Jacques Bruwer - 2004 WINE magazine Amorim Cork Cap Classique Challenge
In Robertson they know mos about mousse: this year's winner of the WINE magazine Amorim Cork Cap Classique Challenge is Bon Courage's Jacques Bruère Brut Reserve 2000. Sara Steer visits its maker, Jacques Bruwer. Dawdling my way down the back roads of Robertson en route to interview this year's WINE magazine Amorim Cork Cap Classique Challenge winner, Jacques Bruwer of Bon Courage estate, I am struck once again by the incredible beauty of the area.
Its charm is like a heady brew. The ruggedness of the landscape mixed with the earthiness and gritty good humour of the locals induces the kind of laidback feeling that only the platteland can induce.
From a winemaking point of view, the area is making its mark too, fast becoming a wine destination of note. Robertson's producers have notched up countless awards both here and abroad. No coincidence then that the area delivered back-to-back bubbly winners - last year's Cap Classique Challenge winner was the Weltevrede Philip Jonker Brut 1999 from Weltevrede estate in Robertson, while this year it's Jacques Bruère Brut Reserve 2000 from Bon Courage. Further evidence of this awesome potential are the Graham Beck bubblies from the nearby Madeba cellar, which have made it into the finals of the competition each year so far.
The Jacques Bruère was the only wine to notch up 4½ Stars, making it a clear-cut winner. Bon Courage cellarmaster Jacques and his father and owner of the estate, former Diners Club Winemaker of the Year, André, are over the moon with this achievement, particularly because Cap Classique is their long-standing passion.
"In the cellar it's the bubbly that we treat like our baby," says Bruwer junior.
When André's father Willie Bruwer bought the farm in 1927 at a liquidation auction, it was planted with mainly Muscadel and Chenin Blanc and geared to producing bulk wine. In 1974 André inherited the farm and set about modernising the cellar, installing cold fermentation (expensive and innovative for those days) and investing in new tanks and equipment.
"It was a difficult time, many cellars were closing down or having to join co-ops, but my father decided to stick with it and expand the winemaking operations." In 1983 André changed the farm's name from Goedemoed to Bon Courage and registered it as an estate.
In Jacques's third year at Elsenburg Agricultural College he was allocated a block of Chardonnay. "It turned out to be a very special block," he recalls. "My father always said that for him the ultimate in winemaking was to make a Méthode Champenoise wine, so that's what I decided to do with my block of Chardonnay." In 1990 he joined his father on the farm and over the years it's become a real team effort, with André managing the viticultural side and Jacques at the helm in the cellar.
In the early '90s their focus shifted from bulk wine to fine own-label wine. They concentrated on controlling yields, irrigation and canopy management. "Smaller berries means more fruit intensity. It's about manipulating your vineyards to extract maximum quality," explains Bruwer.
It's taken them 10 years to get to know the farm - learning about their unique terroir and microclimates and which vineyards to allocate to these optimum sites. In 2000 the Bruwers initiated a replanting programme to replace old, virused material.
The Jacques Bruère Brut Reserve 2000 is a blend of 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay. Both components are from single vineyards. "Chardonnay does well on soils with a high lime content and pH level, which fortunately we have here in Robertson. In fact they're similar to those in Champagne," says Jacques. The Pinot Noir was planted 10 years ago in stony, calcareous Karoo soil on south-east facing slopes.
Reflecting on the potential of Robertson, Jacques echoes the sentiments of fellow producers, consumers and the media. With its diverse soil types and microclimates a wide variety of cultivars thrive here. Bon Courage is a prime example of this versatility. Three rivers dissect the property and over the years four different soil types have been deposited on the farm. "We can pretty much grow anything. All our wines are above average, having at one stage or another won some award," he points out proudly.
Since 1990 Robertson producers have put a lot more effort into site selection. "There's been a tremendous improvement in quality here," says Jacques. "The French must look out - they told the rest of the world what wine and especially sparkling wine should taste like, but now they're having to sit up and take notice!" he says.
Jacques prefers to keep the winemaking process as simple and natural as possible. "It's a catch-22 situation when trying to repeat the success of a previous vintage," he admits. "If this is the winning formula then surely we should stick to it? But in the cellar you've always got to be innovative and, anyway, Mother Nature doesn't allow you to do the same thing year after year!"
There is no need to spray for fungus thanks to the dry climate. "If you get in good healthy grapes, you can make great wines," he says. The Chardonnay achieves physiological ripeness very early in the season. This results in a neutral base wine, low in alcohol with relatively bland flavours - perfect for the production of Cap Classique.
