Produced at Vergelegen Estate, the grapes were sourced from north and north-westerly vineyards at Vergelegen, Somerset West, where soil types of granite, Hutton and weathered shale dominate. The 2017/2018 growing season was long and mild, leading to perfect physiological ripeness. The 2018 harvest itself was warm and dry BUT the nights were cool which is perfect for colour and flavour formation. Harvesting of the Merlot started in the first week of March, followed by Cabernet Franc and by mid-March we had the Malbec in the fermentation tanks. The harvest was completed on 6 April with the last Cabernet.
At Vergelegen Estate the grapes are handpicked followed by storage in a refrigerated container at -10°C for 24 hours. The cool grapes (8-10°C) are then carefully sorted on combinations of vibrating tables and slow moving conveyors, where between 1,5-3 tons are sorted per hour. The grapes are de-stemmed but not crushed and the grapes/must cold soaked for 7 days followed by a feral fermentation lasting 96 hours. Eventually, cultured yeast is added and the juice fermented dry. The young red wine is now macerated on the skins for a further 32 days before going to barrel. The wine was bottled on 17 December 2019 after 18 months of barrel maturation - 20% new French oak.