Max
The Family
Max
2021
This wine is a blend of 59% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 11% Petit Verdot and 5% Cabernet franc from specially selected vineyards in and around Stellenbosch.
There is a deep dark garnet colour with a plum red rim.
Abundant heady aromas of ripe blackberry and bramble fruits emanate from the glass. There are hints of dried herbs, tobacco spice and cedar in the background.
The palate is generous with flavours of cassis and dark blackberry fruits. The mid-palate is full-bodied and rich with heady notes leading to lingering finish of dried Italian herbs and great clarity of freshness. The tannins are firm with fine grip towards the finish.
Food Pairing
Best served with slow roasted lamb, grilled rib-eye steak with bone marrow or an oxtail stew. The wine also pairs well with hard cheeses.
R495.00
* Larger formats available in limited quantities. Please contact us at office@milesmossopwines.com to enquire.
This wine is a blend of 59% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 11% Petit Verdot and 5% Cabernet franc from specially selected vineyards in and around Stellenbosch.
The 2021 vintage in Stellenbosch has been lauded as a great vintage with regards to the quality. After a better than average rainfall over the preceding winter and good cold units, the cooler wet weather extended into spring and resulted in delayed bud break. We had reasonably good conditions through flowering resulting in good berry set and a larger than usual crop which required extra attention during crop management. The cooler weather persisted throughout the growing and ripening season. This delayed ripening and having a more drawn-out harvest resulted in perfect conditions for flavour and tannin development. This resulted in a much later harvest but near perfect fruit. The resultant wines are tight yet powerful with great fruit expression. The wines from this harvest should have the ability to age for a long time.
The vineyards are selected based on the age of the vineyard and site from various parts of Stellenbosch, mostly unirrigated and all low yielding (4 to 8 t/ha). Giving a pure expression of its environment in the wine. The grapes are ripened to peak maturity between 23- and 25-degrees brix before being hand harvested and placed in a cold store overnight at 4 degrees Celsius.
Bunch sorting and berry sorting takes place before gentle and partial crushing to small open wooden and stainless-steel fermenters. There is an initial cold soak period after which fermentation starts naturally and can take anything up to 14 days to complete. Extraction occurs through gentle pump overs and punch downs twice a day.
Once fermentation has completed the wine may stay on the skins for an additional period of time which is dependent on the tannin development and ripeness. The wine is drained off and pressed in a vertical basket press.
Malolactic fermentation takes place in barrel after which the wine is racked and returned to barrel for further maturation. Maturation takes place in 225-liter French oak barriques of which 40% is new and lasts for 22 months with regular racking. The wine received no fining or filtration before bottling.
The wine was bottled in January 2023.
10467 bottles were produced
- PH: 3.61
- TA: 5.6 g/l
- RS: 1.8 g/l
- Alc: 14.5% by vol.
Cabernet Sauvignon
| AREA: | Stellenbosch, in the Polkadraai Hills Ward |
| ALTITUDE: | 160 metres above sea level |
| ASPECT: | East |
| ROW DIRECTION: | North – South |
| YEAR PLANTED: | 2001 |
| SOIL TYPE: | Sandy Loam of Granitic Origin |
| TRAINING: | 4-wire Perold Sprawling |
| PRUNING: | Spur pruned |
| IRRIGATION: | Supplementary Drip Irrigation |
| PLANT DENSITY: | 3333 vines per hectare (2.5m X 1.2m spacing) |
| CROPPING: | 3.3 tons/ha or 20 hl/ha |
Cabernet Sauvignon
| AREA: | Stellenbosch, in the Polkadraai Hills Ward (Oudeberg) |
| ALTITUDE: | 165 metres above sea level |
| ASPECT: | South |
| ROW DIRECTION: | East – West |
| YEAR PLANTED: | 2007 |
| SOIL TYPE: | Duplex/Plinthic of Granitic origin |
| TRAINING: | 7-wire Vertical Trellis |
| PRUNING: | Spur pruned |
| IRRIGATION: | Supplementary Drip Irrigation |
| PLANT DENSITY: | 3086 vines per hectare (1.2m X 2.7m spacing) |
| CROPPING: | 6 tons/ha or 39 hl/ha |
Merlot
| AREA: | Stellenbosch, in the Bottelary Ward |
| ALTITUDE: | 220 metres above sea level |
| ASPECT: | West facing |
| ROW DIRECTION: | North-South |
| YEAR PLANTED: | 2003 |
| SOIL TYPE: | Medium potential clay loam Tukulu soil |
| TRAINING: | 6-wire vertical trellis (double Perold) |
| PRUNING: | Spur pruned |
| IRRIGATION: | Supplementary Drip Irrigation |
| PLANT DENSITY: | 5000 vines per hectare (1m X 2m spacing) |
| CROPPING: | 6 tons/ha or 38 hl/ha |
Petit Verdot
| AREA: | Stellenbosch, in the Bottelary Ward |
| ALTITUDE: | 200 metres above sea level |
| ASPECT: | West East |
| ROW DIRECTION: | East West |
| YEAR PLANTED: | 1999 |
| SOIL TYPE: | Glenrosa from a granitic origin with coffee stone gravel |
| TRAINING: | 5-wire vertical trellis |
| PRUNING: | Spur pruned |
| IRRIGATION: | Supplemental overhead irrigation (once per growing season) |
| PLANT DENSITY: | 3472 vines per hectare (1.2m X 2.4m spacing) |
| CROPPING: | 8 tons/ha or 52 hl/ha |
Cabernet Franc
| AREA: | Stellenbosch, in the Polkadraai Hills |
| ALTITUDE: | 210 metres above sea level |
| ASPECT: | South-West |
| ROW DIRECTION: | North-South |
| YEAR PLANTED: | 2001 |
| SOIL TYPE: | Decomposed Granite |
| TRAINING: | Sprawling trellis – 5 wire-Perold |
| PRUNING: | Spur pruned |
| IRRIGATION: | Supplementary drip |
| PLANT DENSITY: | 2860 vines per hectare (1.4m X 2.5m spacing) |
| CROPPING: | 5 tons/ha or 32 hl/ha |
This wine can be enjoyed immediately after release but will improve with cellaring for up to 15 years from harvest.
In the Spotlight
Awards & Recognition
Platter’s Wine Guide 2024
Tim Atkin’s South Africa Special Report 2022
Winemag.co.za - Christian Eedes
Vinous 2023 - Neal Martin
Wine Advocate - Anthony Mueller - May 2024
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