Hannibal 2009 unleashed!
March 15th, 2012 | Author: 
Bouchard Finlayson has released its new Hannibal vintage!
Be sure to get a taste of this outstanding 2009 vintage or better even let the wine rest in your cellar for a few more years!
The concept of Hannibal stands by its original design of mixing French and Italian cultivars together. Vintage 2009 was predicted to offer stunning results and two years later there is no disappointment. The essence and soul of this Italian, French blend is captured in the pitching of six grape cultivars into one wine. The foundation is based on Italian Sangiovese which at 38% is its principle component!
2012 harvest will be remembered as ” The Year of the Owl”!
Barn Owl: One of the most widely spread birds in the world !
Our February experience with a newly fledged Barn Owl was quite an extraordinary happening. Every summer for the last eight years our cellar has enjoyed the experience of being host to a fresh brood of barn owl chick(s), normally one, perhaps two chicks would fledge.
Leaving the nest at about 8h00 in the morning and often not flying very far but soon disappearing. This year in early February I witnessed “Wolfgang”, my dog, pointing to under an outside table. There it was, this summer’s owlet! I captured the animal and put it out of harms reach back into its owl box, but for the next three weeks it never left the close confines of the office courtyard – strangely habituated and sleepily ignoring visitors and onlookers and sometimes twisting its head inquisitively at my camera lens.
10th Anniversary of the monthly Music Evenings held in BF’s barrel cellar!
Celebrating the tenth year anniversary of the monthly Music Evenings in our barrel cellar…
At the end of February the tenth year of the monthly music concerts held in our barrel cellar was celebrated by the organizers, the Hermanus Music Society. An incredible program was put forward by Albie van Schalkwyk, of the UCT College of Music and six musicians turned the barrel cellar into a musical dream on this special occasion, while the cellar team tried to keep the bubbling fermenting Pinot noir tanks quiet during the musicians performance!
Harvest 2012 – a sterling vintage so far!
Harvest arrived about two weeks ago on about the 3rd of February 2012.
It has been a fairly calm start with a perpetuating feeling of happiness for this vintage, which has presented itself royally thus far!
Compared to last year, which was a wet year, it has been smooth sailing all along and with one tank of Pinot noir already pressed and ready for maturation, the harvest is passing like a breeze.
Weather conditions have been superb. Only one spell of rain set us back on ripeness a touch, which meant that we now experience a slightly prolonged vintage. We expect to pick Sauvignon blanc, Riesling and Semillon soon.
Today we are harvesting Weisser Riesling grapes. It is a spectacular day out here today – a wind still, gorgeous sunny day with the cooling sea breeze, which will start blowing at around noon.
We marvel at this vintage year so far and in the cellar the Pinot noir fermentation bouquets tantalize the senses and the Sauvignon aromas boast fruity delights!
We have thus far harvested about 53 tons of Pinot noir, 11 tons of Chardonnay and 10 tons of Weisser Riesling and look forward to harvesting the rest of our cultivars before mid March on this farm.
Sixte Libeau, our harvest intern from France, marvels at the quality of our Riesling grapes
Nigel - Chris's cellar hand at Riesling harvest!
Peter's helping hand.
As always, harvest is a time full of excitement and achievement, physical challenge and stimulation. This year is all of that with “a jump in its step”. How much more encouragement can I offer – come and visit us to take part in the harvest activities and let this fun become ‘our fun’!
Peter and Chris contemplating which variety will be next in line for the pick!
Tutored Tastings at Bouchard Finlayson
Join us for the second of the interactive tutored tastings for 2012 at Bouchard Finlayson!
The first tutored tasting in the BF barrel cellar
The subject of this tasting will be various aged wines sourced from the Hemel-en-Aarde and internationally! We will look at some aged Rieslings, aged Sauvignon blanc and some older Pinot noirs – an opportunity not to be missed, as knowledge is shared and these cultivars explored as they age with appealing composure!
This tasting will be offered by the winemaker himself, Peter Finlayson and will be free of charge. As from the following tasting there will be a small tasting fee involved, which will be credited with purchases from the tasting room exceeding R 1000,-.
When: Saturday the 10th of March at 11:00 am – 12:30 pm
Where: In the barrel cellar at Bouchard Finlayson winery, Hemel-en-Aarde Rd/ R320, Hermanus
Wines: There will be a variety of about eight wines of which some will be Bouchard Finlayson as well as one or two international examples.
There is space for a limited amount of guests only, thus please r.s.v.p. soonest in order to secure your seat in this interactive tasting, which will be free of charge.
