"Beautiful fruit purity of limes and ripe gooseberry, with tropical, floral and fine herbal notes, ruby grapefruit and white pear drop on the finish. This is cool climate Sauvignon Blanc – vibrant, mineral, elegant, balanced and delicate, with a long, layered and complex finish."
Andrew's vineyards are located in The Highlands, a unique sub-region of Elgin on the saddle between two peaks, which is virtually exclusive to Iona. The uniquely elegant and mineral driven Sauvignon Blanc grown here in The Highlands is a true benchmark for South Africa and has won Iona many loyal followers from around the world.
The vineyards are on a mountain plateau 420 metres above sea level, surrounded by the Kogelberg Nature Reserve, and overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. In a country where cool sites are precious, these vineyards are like gold dust - the grapes ripening up to two months later than other Cape vineyards and in perfect balance. Iona is South Africa's coolest vineyard site.
A combination of gravel bed, Sandstone and silica soils quartz soils with underlying clay support the vines which were planted between 1997 and 2012. The aim is for elegance, balance and to express the unique terroir of the Elgin Highlands. Grapes were hand-picked into crates early in the morning to ensure that the grapes stayed cool.
