Scintilla – Luxuriously smooth, well balanced and delicate
FACT SHEET - J.C. Le Roux Scintilla 2000 The House of J.C. le Roux J.C. Le Roux, the first cellar devoted solely to the production of sparkling wine in South Africa, is located in the heart of the picturesque Devon Valley on the outskirts of Stellenbosch. The cellar is the country’s leading sparkling wine producer and is recognised for its craftsmanship and expertise to make the finest Méthode Cap Classiques. These premier vintage Cap Classiques are created in the state-of-the-art cellar in the time-honoured French method of secondary bottle fermentation, known as Méthode Champenoise.
The vineyards The grapes are sourced from two prime vineyard blocks of the noble varieties, Chardonnay and Pinot noir, specially selected for this signature Méthode Cap Classique based on their consistent quality over the years. Only the best grapes are handpicked from the low-trellised Chardonnay block situated in Robertson and Pinot noir block in Stellenbosch.
The winemaking The grapes were harvested at 18-20º Balling in January and the beginning of February 2000. The yield of between nine and 11 tons per ha was carefully placed in small baskets to prevent bruising. In the cellar, the juice settled overnight at 10ºC and the clear juice racked the following morning and inoculated with Prisse de Mousse yeast, a French yeast strain which results in the typical yeasty character of fine Méthode Champenoise-style sparkling wine. The wine was fermented at 16-17ºC and the base wine underwent malolactic fermentation. Thereafter the wine was blended in a proportion of 75% Chardonnay and 25% Pinot noir, stabilised and bottled. Secondary fermentation took place in the cool controlled climate of the maturation cellar. The wine was matured for a further 60 months on the lees and the sediment removed by the traditional method of remuage and degorgement.
Winemaker’s comments: Elunda Basson J.C. Le Roux Scintilla 2000 is a luxuriously smooth, well-balanced and delicate Méthode Cap Classiquethat explodes with scintillating bubbles and completes The House of J.C. Le Roux Cap Classique range. This exceptional signature J.C. Le Roux Cap Classique displays a lively persistent bead and a well-developed nose with toast and ripe fruit flavours. A creamy and elegant mousse results in a good round aftertaste. This fine fruity Cap Classique has lots of maturation potential.
