Shiraz was machine harvested in the early morning. The remaining fruit was hand harvested. The grapes were all picked at between 25 and 27 B. Hand harvested grapes were destalked and lightly crushed and all fruit was fermented in open concrete fermenters (‘kuipe’), using Oenoform Rouge yeasts. Manual punch downs were done twice daily during fermentation (Grenache three times daily). The wines were racked off and sent to barrel for malolactic fermentation and further ageing. The Mourvedre component was matured in 50% American oak and 50% French oak, with all the remaining components going to French oak barriques. 25% new oak was used with the remainder being 2nd to 4th fill. The components spent 15 months in barrel before being lightly filtered and bottled. This wine was bottled without fining which may result in light sediment appearing over time.

Spice Route is a joint venture by Fairview’s Charles Back, Jabulani Ntshangase, John Platter and Gyles Webb. In a sentimental homage to the spice traders who were so influential in the history and culture of the Cape of Good Hope, the Spice Route Wine Company has created an exclusive range of handcrafted wines.

During the development of the range, owner Charles Back decided that meticulous attention to detail should be the hallmark of the Spice Route Flagship range, which should also express the unique terroir of the Swartland. The Spice Route Flagship range was first harvested in 1998 and consisted of a Merlot, Syrah and Pinotage.

“Although the creation of the Spice Route range is laborious and costly, we strived to put the effort into the winemaking process to do it properly. "The wide acclaim the range is receiving bears testament to the fact that these subtle nuances are important," says winemaker Charl du Plessis.