Keermont Pondokrug Cabernet Franc 2018

In 2003 the Wraith family, originally from Gauteng, bought two adjacent farms which today make up Keermont Vineyards. Mark Wraith lives on the farm with his wife, Monica and their four children. The vineyards are situated high up in the Blaauwklippen Valley, otherwise known as Paradyskloof (paradise gorge). The Blaauwklippen River, which bisects the farm, is also the boundary between the Helderberg and the Stellenbosch Mountain Range. This means that some vineyards are on the warmer north-facing Helderberg slopes and others on the cooler west-facing Stellenbosch range. The altitude climbs 200m within the 1.7km length of the farm and the vineyards are planted between 250m and 400m above sea level. The mountainous terrain and differing soil types provide pockets of excellent and varied terroir. These pockets are separated by tracts of pristine mountain Fynbos and Renosterveld, endemic to the Western Cape as the Wraiths and their team believe all the natural vegetation encourages the accumulation of natural predators and deterrents to those organisms that may attack vineyards.

Pondokrug – a ridge (rug) deriving its name from a shepherds hut (Pondok).