NEWSLETTER | FEBRUARY 2009
  
 
N E W | R E L E A S E
  
 
Esteanna
Cabernet Sauvignon/Cabernet Franc/Petit Verdot 2007

This exciting new release from Rietvallei is a blend in the traditional Bordeaux style of 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. The wine matured for 18 months in new French oak barrels and was bottled in December 2008.

The wine is full-bodied and complex flavoured with excellent fruit and wood integration. Lots of work in the vineyard and minimal interference in the cellar allows this wine to express its terroir to the fullest.


 
  The wine has a deep red, almost black colour. Lots of berry fruit flavours come through on the nose, with hints of coffee, mocha and bitter chocolate, ending with a noticeable toastiness and soft touch of vanilla flavours. The fruity berry flavours are also evident on the palate with a good balance between fruit, tannin and wood. The wine is rounded off nicely and the soft oak flavours and juicy tannins make for a satisfying finish.  
     
  2 0 0 8 | T O P 1 0 | C L I E N T S  
 
 
 
“We are really thankful towards our loyal clients and customers for their support and belief in our wines. Rietvallei Estate Wines has grown by 28% as a whole in sales through our local distributor, WineWorx, with the John B Range growing by a wonderful 39%. To make sense of these figures you have to realize that the average growth for producers have been called to be around 8% -12%. This makes our growth truly amazing and we can only thank you as the consumer, all the people involved with the selling of our wines and definitely Kobus, his wine making team, Johnny and the workers on Rietvallei Estate. Without all of you I would not have been able to write this piece.

On the retail side I would really like to thank the Makro and Ultra Group. They have been our best outlets for the last couple of years and have been a wonderful gateway for us to reach consumers all over South Africa. To Carolyn Barton, Mark Norrish and their respective teams, we thank you for another great year. We look forward to the years ahead with you and believe that we will go from strength to strength.

I would also like to list our Top Restaurant (On-Consumption) clients in the different regions and below you will see where you can purchase our wines while enjoying the ambiance and hospitality of the establishments. The competition for listings on wine lists are extremely difficult and doesn't get any easier and we are very honored to be a part of their success. Thank you very much for your loyal support and we are looking forward to another wonderful year with you.”

- Colyn Truter, Marketing Manager

TOP RESTAURANT LISTINGS:

Cape Town: Bayside Café, Café Paradiso, Roggeland Country House

Gauteng: Throbbing Strawberry, Silver Orange, Greenway Woods Hotel, Birchwoods (East Rand), Hippo Hollow Restaurant, Bakubung Lodge

KZN: Holiday Inn Southern Sun Elangeni, Bangkok Wok (DBN North), Marco Paulo, The Mad Italian, Pumula Beach Hotel

Eastern Cape: Smokey Swallows, Morgan’s Bay Hotel, Squires

Southern Cape: Café Mario, La Capannina, Gannet, La Piazza, Knysna Hollow, Knysna Yacht Club, Market Street Grill, Mark’s Restaurant

 
     
  H A R V E S T | F O R E C A S T  
 
"The harvest looks very promising with regard to quality thanks to a long and cool winter. This was also the reason why we started harvesting a week later than usual. We've taken in some of the first Sauvignon Blanc and the first fermenting tanks show lots of potential. The natural acidity in the grapes are good resulting in a low pH that's the back bone with regard to the shelf life of the wine. I'm very confident that 2009 will be a great vintage."

- Kobus Burger, Winemaker
  
     
  2 0 0 9 | W A C K Y | W I N E | W E E K E N D  
 

Although it is still a while to go, we would like to 'tantalize your taste buds' for what we are offering this year at the annual Robertson Wacky Wine Weekend.

Thursday Evening:
Emo Adams
R100 per person (dinner included: hamburgers & chips)

Friday Evening:
Wicus van der Merwe
R150 per person (dinner included: Spitbraai)

Saturday, during day:
Wine Garden, Entertainment for kids (Jannie de Bruyn with Tommy Tompson & Marele), Spitbraai, hamburgers & chips, Bow Shooting & Grappa Shot 4 Shot Golf challenge

Saturday Evening:
Karaoke!

Sunday:
Breakfast, wine sales, lunch, hamburgers & chips

Breakfast will be served every morning.

For any information required or bookings, please contact us (detail below). Hope to see you there!

  
 
 
  W I N E | C L U B  
 
We offer two types of membership and would just like to refresh your memory on the various benefits. Please remember, you are at any time welcome to change your membership status.

With the LOYALTY CLUB MEMBERSHIP the requirements are a once-off entry fee of R100 and a minimum purchase annually to the total value of R1000.

The benefits will include a membership card, discount on wine purchases (less 15% on all cellar door sales and less 7.5% - on farm price - on all orders delivered to your door), discount of less 10% on all Rietvallei merchandise, a quarterly newsletter, free birthday gift, first access to all new and limited releases and one free ticket to the annual Robertson Wacky Wine Weekend.

Then we have the SUPERIOR CLUB MEMBERSHIP, which also requires a small entry fee of R100 and a minimum purchase annually of R2000. The member will also have to sign an agreement where the person agrees to purchase 12 bottles of wine every three months (quarter of the year), which Rietvallei will select and courier to his/her door at the discounted price of less 15%, delivery free of charge. A full discount of less 30% is applicable if the wine is collected from the estate.

He/she will have the chance to make any changes he/she wishes to that selection before the cut-off date (two weeks before it is dispatched). We will deduct the amount owing from his/her credit card the day the wine is dispatched.

The benefits are the same as with the Loyalty Membership, plus of course a few extras. Superior Club Members will enjoy a bigger discount of less 30% (on farms price) on all cellar door sales and less 15% (on farms price) on all orders delivered to your door (delivery cost included). Members will also receive one free ticket to the annual Robertson Wine on the River Festival.
  
     
 
Tel: +27 (0) 23 626 3596 | Fax: +27 (0) 23 626 4514 | info@rietvallei.co.za| www.rietvallei.co.za