Cap Classique – Quality Commitment Standard
From the Cap Classique Producers’ Association:
The Cap Classique Quality Commitment
This is our pledge/commitment to maintain the highest standards of grape selection, hand-crafted when making, blending and aging the wine on the lees, in keeping with the traditions of this method.
Individual base wines and blends are tasted annually/regularly by the Association’s own members to ensure that the final wine is of a high quality standard.
The Cap Classique Association is committed to the following minimum quality standards:
1. Grapes are selected from a diversity of regions of the Cape and the different soil types ensures a wide range of aromas and flavours leading to style differentiation and individualism.
2. Any white and red grapes varieties are permitted to be used to ensure delicate fruit and rich complexity.
3. Grape selection in the vineyard ensures that only perfect and healthy grapes come to the cellar for vinification. These grapes are only hand-picked.
4. Whole bunch pressing is recommended to ensure low phenolic content and minimum colour pigment in the juice, used for the base wine preparation.
5. When pressing the whole bunches, careful selection and separation of the quality juice from the press juice fraction are done for better blending opportunities.
6. Fermentation of the base wine is done in temperature controlled vessels but could also be fermented in small oak barrels. Malolactic fermentation could be considered or not depending on the style of wine.
7. Reserve wines may be used from time to time to maintain specific styles during the blending of the different cuvees prior to the secondary fermentation in the bottle.
8. Every bottle of Cap Classique is matured on the yeast for a minimum yeast contact time of 12 months and minimum of 3 Bars of pressure. The bottles ferment and mature in a horizontal position for maximum yeast exposure and in cool conditions. There are individual members who ensure much longer yeast contact period, depending on the style and vintage.
9. After riddling and disgorgement Cap Classique wines are left on the cork for some time to ensure integration and balance prior to labelling and dispatch.
10. The Association has developed their own Cap Classique logo and members have the right to use the logo on the packaging or elsewhere to endorse their serious commitment to quality and the improvement of standards.
