Ernie Els Proprietor Blend – South Africa 6 / Case

”tasting notes the 2011 proprietor’s blend exhibits an inky deep black cherry hue and purple rim. Deep exotic notes on the nose whiffs of spear mint and flakes of dark chocolate compliment a melange of dense blue berry fruits. The strong cabernet sauvignon influence adds a salty liquorice attack following to cassis grilled herbs and meaty edge from the dollop of shiraz. Though full-bodied and rich the mid-palate is fine and lively leading to a polished pure velvety sweet-fruited finish. Ageing potential the serious tannins seem gently balanced offering ample support for 5 – 10 years cellaring. In the vineyard the 2011 vintage the build-up to the harvest was fairly normal – a cold and wet winter followed by a spring which saw nice even budding of the grape varieties in the vineyard. November was fairly wet and december was the windiest month recorded in stellenbosch since 1968. This resulted in dry conditions in the vineyards which persisted throughout january and februa