SoetKaroo Estate Wins Michelangelo Wine Award

- Linda Jaquet -

SoetKaroo Wine Estate’s 2008 Red Muscat d’Alexandrie was awarded a Silver Medal at this year’s 2008 Michelangelo International Wine Awards competition held in September outside Stellenbosch. The panel of international judges used the 100 point system - the Silver Medal was awarded for wines scoring 86-92 points.

With the previous vintages sold out (with the exception of some of the 2007 Reserve Carafes) the Perolds bottled the award-winning wine in July. Then during September they bottled this year’s blend of Touriga Nacional and Petit Verdot – the popular port-like dessert wine first made in 2007. It is almost inky black in colour and Susan calls it her ‘Mafia wine’, as opposed to the ‘Pink One’ or Red Hanepoot, the Red Muscat d’Alexandrie.

The little Garagiste enterprise (i.e. operated from the garage) at 56 Kerk Street is registered by SAWIS, the South African wine regulatory authority, as “a unit for the production of estate wine”, in other words, a cellar that makes wine from its own grapes and also bottles on its own premises. And, no, SoetKaroo is NOT the smallest wine estate in South Africa - it is, however, definitely the largest in the main road of Prince Albert!

Herman cultivates the vineyard of 3000 vines for low yield and maximum quality fruit. The annual production of wine is limited not so much by the quantity of grapes grown, as by the bulkiness of the packaging, the pallets of bottles and cartons for putting them in. These take up an inordinate amount of physical space, before use, as well as when filled with the bottled product. After all, the house at no 56 was designed for people to live in, not as a winery shed…

SoetKaroo se Kelder ingewy

-Denise Ohlson-

Met die aankoop van ‘n mooi ou Kaap-Hollandse huis op sy hektaar grond het Herman en Susan Perold in 1995 gedink aan neute of olywe plant, maar ‘n besoek van ‘n wynmakersvriend uit Stellenbosch het gelei tot die aanplant van wingerd en die maak van ‘n besonderse dessertwyn genaamd SoetKaroo. ‘n Dubbel Goud (medalje) en ‘n Trofee by die 2005 Michelangelo International Wine Awards!
Die behoefte aan ‘n kelder was duidelik, en met ‘n kortkursus in kleinskaalse wynbereiding agter die rug, begin hulle hul eie kelder inrig. Tyd of geld is daar nie vir ‘n splinternuwe parskelder nie; die pakkamer langs die motorhuis moet die ding doen. Herman is te besig met die wingerdpraktyk en so word Susan beplanner en, teësinnig, boukontrakteur.

Die wynkursus het benadruk dat sanitasie en kelderhigiëne allerbelangrik is vir suksesvolle wynbereiding. Die pakkamer se mooi rietplafon word bedek met dik polistireen vir goeie isolasie. Die mure word geverf met ‘n spesiale wasbare produk. Die vloer word bedek met swaar-diensteëls en net ‘n spesiale organiese wasmiddel word gebruik. Alle chloor of chloor-verbindings is taboe. Enige spatsel of sap word blitsig verwyder sodat daar geen broeiplek vir kieme is nie. Deurentyd word die vertrek koel en donker gehou. Alles anti-swam en anti-bakteries.

Met fisieke inspanning word die druiwesap met emmers en bekers deur siwwe en lappies bewerk. Angstige nagte volg wanneer die suiker te vinnig val en die sap van die doppe afgetrek moet word. Maar die loon is in die wonderlike slaap wat jy slaap as die taak afgehandel is, die doppe op die komposhoop en die sap rustig in die tenk is. In hierdie stadium is die nuwe pophuis-kelder se tenke vir die eerste keer gevul en SoetKaroo 2007 ontwikkel haar kenmerkende geur en kleur terwyl dit stadig afsak en blink raak. Veel later, hopelik na ‘n ordentlik koue winter, behoort die sappies reg te wees om gebottel te word.

Eers dan sal ons almal weet of Herman en Susan erg voortvarend was om wynmakers te wil wees en of dit ‘n goeie besluit was!