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Big Easy Rosé, Ernie Els

Ernie Els Wines
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Technical Analysis
Alcohol
13.3
Residual sugar
2.3
pH
3.54
Acidity
5.4
Download Specification Sheet Download Full Size Images
The composition of Ernie El's Big Easy Rosé changes with each vintage, with varying percentages of the varieties dictating the hue of the blend.
Tasting note

An elegant summery rosé with a defined structure. Refreshing and engaging aromatics of red hibiscus flowers, wild red-berried fruit, fragrant herbs and orange skin unfold. The palate is loaded with punchy berry fruit, a tangy medley of forest berries, boysenberries, cranberries, and strawberries, on the mid-palate, the brightness of watermelon. Superbly dry, there is just the faintest tug of tannins on the citrus-toned finish, drawing you back in for another sip. 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cinsault.

Origin
South Africa
Variety
Cabernet Sauvignon
Malolactic Fermentation
Yes
Bottle Size
75cl
Vegetarian
Yes
Winemaker
Louis Strydom
Closure
Screw top
Region
Stellenbosch
Vegan
Yes

Vintage conditions

The 2022 vintage will definitely be remembered as the year of good fruit set. After pruning, budburst came about two weeks later than expected. This resulted in flowering occurring in a period with cooler temperatures. More berries per vine means a good balance between reproductive and vegetative growth, and, with restricted pruning to allow for a certain tonnage per hectare, th leaves are not overburdened.  Mild conditions allowed the vines to catch up nicely with warm days after veraison. The heat before harvest is very important for the development of red cultivars and especially for the premium quality of our Cabernet Sauvignon.

Vinification details

Hand-picked grapes arrive at the winery in the mornings. The whole bunches are transferred straight into the membrane press. This whole bunch press action help to preserve fruit and floral aromas while preventing the extraction of phenols or tannins from the skins. The pressed juiced is settled and racked before being inoculated for fermentation. After fermentation is complete the rosé wine is transferred to old barrels for a 3-month period and left on its fine lees. Before bottling the wine is racked from the barrels, stabilized and filtered to ensure a fresh and aromatic wine in bottle.

Technical Analysis
Alcohol
13.5
Residual sugar
3.3
pH
3.59
Acidity
6.1
Download Specification Sheet Download Full Size Images
The composition of Ernie El's Big Easy Rosé changes with each vintage, with varying percentages of the varieties dictating the hue of the blend.
Tasting note

Inviting pale rose in colour. The nose bursts with spring blossoms, fresh raspberry and strawberry notes, and a refreshing herbal cut. The palate is juicy with red apple, red berry mélange and vibrant piquant acidity. A mouth-watering palate with freshness and subtle flavours offers great summer drinking. The finish is dry, juicy and focused. 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cinsault.

Origin
South Africa
Variety
Cabernet Sauvignon
Malolactic Fermentation
Yes
Bottle Size
75cl
Vegetarian
No
Winemaker
Louis Strydom
Closure
Screw top
Region
Stellenbosch
Vegan
No

Vintage conditions

The 2021 Vintage was the first vintage where the vines started to come back into their normal circadian rhythm with the rain and temperatures normalizing. This vintage started with the soil at full water holding capacity allowing the vines to bud with no limitations. The temperatures this season were relatively hot but had intermittent cooler days with rain. This led to stretching the ripening of the fruit to allow the ripening process to continue for longer.

Vinification details

Hand-picked grapes arrive at the winery in the mornings. The whole bunches are transferred straight into the membrane press. This whole bunch press action help to preserve fruit and floral aromas while preventing the extraction of phenols or tannins from the skins. The pressed juiced is settled and racked before being inoculated for fermentation. After fermentation is complete the rosé wine is transferred to old barrels for a 3-month period and left on its fine lees. Before bottling the wine is racked from the barrels, stabilized and filtered to ensure a fresh and aromatic wine in bottle.

