De Toren Fusion V 2019
The remarkable Fusion V expresses great balance, purity and intensity on both nose and palate.
Grape Varietals & Region: A Left Bank-style Bordeaux blend of 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Malbec, 15% Cabernet Franc, 13% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot, from De Toren’s vineyards on the Polkadraai Hills in Stellenbosch, South Africa. The gravel-rich soils and prolonged afternoon sun exposure particularly favour the Cabernet Sauvignon that forms the backbone of the blend.
Taste Profile: A pronounced poise of red and dark fruit with a hint of sweet spice. Bold and full-bodied, unveiling amazing depth and a long finish of silky tannins and oak flavours, beautifully textured and complex, lingering with detailed flavours that draw you to the next sip. Best decanted at least an hour before serving, and capable of ageing 20 years or more.
Winemaking Process: Aged in a climatised barrel room (16C at 80% humidity) for 12 months in 225-litre French and American oak, with the Malbec component given the benefit of American oak specifically.
Winemaker: De Toren was founded in the early 1990s by Emil and Sonette den Dulk, who left Johannesburg in 1991 in search of a quieter life and found what Emil calls “a little piece of heaven” on the Polkadraai Hills outside Stellenbosch. Working with specialists from the University of Stellenbosch, den Dulk set out to prove Bordeaux blends could stand on South African soil, engineering the estate’s now-signature Left Bank and Right Bank approach to blending and creating Fusion V, South Africa’s first five-varietal Bordeaux blend, along the way.
