2021 Force Celeste Semillon, Mother Rock

Johan ‘Stompie’ Meyer is a rising star in the world of South African winemaking – while he doesn’t grow his own grapes, he has access to some of the region’s very best fruit through his strong relationships with local growers. With these grapes he produces fine organic and natural wines in collaboration with Ben Henshaw. Johan takes a natural and low-intervention approach to his winemaking – ‘I believe the word terroir should be used in honest terms. Letting the area and grape speak for themselves in the bottle is our goal – naturally fermented grape juice, that’s all!’

Johan picks the grapes for this wine in two stages: a green first harvest (slightly ahead of full ripeness) for acidity; and a second pick a week later for more concentration. This is a wonderfully textured example of this grape, 10% of the juice is fermented on skins which adds a little texture and complexity to the final wine.

You’ll see that the wine is bright yellow in colour with touches of green, and the nose bursts with herbaceous notes of hedgerow and elderflower, accompanied by a touch of tropical passionfruit. A soft acidity on the palate, reminiscent of beautifully ripe lemons, the finish is concentrated and persistent. Zesty and zippy with a touch of salinity, this is lightning in a bottle – try with platters of fresh seafood.