2018 Barrel Fermented Sauvignon Blanc, Lismore

Lismore Estate is based in Greyton within the Overberg region of the Western Cape of South Africa.  It’s here with the Sonderend mountains as a backdrop that winemaker & proprietor Samantha O’Keefe makes her fabulous wines.   ‘ I had a farm in Africa….’  The opening line of Karen Blixen’s classic memoir Out Of Africa comes to mind when you hear Samantha’s amazing story.  A native Californian, Berkeley educated, Sam realised her dream and bought a mountain in Africa. She then sold the bottom half to finance vine planting in the top half!

This 2018 barrel-fermented Sauvignon Blanc is a full-bodied, elegant and beautifully balanced wine. Floral notes of passionflower, fynbos (natural shrubland), combine with guava, gooseberry and pear on the palate along with an underlying minerality, imparting its signature style. A true expression of this unique terroir and its equally unique winemaker.

We love barrel-fermented Sauvignon Blanc at Wine Republic and this beauty is made in an “oxidative” style using old 500-litre barrels for 70% of the fermentation and maturation bringing forward richness, intense fruit and complexity. 30% of the wine is fermented and aged in 1500-litre concrete egg tanks to enhance the rich palate texture and minerality. In both the barrels and the eggs, extended less contact contribute further to the rounder mouthfeel and creaminess of this elegantly textured wine.