Join us this year to taste your favourite cultivar – tastings will be conducted by either Peter Finlayson himself, by our Assistant Winemaker, Chris Albrecht, or by myself (Jessica Saurwein).
See images below of what was a wonderful event last Saturday: The theme was older Chardonnay
Click here to see the line up of the last tasting and make sure to join us in some harvest activity at the vineyard!
Harvest Interns gather and greet at Bouchard Finlayson
Harvest Interns from the Overberg at Bouchard Finlayson's "boerewors braai"
A pre-harvest gathering was held for interns from neighbouring wine farms and other farms in the Walker Bay wine district.
Young, inspired winemakers from all over the world came together over a glass of Blanc de Mer 2011 and a “boerewors braai” (sausage barbecue) at Bouchard Finlayson on Monday, the 6th February, to celebrate their paths and experiences in the wine industry and to share their experiences with one another.
As stories of faraway home towns such as France, Argentina, Germany, Chile and US were shared over a glass of Sauvignon blanc on the lawn beneath the cellar, the thunder could be heard in the distance and finally, as the last guests were about to leave, there was a show of lightening bolts all around the cellar. A magical evening where thoughts about terroir, viticulture and oenology were exchanged and the interns once more inspired for the hard work which lies ahead in the next month or so!
Winemakers and Assitant winemakers, who attended the barbecue at BF
As we taste the 2011 Pinot noir and welcome the new vintage year …
… we are delighted to share our tasting results of the 2011 Pinot noirs.
About a week back, Peter and Chris tasted through an array of beautifully clear and bright blends (of different vineyard blocks) of the new. Soon the barrels were to be racked off into the stainless steal tanks and thereafter the delicate wine is prepared for bottling in tank. Although the 2011 vintage posed its many challenges due to the wet conditions during the ripening phase, the wines are proving to be delicious, delicate with hints of pomegranate, red cherries, plum and mulberry, this vintage promises a distinctly different dazzling wine! The difficult weather conditions during ripening did provoke concern, but after this tasting, the Peter Finlayson is pleasantly surprised by this year’s Pinot noir. This confirms Peter’s Status that great wines can be made in not such good vintage years!
Click here to see the tasting notes on our current vintage of Galpin Peak Pinot noir.
As we taste the 2011 vintage, we welcome the harvest 2012 with great hope for an unforgettable vintage! Everything seems in our favour! The pH’s are very low and the phenolics ripe enough for the pick! Harvest started on Friday, the 3rd of February officially and at this point we are busy filling our second Pinot noir fermenting tank!
Come join us at the vineyard to catch a glimpse of the harvest activity!
Peter’s Baobab
Standing tall, Peter Finlayson’s facial expression is that of a child in awe and wonder. A rather incongruent image: a small pot plant in the large hand, as Peter trickles a few water droplets over the reddish soil every second day or so.
At first I wondered who had placed two sticks in a pot and expected them to grow, but when on numerous occasions Peter visited the small plant in our office, I realized that this was no ordinary plant. The baby Baobab tree, also known as the ‘tree of life’, was left to awaken from dormancy and in late October the very first small green leaf became visible and then delicate attention was given to the plant.
A long leaf blade, expanding and finally reaching an astonishing dimension for the small stem and root space in the pot, was a gift from a friend of Peters. It was to be a test whether Peter could prove that he truly has ‘green fingers’ and does not only see success when it comes to working with Vitis vinifera. Read the rest of this entry »
Tasting at the BF Homestead for US Sommeliers
Yesterday, we hosted a group of four US guests for a tasting at the Homestead. Below are their details. We enjoyed their positive reactions to our wines and specifically to the following wines:
The most liked were the Tete de Cuvee 2010 (the next vintage to be released), which was tasted alongside the 2009 vintage and the Galpin Peak 2010 was equally embraced. The Blanc de Mer 2011 and the Kaaimansgat Chardonnay, which was Editor’s Choice and receieved 91/100 points in the Wine Enthusiast last year for the Kaaimansgat Limited Edition Chardonnay 2009, was equaled with the 2010 current vintage of Kaaimansgat/ Crocodile\’s lair as the tasters revealed their contented grimaces after a few sips of this wine.
Below is some information on the guests.
BF in Mauritius
Peter and Geta Finlayson visited Mauritius last year and BF’s wines were well received…
Below an article in Cote du Nord, a Magazine which is about the tourism Industry mentioning hotels/restaurants/pubs, airlines, food and wine and new developments in Mauritius in which Bouchard Finlayson features with its Chardonnay and Pinot noir. Read the rest of this entry »
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