A glass of wine with Rudi de Wet
A glass of wine with Rudi de Wet
Bilton Wines has just released its second Bordeaux-style blend, the Sir Percy 2005, the farm's flagship vintage. The wine is made by winemaker Rudi de Wet, with input by ex-Meerlust Giorgio Dalla Cia.
What have you learned from Giorgio?
That there is more to wine than just the
taste - it's about the lifestyle. I remember
him calling me at Meerlust to have a look
at the "pretty girl in the tasting room". It
was Giselle Bündchen.
You were also winemaker at Meerlust.
Why did you leave?
When Giorgio informed Hannes Myburgh
[owner of Meerlust] that he might want
to go solo, Hannes asked him to leave in
a week. He later called me to ask whether
I'd ever be able to fill Giorgio's shoes, to
which I replied "never".
What are your plans on becoming a
Giorgio in your own right?
I want to make the best Merlot in the
world. It's a difficult variety - today it
tastes green and tomorrow it's ripe - but
I'm young and figure I have about 30 trials
of vintages left. But I might achieve this
in 2009, with a Merlot that will only be
released in 2015.
You think you can do this?
I don't think so, I know so.
Compare the Sir Percy with the
Meerlust Rubicon.
There are three components needed: the
Rubicon recipe, Giorgio and terroir. We
have two of the three, and our terroir
is better.
The Sir Percy 2005 retails for R155 a bottle
(ex-cellar).