Technical Analysis
Alcohol
14.1
Residual sugar
3.3
pH
3.51
Acidity
5.8
Download Specification Sheet
The composition of Ernie El's Big Easy Rosé changes with each vintage, with varying percentages of the varieties dictating the hue of the blend.
Tasting note

2020 Big Easy Rosé is a blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon and 13% Cinsaut. An elegant summery rosé with a light rose-gold tinted colour. Bursting with pink florals followed by inviting and fresh summery fruit, some dried citrus, hints of musk and wild strawberry. Spicy notes and lemon zest add to a savoury complexity that follows to the palate. The wine has a lovely texture, fresh and lively with a pointed and dry finish.

Origin
South Africa
Variety
Red Blend
Malolactic Fermentation
No
Bottle Size
75cl
Vegetarian
Yes
Winemaker
Louis Strydom
Fined Using
Bentonite
Closure
Screw top
Region
Stellenbosch
Vegan
Yes

Vintage conditions

The harvest period started a few weeks earlier than in 2019 as the favourable growing conditions in spring sped up bud burst and the warm, sunny summer days that followed allowed for effective grape ripening. The summer temperatures were warm, but moderate and the grapes were allowed to accumulate their concentrated flavours. The winery were fortunate to bring in good yields, despite the fact that they had variation in some of the blocks. Luckily, sufficient rainfall in the winter months made for a promising growing season. The site is comprised of a granite mother material, with mainly Tukulu and Oakleaf soil types as well as a high clay content. This allows for good water retention into the summer months, which helps in retaining moisture. The bunches developed nicely, with good sugar levels and concentration of complex flavours in the grapes.

Vinification details

Hand-picked grapes arrived at the winery in the morning. The whole bunches were transferred straight into the membrane press. Whole bunch press action helped to preserve fruit and floral aromas while preventing the extraction of phenols or tannins from the skins. The pressed juiced was settled and racked before being inoculated for fermentation. After fermentation was complete the rosé wine was transferred to old barrels for a 3-month period and left on its fine lees. Before bottling the wine was racked from the barrels, stabilised and filtered to ensure a fresh and aromatic wine.

Technical Analysis
Alcohol
13.0
Residual sugar
3.5
pH
3.35
Acidity
5.5
Download Specification Sheet Download Full Size Images
The composition of Ernie El's Big Easy Rosé changes with each vintage, with varying percentages of the varieties dictating the hue of the blend.
Tasting note

A perfume of candied cherry and dried strawberry. The colour is a delicate blush, hinting at the wafts of watermelon and summer red berry fragrance. The palate is fresh and fruity with a medium-dry finish. A blend of 93% Shiraz, 7% Viognier.

Origin
South Africa
Variety
Shiraz (Syrah)
Malolactic Fermentation
No
Bottle Size
75cl
Vegetarian
No
Winemaker
Louis Strydom
Fined Using
Gelatine
Closure
Screw top
Region
Western Cape
Vegan
No

Vintage conditions

The effect of the drought still lingered in the background of the 2019 vintage. The estate continued their efforts in the canopy, managing water use to irrigate as little as possible. The 2019 season started surprisingly cool with no heat waves. One challenge that arose was uneven bud burst, managed selectively in harvesting followed by berry selection at the cellar. The mild stress of the vines was eased by the cooler temperatures that were experienced, allowing for smaller berries. During fruit ripening the cooler weather persisted, giving the grapes some fantastic hang time and development, which usually can’t be afforded due to the fast sugar accumulation.

Vinification details

The grapes were hand-picked in the cool of early morning, with the whole bunches transferred straight into the membrane press, helping to preserve fruit and floral aromas while preventing the extraction of phenols or tannins from the skins. The pressed juice was then settled and racked before being inoculated for fermentation. After fermentation was complete the wine was transferred to old barrels for a 3-month period and left on its fine lees, then racked, stabilised and filtered before bottling to ensure a fresh and aromatic wine.

Technical Analysis
Alcohol
11.6
Residual sugar
2.0
pH
3.80
Acidity
6.2
Download Specification Sheet Download Full Size Images
The composition of Ernie El's Big Easy Rosé changes with each vintage, with varying percentages of the varieties dictating the hue of the blend.
Tasting note

Pale salmon in colour, but rich in character and elegant in composure. Produced predominantly from Shiraz, it offers beautiful fragrance, delicate fruit and a savoury edge. Juicy citrus and dried strawberry line the palate with a dash of floral notes from the Viognier component, making for intriguing and yet uncomplicated drinking. Vibrant, fruity and almost saline, the finish is clean and lip-smackingly fresh. A blend of 93% Shiraz and 7% Viognier.

