Brother and sister team, Abrie and Jeanette Bruwer of Springfield Estate are the complete opposite of your typical university-trained winemakers. The Bruwers choose to take the path less travelled and go against the grain in order to make the sort of wines they want to drink.
The Estate has been run by the Bruwer family for generations. The current brother-sister winemaking team are descendants of the Brueres, Frenchmen who came to South Africa from the Loire Valley armed only with vines in the 1600s. Today the Springfield approach involves sustainable viticulture, wild yeasts, long fermentations and a stubborn (but justified) belief that the rocky, unforgiving soils of Robertson are perfect for producing outstanding Cabernet Sauvignon. Long may Abrie and Jeanette continue!
In order to achieve a luscious, juicy wine in the Springfield Wholeberry Cabernet Sauvignon, there is as little intervention in the cellar as possible. Simply de-stemmed, the whole, uncrushed bunches are transported using only a gravity flow system. Whole berry maceration is followed by fermentation with natural yeasts, racking and one year’s maturation in oak barrels. The result is a velvety wine with softer tannins and classical varietal characteristics. This traditional wine is unfiltered and unfined, which may deposit sediment and might require decanting.
