The Berrio Sauvignon Blanc 2021

The Berrio is again a partnership between winemaker Bruce Jack and Elim farmer Francis Pratt, the newly released 2021 sporting a smart new label and selling for R180 a bottle.

The nose shows pear, lime, fynbos and fennel while the palate shows pure fruit and racy acidity, the finish possessing that slightly salty quality so typical of the area. It’s got nice palate weight given a relatively low alcohol of 13% and Jack explains that this comes from 24 hours skin contact before fermentation, 10% fermentation on the skins and seven months on the gross lees. A wine of unusual precision – not too severe, not too funky.

CE’s rating: 93/100.

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