Description
94 points | The Wine Advocate | Monica Larner
This is the vintage that broke the dreaded drought period, and this lady comes out singing in the much-needed rain. The Glenelly 2019 Stellenbosch Lady May is the estate's top wine. It represents a blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc, 10% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot. Lady May is generally 70% to 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, but that number comes down in 2019, as the team looked for optimal ripeness. Because of the relatively cooler conditions, and the fact that light radiation stays high in South Africa after veraison, this wine is quite rich and vertical in intensity with licorice-like flavors. In fact, the winemaking team sought to tone it down a bit by reducing some of the new oak. The results are focused and sharp, and what Lady May shows in this vintage is a pretty sense of freshness with elegantly chalky tannins.
Located at the foothills of the Simonsberg Mountain, Glenelly shares important DNA with Bordeaux thanks to founder May-Éliane de Lencquesaing, or Lady May, former owner and managing director of the Pauillac winery Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande. Her South African estate counts 57 hectares nestled into a beautiful amphitheater with soft slopes and morning light before the sun sets in the west. With decomposed granite soils, the vineyards are between 130 and 280 meters in elevation and remain cool, with temperatures that drop one degree Celsius every 10 meters in elevation. The surrounding mountains serve to funnel and channel the winds, with moderating effects on plant growth.