of the blend.
First Light
Bathed in gentle morning sunlight this vineyard basks in the radiance of the early morning sunshine. Facing South East and with rows orientated in such a way that the vineyards are offered the best vantage of the morning sunlight, this site results in a gentle and slower ripening given the softness of the morning sunlight. Terraced vineyards allow each vine to have optimal exposure to the rising morning sun and minimal shading from the opposite vines. Very little wind movement as a result of protection from surrounding hills suggest why this vineyard still shows such great vigor after nearly 50 years. The bunches are larger here with a beautiful translucence. One can almost see through the berries as they bask in the morning sunshine. The berries here burst with gentle crisp flavors of citrus, pineapple and yellow apples. Flavors that would have been lost in a warmer or slightly harsher environment. The bunches yield a little more juice here and the wine shows a great balance and length on the palate...a gentleness and elegance unique to this site. The soil is granitic of origin with a good percentage of organic material keeping the vines in top health. First Light brings the all-important elegance and balance to the Quinta Essentia. It provides crunchy flavours of Citrus and Pineapple with a background of white flower honey.
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Betz Family Besoleil is made from 55% Grenache, 23% Mourvèdre, 11% Syrah and the rest Cinsault,
Grenache is the star of Besoleil, but it's not the whole story. Additional southern Rhone varieties have found their way into the blend and today the wine includes Counoise, Cinsault, Syrah and Mourvèdre . Our cellar treatment has also evolved in several ways in order to promote additional nuance from these southern Rhone gems. Larger, neutral oak cooperage of 300 and 500 liters provides less surface-to-volume ratio, resulting in slower evolution and less oak influence in the final wine. Aging up to two-thirds of the blend in concrete vessels helps maintain a bright, fresh fruit character.
The story of Besoleil begins with our long-held belief that a precise marriage of soil and site can produce a profound expression of Grenache in Washington. We put that belief to the test with Besoleil's first vintage in 2003. While the Grenache in the earliest vintages of Besoleil was sourced from various vineyards throughout the Columbia Valley, two sites in particular (Olsen Vineyards in the Yakima Valley and Upland Vineyards on Snipes Mountain) have excelled as uniquely distinctive for Grenache. These two sites are the sources for the entirety of the Grenache in Besoleil today.
Besoleil is our Spanish/French whimsy for "kissed by the sun". It alludes to the warm, sunny days in the south of France that impart an intensity of character to the Grenache grape and its southern Rhone relatives. Imagine the windswept vineyards of Chhateauneuf-du-Pape, the inspiration for this wine, where Grenache thrives alongside a dozen or more other grape varieties.
Review:
"Grenache makes up 46% of this wine, with Mourvèdre and Counoise each accounting for 24% and the balance being Syrah. With the majority of the fruit coming from Olsen Vineyard in Yakima Valley, the aromas explode from the glass, with notes of raspberry, smoked meat, huckleberry and white pepper. The palate has dense, textured, layered fruit flavors but still remains fleet of foot. There is a compelling sense of freshness and texture to it. It's a complete dazzler. - SEAN P. SULLIVAN"
- Wine Enthusiast (March 2020), 94 pts
This is a Grenache blend coming from Red Heaven Vineyard on Red Mountain. The name refers to the ramparts surround the City of Avignon in Southern France.
Hand harvested, sorted upon arrival, destemmed, concrete fermentation, combination of punch downs and pump overs, no racked often, 20 day maceration, 18 months in neutral French oak, no fining or filtering, free-run juice, no RS.
Pair with pork rillettes, smoked salmon, goat cheese.
Review:
"The Ramparts offers lots of up-front red and black fruits as well as spicy, peppery, underbrush nuances, medium to full body, fine tannins, and a soft, pure, layered, already hard-to-resist style."
92-94 points -Jeb Dunnuck