At A Glance
- Field
- Detail
- Region
- Elgin, South Africa
- Main grapes
- Pinot Noir and Chardonnay
- Vineyard scale
- 72 hectares under vine
- Range
- Village, Estate and Seven Flags wines
- Vineyard soil
- Bokkeveld shale over water retaining clay
The Producer
De Rust farm in Elgin has been in Clüver family custodianship since 1896. Paul Clüver Family Wines now concentrates on Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, the two Burgundian varieties named as the winery's focus.
Paul Clüver is managing director, and Andries Burger is his brother in law. Their roles connect family leadership with long running cellar work, while the current wines remain centred on the two varieties.
Place
Elgin vineyards sit about 20 kilometres from the Atlantic Ocean and at elevations from 290 to 435 metres above sea level. The combination of ocean proximity and elevation brings maritime and continental influences into the same vineyard area.
Cold, wet winters bring roughly 700 millimetres of rain. Summers stay cool and mild, with marked differences between day and night temperatures. Bokkeveld shale sits over water retaining clay, allowing the clay to hold moisture beneath the vines.
Story
Paul Clüver Family Wines built its own cellar in 1996, after its first Elgin wines had been made at Nederburg Estate in Paarl. Andries Burger has been in charge of winemaking since the maiden own cellar vintage in 1997. The early production at Nederburg and the later cellar vintage mark the move into winemaking under Burger's direction.
Wines
The Village range is the accessible, fruit led tier, joining Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Village Pinot Noir 2024 is 100% Pinot Noir, matured in older, larger oak barrels. This élevage produces supple tannins and bright cherry, blackcurrant and wild strawberry fruit. The 2024 wine is medium bodied, with red fruit and ripe cherry aromas, cherry and poached plum flavours, and soft edges.
The Pinot Noir and Chardonnay hierarchies continue through Estate and Seven Flags bottlings. Estate Pinot Noir is aged in new and older French oak barrels. Seven Flags Pinot Noir is spontaneously fermented and aged for 12 months in a combination of new and older French oak. Seven Flags Chardonnay comes from 35 year old vines, the first Chardonnay planted at Paul Clüver Family Wines, and matures in selected Burgundian barrels. Spontaneous fermentation is fermentation begun by naturally present yeasts.
A Bottle To Understand It
Choose Village Chardonnay. It is the accessible Chardonnay in the Village range, made from younger vineyard fruit on the farm's Bokkeveld shale and aged in large old barrels and concrete eggs. Large old barrels contribute less new oak flavour than new barrels, while concrete eggs add no oak. The wine shows citrus, honeycomb and floral notes, with the cellar vessels used for focus and minerality.
Final Word
Paul Clüver Family Wines brings Elgin fruit through Village, Estate and Seven Flags wines, with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay as the current focus.