"We use our old basket press, which dates back to 1952, the first to be installed by my oupa," says Bruwer. After settling the juice is inoculated with yeast and then undergoes three weeks of cold fermentation. The base wine is kept on the lees for eight months and allowed to ferment dry. The wine is then sweetened to 24g/l and inoculated again, this time with Pryss de Mousse yeast after which the wine undergoes secondary fermentation in the bottle. It's a very slow fermentation, taking three to four months. When it's complete, the wine is laid down for a further 24 months.
The 2000 vintage was the first they could afford to lay down longer. Time on the lees was increased from 18 to 24 months, giving rise to a richer, more harmonious wine. "We experimented with a longer time, but the quality didn't improve dramatically and it just costs you more in the long run," comments Jacques. The long period on the lees allows for good integration of the yeasty, biscuity flavours, smaller bubbles and a more persistent mousse. The richness is balanced by the fresh citrus fruit and finesse of the Chardonnay.
Although the sugar is kept around 15g/l, and never more, Bruwer is not overly prescriptive when it comes to sugar levels. "The sugar must be in balance with the acid.
This together with the mousse is what gives the wine its elegance."
The wines are riddled (turned) by hand and then disgorged. A small amount of dosage is added at this stage to set the correct balance between sugar and acid, whilst also acting as a preservative. The wine then spends nine months on the cork.
"The process is very traditional and straightforward - the more natural it is, the happier I am. I'm merely there to guide the wine through the stages.
"We mature the bubblies in the cellar, so that by the time the wines are released they're at their peak and that's when I expect people to enjoy them," he says, but adds that the 2000 can go another five years "easily".
It's the personal touch that makes the difference between a bubbly with soul or a flat, uninspired wine. "We believe in being hands-on. If there's something going on in the cellar that needs taking care of, you've got to be there in person to sort it out," says Bruwer.
All their wines receive this type of attention, but it's the Cap Classique that gets the keenest kid-glove handling. A "niche" product, it's made in low volumes. Just over 500 cases of the 2000 Brut Reserve were produced. It may be a low volume, upmarket product, but it remains incredibly affordable - an absolute bargain at around R70 from the farm.
They're uncompromising when it comes to quality. "I only do a Cap Classique when the vintage allows it," says Bruwer emphatically. "We're always trying innovative things in the cellar and vineyard. My dad always told me 'you can't just walk into a cellar and expect to win awards'," he explains.
Bruwer credits the Cap Classique Association, of which Bon Courage is a member, with improving the quality of local bubblies. "They're doing a lot of great work," he comments. Fellow Cap Classique producers such as Villiera, Simonsig, Graham Beck, Twee Jonge Gezellen and the team at JC Le Roux serve as inspiration for the Bon Courage team, providing advice and encouragement over the years.
Their bubbly was recently featured (unbeknown to them) on an Afrikaans television drama series called Plek van die Vleisvreeters (Place of the Carnivores)! "In fact the murder weapon turned out to be one of our bottles!" laughs Jacques.
"When it comes to convincing the consumer, we've got to make people aware that our Cap Classiques are as good, if not better, than the so-called 'real thing'!" he says. It's also up to the producers to educate people that Cap Classique and sparkling wine are worlds apart. "Cap Classiques are made using top quality grapes and traditional methods. They'll be around till the end of time." It's a versatile drink that complements just about any dish. Although he particularly enjoys his with oysters, it's equally good with braaivleis!
In naming this bubbly, the Bruwers paid homage to their French heritage (they trace their ancestry to the Loire Valley in France). So they named it after Jacques (as the first Bruwer on the farm to produce this style of wine), but instead of using the Dutch spelling of Bruwer, they chose the original French spelling of Bruère. "Giving it our family name shows just how special this wine is to us all," says Jacques.
What made this wine a winner? "Perhaps it was because everything just fell into place that year," he says, "and the grapes for the Jacques Bruère Brut Reserve 2000 were the first of the new millennium to enter the Bon Courage cellar."
RECENT ACHIEVEMENTS
- Bon Courage Colombar Chardonnay 2003 - double gold Veritas 2003
- Bon Courage Noble Late Harvest 2001 - double gold Veritas 2003
- Weisser Riesling Natural Sweet 2003 - double gold Veritas 2003
- Bon Courage Inkará Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 - silver at the 2004 Fairbairn Capital Trophy Wine Show (FCTWS)
- Bon Courage Noble Late Harvest 2002 - silver at the 2004 FCTWS
- Bon Courage Special Late Harvest 2004, Petit Verdot 2004, Noble Late Harvest 2004 - all class winners at the 2004 SA Young Wine Show
- Bon Courage Chardonnay Prestige Cuvée 2002, Cabernet Sauvignon 2001 and Noble Late Harvest 2002 - bronze at the 2003 International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC)
- Bon Courage Shiraz 2002 - 4 Stars WINE magazine
- Bon Courage Noble Late Harvest 2000 - 4½ Stars WINE magazine.
