Hoopenburg Wines is proud to announce that it has scooped a gold for its maiden vintage INTEGER Chardonnay 05 at the recent International Wine Challenge in London. It was the only South African Chardonnay to achieve this. The IWC drew close on 9400 entries world-wide and were judged by an impressive line-up of 40 wine experts from 19 nationalities. Only 2,8% of the wines were awarded gold, with South Africa scooping 12 of them.

This is an entirely new range of wines from Hoopenburg and was the brain child of owner Gregor Schmitz and wine maker Neil Hawkins. Production is very limited to ensure no quality is compromised.
INTEGER is the Latin word meaning ‘complete, whole, fresh, begun anew, pure, balanced….’ All words synonymous to the wine itself together with the changes that occurred at Hoopenburg in 2005. These wines are vintage dependant with only the best wines from that specific vintage making it into the range.
The 2005 vintage includes a Chardonnay, Syrah and a Merlot.

From the beginning vines are selected, bunches are selected during harvest, wood percentages are determined according to the vintage and then barrels are selected for blending. It is an extremely hands on project, with Neil personally involved in every movement of the wine himself to give you as near to perfect product that will last for a decade.
"We are delighted  at Hoopenburg to win this award, especially with 2005 being my first vintage at Hoopenburg. It confirms to me that there is a vast amount of potential on the farm, with this being only the beginning." says winemaker Neil Hawkins.

The 2005 Chardonnay will be released mid August 2007 and the reds mid August 2008. The new INTEGER range is a 100% hand crafted wine and aspires to becoming a Top Cape classic of the future.