Origin
South Africa
Variety
Red Blend
Malolactic Fermentation
No
Bottle Size
75cl
Vegetarian
No
Winemaker
Louis Strydom
Fined Using
Gelatine
Closure
Screw top
Region
Western Cape
Vegan
No

Vintage conditions

The 2018 harvest season will be remembered as the drought season. Ernie Els Wines considered themselves lucky to have bountiful water on the Helderberg. They were, however, still careful with water use during the summer months leading up to harvest and have been working hard to adapt their viticultural techniques during the past 3 years to help the vineyards cope optimally with the heat and limited irrigation. The drought was further buffered by a surprisingly cooler season that allowed the vines to react to the drought with no abnormal growth patterns observed. Vine canopies were kept thin for sunlight, and of course, less leaves meant less water needed. The vines’ natural instinct was to produce small bunches with smaller berries – usually the start of a great wine! With moderate, but warm days during December and January, the start of harvest returned to its normal date. The uninterrupted warmth during harvest also helped the bunches reach optimal ripeness while the berries steadily developed their flavours over a slightly longer period of time.

Vinification details

The grapes were hand-picked in the cool of early morning. On the sorting table, all excess stalks and inferior berries were carefully removed. Grape bunches were gently de-stemmed and lightly crushed. The wine was left in a separator for one hour and racked-off into a settling tank. The following day fermentation was initiated at low temperatures (12°-14°C) in stainless steel tanks with Vin13 yeast. This took place over a two week period. Working very reductively in the cellar after both crushing and de-stemming, post fermentation wine was stabilised prior to bottling. This wine is crafted in a fresh style without any oak component.

Technical Analysis
Alcohol
13.0
Residual sugar
2.8
pH
3.40
Acidity
6.0
Download Specification Sheet Download Full Size Images
The composition of Ernie El's Big Easy Rosé changes with each vintage, with varying percentages of the varieties dictating the hue of the blend.
Tasting note

Pale salmon in colour, but rich in character and elegant in composure. Produced predominantly from Cinsaut, it offers beautiful fragrance, delicate fruit and a savoury edge. Juicy citrus and dried strawberry line the palate with a dash of spice from the Shiraz component making for intriguing and yet uncomplicated drinking. Vibrant, fruity and almost saline, the finish is clean and lip-smackingly fresh. A blend of 75% Cinsaut and 25% Shiraz.

Origin
South Africa
Variety
Red Blend
Malolactic Fermentation
No
Bottle Size
75cl
Vegetarian
No
Winemaker
Louis Strydom
Fined Using
Gelatine
Closure
Screw top
Region
Western Cape
Vegan
No

Vintage conditions

The previous growing season had its challenges, which seemed to roll over into the 2016/2017 growing season with the continuation of the drought. Winter 2016 was quite dry with even less rain than the previous year, while spring was an illusion as the region moved swiftly into warmer summer days. Bud burst was good due to sufficient soil moisture, but with the warmer spring/summer weather the soil started losing moisture quickly which naturally reduced shoot growth as the vineyard then focused its energy on developing and ripening the small bunches. Smaller berries led to more concentrated colour and flavour. The dry conditions also led to the vineyards and grapes being very healthy overall. With moderate, but warm days during December and January the start of harvest returned to its normal date. The uninterrupted warmth during harvest also helped the bunches reach optimal ripeness while the berries steadily developed flavours over a slightly longer period of time.

Vinification details

The grapes were hand-picked in the cool of early morning. On the sorting table, all excess stalks and inferior berries were carefully removed. Grape bunches were gently de-stemmed and lightly crushed. The wine was left in a separator for one hour and racked-off into a settling tank. The following day fermentation was initiated at low temperatures (12°-14°C) in stainless steel tanks with Vin13 yeast. This took place over a two week period. Working very reductively in the cellar after both crushing and de-stemming, post fermentation wine was stabilised prior to bottling. This wine is crafted in a fresh style without any oak component.