Bernard Series Old Vine Chenin Blanc - Bellingham

AT A GLANCE

📍 Coastal Region · Chenin Blanc 100%
Old vines (1983) · Single Vineyard
10 months in French oak with bâtonnage

Why we like it

This is not the typical fruity and immediate Chenin Blanc. It comes from one of South Africa's first Old Vine Chenin Blanc vineyards and shows how profound, elegant, and long-lived this grape can be. It is a white wine that wins you over with its balance, complexity, and extraordinary ability to accompany a meal.

Wine Profile

The nose offers green apple, pineapple, white and yellow peach, citrus, and wildflowers, accompanied by delicate notes of cedar and sweet spices. The sip is rich but taut, with a pleasant creaminess given by the aging on fine lees. The citrus freshness supports the wine to a long, harmonious, and mineral finish, hinting at an excellent evolutionary potential.

The Bellingham signature

Great vineyards do not need artifice. This is why Bellingham intervenes as little as possible, allowing the vineyard to express itself in the glass. The grapes are harvested at two different times to achieve a perfect balance between freshness and ripeness. Fermentation occurs naturally in French barriques of different passages, and the wine rests on the fine lees with monthly bâtonnage for about ten months, developing complexity and an elegant texture without losing precision.

Food Pairing

Perfect with roasted poultry, shellfish, fish in sauce, grilled vegetables, creamy risottos, and aged cheeses.

Serving

Serve at 10-12°C in a large glass. Do not serve too cold to enhance its aromas and structure.

Do you like this style?

Discover other South African Chenin Blancs selected by Cape Best or the entire range of Bellingham wines.

Technical sheet

Closure: screwcap
Alcohol: 13.5%
Residual sugar: 3.6 g/l
Total acidity: 6.0 g/l
pH: 3.50