Allesverloren Fine Old Vintage, Swartland

Description

Allesverloren Fine Old Vintage is a Port-style fortified red wine made by Danie Malan at this historic estate. Allesverloren is located approximately 100 kilometres northeast of Cape Town in the Riebeek Valley and is the oldest wine estate in the Swartland Wine of Origin district.

The Allesverloren Estate dates back to between 1696 and 1704, when the governor of the Cape left it to a certain widow named Cloete. This courageous woman was one of the first settlers who ventured into the inhospitable Swartland region. The early settlers were simple people, with only the most limited agricultural equipment and basic necessities to support themselves. In order to purchase tools or attend church, they had to undertake a long and arduous wagon journey along primitive roads to Stellenbosch. It was on their return from one such journey in 1704 that the settlers found their house burnt to the ground and the farm destroyed. Hence the estate’s sad name, Allesverloren, which means “all is lost”. The estate passed into the hands of the Malan family in 1872 and Allesverloren has gone from strength to strength. Winemaker Danie Malan and his late father, Fanie, were among the wine pioneers of the Swartland, ably demonstrating the outstanding wine-growing potential of what was once considered the breadbasket of the Cape.

Allesverloren Fine Old Vintage a blend of Tinta Barocca, Touriga Nacional, Tinta Francisca, Tinta Amarella, Touriga Franca and Sousao – all of which originated in the Douro valley in Portugal where they are used in Port production. The vines are planted at an altitude of 270 to 340 metres above sea level, they were planted in 1954 and do not receive any irrigation. The grapes are hand harvested and blended prior to fortification and ageing in second- and third-fill 400-litre and larger French oak barrels for a period of 20 months.