Mvemve Raats, MR De Compostella, Stellenbosch, South Africa, 2022

Producer Profile

After making wine around the world and honing his craft in the Cape, Bruwer Raats established Raats Family Wines in 2000, based on a policy of ‘excellence through specialisation’, focusing on two unfashionable grapes varieties at the time, Chenin Blanc and Cabernet Franc.

Purchasing the only land he could afford, some relatively cheap and ‘undesirable’ plots in the Polkadraai Hills, it soon became apparent that the unique granite-based terroir was producing some incredible wines, and is now recognised as one of the finest wards in Stellenbosch. His Eden High Density Single Vineyard Chenin Blanc and Cabernet Franc, and the iconic MR de Compostella hold a place as some of South Africa’s finest wines and sit comfortably amongst the best expressions of the varieties on the planet.

Viticulture

The grapes come from Stellenbosch and are grown only on decomposed dolomite granite and sandstone clay soils from vines aged between 10 and 23 years.. This lends itself to great acidity, freshness and an extended mineral finish.

Winemaking

The aim with this wine was to take each of the five components and make a varietal wine in it’s own right. The wines were then tasted blind after one year in barrel. The wines that scored less than 90 points were not considered for the final blend. The percentage components of the blend were determined by the scores achieved in the blind tasting. The resultant cuvée is called De Compostella (‘The Compilation of Stars’). Each variety spent 12 months in barrel as a single variety wine before the wines were blended. Thereafter the blended wine was matured for another 12 months, giving a total of 24 months in barrel, a third of which was in new French Oak, a further third in 2nd fill and a final third in 3rd fill French oak barrels.

Oak Ageing

Time: 24 Months
Type: French
% wine oaked: 100
% new oak: 33

Tasting Note

This has a gorgeous bouquet, quite understated at first, opening with red fruit, briar and a touch of wild rosemary mixed with potpourri. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, tensile and brimming with energy. A touch of black pepper and brown spices emerges as this fans out wonderfully toward the slightly wet stone mineral finish.

Food Matching

Just exquisite with rib eye or fillet mignon steak! A nice hard cheese also.