New releases

De Toren second label now available

De Toren wine estate in Vlottenburg (near Stellenbosch) has launched a second label under the name Diversity, the first two releases being Alpha 2000 and Beta 2001.

Each year managing director Emile den Dulk and cellarmaster Albie Koch select the best fruit and best barrels for the farm’s flagship wine, De Toren Fusion V (a blend of all five of the traditional Bordeaux varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot). Although the remaining wine was sold off in bulk in the past, it was still, according to Den Dulk, “a very good wine”.

“Because we never know what will be left over after we make Fusion V, we end up with a very diverse cocktail,” he explains. The De Toren team came up with a novel idea – using whatever they were left with, they would endeavor to make the best possible wine, the end result being bottled under the Diversity label. Whereas the Fusion V always features all five of the traditional Bordeaux varieties, what appears under the Diversity label will vary. The first release (2000) was called Alpha, the second Beta and so the tradition will continue until the Omega is reached.

The Diverstity Alpha 2000, made from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, received a 3 Star rating in the June 2003 issue of WINE magazine. Diversity Beta 2001, a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, picked up a 4 Star rating in the May 2003 issue of WINE magazine. Both wines sell for R90 a bottle from the farm.