The Sadie Family - Columella Assemblage 2018
The Sadie Family is a family estate located in the Swartland region of South Africa. Before his career as a winemaker and after a period as a surfer, Eben Sadie traveled and worked in several wine regions of the world, including Germany, Austria, Italy, Oregon and Burgundy. Returning to South Africa, he found employment alongside Charles Back at The Spice Route in 1998. The Sadie Family was founded in 1999, with the first two vintages produced at The Spice Route facilities. The company has three employees, in addition to Eben Sadie, his brother and sister, and the vineyards cover some 43 hectares, including mountainous plots and coastal plains. Due to the diversity of the terroirs, a wide range of grape varieties can be planted, such as Palomino, Tinta Barroca or Sémillon. All the vineyards are run according to the principles of organic and biodynamic viticulture. Different fermentation vessels are used in the cellar: from classic oak barrels and foudres to concrete amphorae or ovoid tanks.
Columella is a blend of Syrah, Mourvèdre, Grenache, Carignan, Cinsault and Tinta Barocca cultivated on eight different plots. After manual harvesting, fermentation occurs spontaneously with indigenous yeasts in open concrete vats of 3,300 liters, for 3 weeks. The wine undergoes a post-fermentation maceration of 3 weeks before passage in barrels for malolactic fermentation.
Grape varieties: Syrah, Mourvèdre, Grenache, Carignan, Cinsault, Tinta Barocca
