Steenberg has always excelled with its Sauvignon Blanc Reserve and Semillon - each wine having achieved five stars Platter ratings thrice, along with the 2005 Reserve also winning a Veritas Double Gold medal. It followed logically that these two building blocks be used to create the ultimate white wine with freshness and huge ageing potential alike.
Only 3000 bottles of Magna Carta 2007 will be on sale from 15 August at R395 exclusively from the Steenberg Vineyards Tasting Room, which is open for wine sales and tasting, Monday to Friday from 9am - 4:30pm, and Saturdays from 10am - 4pm.
General manager at Steenberg Vineyards, John Loubser says: "We decided on the name Magna Carta to underscore Steenberg Vineyard's solemn promise of quality on which we vow never to compromise. Having a great charter sets a precedent for producing only the very best possible white blend from Constantia, and the Magna Carta will be our quality benchmark." Magna Carta is Latin for ‘Great Charter', and refers to an important, ancient legal document - the first ever to be above kings.
The blend consists of 60% Sauvignon Blanc and 40% Semillon. The Semillon is 100% barrel fermented for 4-5 weeks in new French Oak, with the Sauvignon Blanc unwooded from the Reserve block. The two varieties are harvested and vinified separately according to their unique style before blending. The Sauvignon Blanc Reserve portion is from a single vineyard of old vines harvested at sugar levels of approximately 23,5°B. An 8 - 24 hour soak before pressing extracts beautiful mineral and green tones from the Sauvignon Blanc, while time on the lees, post fermentation, develops some fullness on the palate. The Semillon grapes are left to hang on the vine as long as possible to achieve the full ripeness that gives the wine its distinctive dry apricot and tangerine character. The ageing potential of this wine is massive and is the primary deciding factor for only releasing the vintage in 2008.
