Moon Twist Sauvignon Blanc 2019

Nitida Sauvignon Blanc Durbanville is made from 100 percent Sauvignon Blanc. 

A flavor kaleidoscope of rosy strawberry & raspberry parfait with vibrant nasturtium & naartjie skin. A "wallop" of herbaceous coriander, rocket & nettles is the perfect foil for creamy dessert peach & nutty almond.

Our label illustrations are hand drawn using inks made from our NITIDA tree leaves. Inspired by a Protea nitidus in our garden, they also feature local renosterveld plants and some of the creatures who share the farm with us. Inquisitive and majestic birds, adventurous and sometimes vicious mammals and a plethora of insects that make our corner of Durbanville renosterveld and special.

After four of the driest seasons on record, our Sauvignon blanc vines experienced phenolic ripeness earlier than expected. This kept us on our toes to make sure that we spent a lot of time in the vineyards
tasting grapes rather looking at chemical analysis to get the picking dates correct. This resulted in concentrated fruity components with lower than normal alcohol levels.
Around 85% of the grapes for this wine is sourced from Nitida farm itself, with the balance coming from the neighbouring farms to bring more complexity to this example of Durbanville terroir.
The grapes were harvested in 25 different pickings over a time span of 6 weeks. This gives us a variety of building blocks to create a complex Sauvignon blanc that reflects the riper tropical fruit flavors of the 2018
harvest, with green undertones that is traditional from the Durbanville terroir.

TECHNICAL DATA
Alcohol: 13.69%
Residual Sugar: 1.5g/L
Total Acidity: 5.9g/L
pH: 3.40
Extract: 20.06g/L

Tasted with wild mushroom risotto, and awakens a desire for ostrich and pecorino to impress.

Review:

"Excellent value at under R100, this has a lot of flavour and complexity for a wine at this price. Sappy, nettley and fresh, with notes of fresh asparagus and lemongrass and a crunchy, mouth-watering finish."

- Tim Atkin South Africa 2019 Special Report, 90 pts

Alain de la Treille Sauvignon Blanc is made from 100 percent Sauvignon Blanc.

This Sauvignon Blanc has a slight amber color with a fresh aromatic nose. Grassy and mineral flavored with a refreshingly crisp mouthfeel. Vines are located outside the Loire Valley AOC boundaries, hence the Vin de France classification.

Best friend as an aperitif, with all your fish meals and seafood, but as well with charcuteries, Don't hesitate to try it with goat cheese.

Our Touraine Sauvignon blanc is crisp and refreshing, with rich, ripe lime and grapefruit aromas. Great elegance with mineral style and despite everything some kind of roundness.

Average age of the vines is 20 years old.

We produce a part of this cuvee with 12 hours skin maceration and another part from directly pressed grapes

Wine was slightly filtered before bottling to ensure wine will remain stable.

Ideal for the Aperitif , any cooked fish such as smoked and grilled salmon but also obviously with a Goat Cheese.

It is hard to imagine with the Lithology range receiving 298 points out of 300 for the three single-vineyard wines, that there could possibly be a wine above them. But there is, and it is our Estate wine. Blended several times very intently by masters of their craft Philippe Melka and Michel Rolland, this is the ultimate expression of our house’s work. Positive, full-bodied, and quite powerful, there’s the expected crème de cassis and blackberry from St. Helena Cabernets, with mineral, herb, subtle tobacco and vanilla, plum skins, and pie crust, purple flowers, forest-conifer notes, and very fine tannic structure. It is a magnificent, and magnificently elegant expression of this house, and when asked recently, Monsieur Rolland stated plainly to me, “oh yes indeed – this is the best one, the best yet…”

Review:

Pure perfection in Cabernet, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Alejandro Bulgheroni is all varietal and comes two-thirds from Oakville with the balance from sites in St. Helena and Rutherford. Aged 20 months in 70% new French oak and put together by Philippe Melka and Michel Rolland, it has an incredibly pure, full-bodied, massive yet weightless style that I suspect couldn’t be achieved anywhere outside of Napa Valley. Cassis, blackberries, leafy herbs, lead pencil shavings, and tobacco leaf are just some of the nuances here, and it’s full-bodied, deep, and concentrated on the palate while maintaining an ethereal, seamless, utterly perfect balance between its fruit, alcohol, tannins, and acidity. As good as it gets, it needs just 2-4 years in the cellar and will evolve gracefully for at least 20-25 years.

-Jeb Dunnuck 100 Points

Alejandro Bulgheroni Lithology Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon  99% Cabernet Sauvignon, 1% Cabernet Franc.

Here the Cabernet comes to us typically flawless, and the wines are as such. There is blue fruit, blueberries, black plums, blackberries, and cassis to the aromas, as well as stones, mineral, chocolate, fresh tobacco, and subtle herbs. It is incredibly full-bodied, but at the same time effortlessly drinkable, with ultra-smooth tannins and a positive, long, upturned finish. 70-75% new French oak is the norm for us with Dr. Crane, and those flavors are absorbed to become a vanillin complexity, sweetness, and length. An unbelievable wine.

Review:

You don’t see many Cabernet Franc-dominated wines from this site, but the 2019 Cabernet Franc Lithology Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Vineyard is certainly impressive. Offering more herbal, chocolate, gravelly earth, and espresso aromas and flavors, it has full-bodied richness and, as expected, is a powerful, opulent expression of this noble variety. The blend is 83% Cabernet Franc and 17% Cabernet Sauvignon, aged 20 months in 80% new French oak. It will benefit from short-term bottle age and drink nicely for 20 years.

-Jeb Dunnuck 97 Points

Alejandro Bulgheroni Lithology Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 100 percent Cabernet Sauvignon. 

Alejandro Bulgheroni Estate Lithology is a series of single vineyard and AVA-designated wines made from select sites within Napa Valley. Lithology Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard is produced solely from fruit grown in the historic Beckstoffer to Kalon Vineyard planted in 1865 by W.H. Crabb and represents Oakville's famous bench land.

Review:

The 2019 Cabernet Franc Lithology Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard just shines for its bouquet, which is classic To Kalon with its floral, incense, spicy, red and black-fruited aromatics. These all flow to a medium to full-bodied, utterly seamless Cabernet Franc that’s balanced, has laser-like precision, and a great finish. This isn’t the biggest or richest wine in the lineup, but it’s Cabernet Franc in all its glory, with soaring aromatics and complexity, ample richness and texture, and a beautiful sense of finesse and elegance. It’s going to keep for 15-20 years with no issues.

-Jeb Dunnuck 98 Points

Composed of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Cabernet Franc, the 2019 Lithology Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard is a barrel sample with a deep garnet-purple color. It needs a fair bit of coaxing to unlock scents of blackberry pie, warm blueberries and cassis plus suggestions of spice cake, underbrush, candied violets and chocolate box. The full-bodied palate brings forth loads of earthy layers to accent the rich, black fruits, framed by plush tannins and lovely freshness, finishing long and fragrant.

-Wine Advocate 97 to 99 points


The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Lithology Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard is one of the very finest wines I have tasted from Alejandro Bulgheroni's Napa Valley project. The 2019 To Kalon captures all the pedigree of this iconic Oakville vineyard, and yet also remains nuanced and wonderfully finessed for an intense wine. To Kalon Cabernets are rarely this elegant, but the Bulgheroni 2019 sure is.

-- Antonio Galloni 97 Points