Tanagra Heavenly Chaos 2017
A deliciously quaffable Merlot blend – the perfect summer or lunch red wine.

	Our Heavenly Chaos owes its name to the fact that it is not a ‘designed’ blend but is opportunistic in the sense that we blend the Merlot, on which it is based, with whatever is left in the barrels after bottling our other wines. This accounts for the ‘chaos’ part in its name as this blend has a different composition every year though it’s always led by our (Single Vineyard) Merlot. It is ‘heavenly’ because it always results in an extremely smooth and quaffable wine. The 2017 vintage consists of 74% Merlot, spiced up with Cabernet Sauvigon and Cabernet Franc in equal proportions (13% each). In contrast to our other red wines, which are all very bold, the Heavenly Chaos is somewhat lighter in style, due to the underlying Merlot and because the grapes get picked slightly earlier. As such, the Heavenly Chaos is a perfect summer or lunch red wine, which can be enjoyed at a slightly cooler temperature than bolder red wines (at around 15-16 degrees Celsius). As it is vinified in exactly the same way as all our other red wines, it has the same ageing potential. It is perfect to enjoy now or within (at least) the next 6-7 years.
	Vintage	2017
	Vineyard	Merlot: South facing vineyard at Tanagra (McGregor)bordering Vrolijkheid Nature Reserve, slightly sandy and clay soil. Registered as Single Vineyard.
	Vines	2 ha planted in 1998, Rootstock 101/14. 8000 number of vines trellised in a South row direction on a 5 wire system
	Yield	4 – 5 tons/ha
	Vinification	Early morning hand selected harvest to optimize grape quality at 23.5 ballings. Hand-sorting of grapes before destemming. Whole berries are pumped into open top fermenter (without any green stems) and macerated there for about 4 days on the skins, allowing cooled grapes to extract colour and phenolic compounds prior to primary fermentation. Fermentation through natural (wild) yeast as soon as grapes reach room temperature. Punching down of fermenting must 3 times a day until fermentation is completed. Fermentation on the skins until about zero ballings. Gentle pressing of skins and malolactic fermentation in 225 litre neutral French oak casks for 14 months. Blending of Merlot (74%), Cabernet Sauvignon (13%) and Cabernet Franc (13%) just before bottling. Done with minimal interference through vinification, sediment may occur.
	analysis	14.0 % Alc., PH 3.48, RS 2.8, TA 6.1
	Tasting notes	Blue & black berries with a slightly herbal afternote, with hints of eucalyptus and violet. Deliciously smooth, with the Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc slightly jazzing up the Merlot’s soft tannin.
	Ratings	Gold Wine Awards
	Cases produced	700 cases (x 6 bottles)
	Price	R 115 per bottle