HISTORY
Ian Naudé and Lucas de Kock worked together for a number of years at a renowned Stellenbosch estate before their shared enthusiasm inspired them to synthesise their approach and create their own brand. Choosing the name Adoro – in Latin, ‘to adore’ – they decided to base the cellar in Stellenbosch and opted against vineyard ownership, turning instead to relationships fostered over the years with growers of high-quality grapes. While Ian began mentally composing the wines, Lucas visited vineyards to assess grapes and negotiate growth-management according to their shared vision.
In 2004, they met Geoff Bell, and Wayne Keiswetter, two South African entrepreneurs who, in partnership with Scotsman Billy Walker (one of the most respected master blenders in Scotland), had acquired Benriach Distillery in Speyside, Scotland. Seeking to expand their portfolio, and impressed by Ian and Lucas’ vision and blending skills, BenRiach brought Adoro into the fold to create a unique blend.
More about BenRiach
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PASSIONATE ABOUT BLENDS
A wine in mind – the philosophy is simple yet cerebral.
Though Adoro is physically located in Stellenbosch, there is no vineyard ownership. Relationships with growers of high quality fruit from vineyards situated in the right places, stretch back years, and this affords Ian the opportunity to select grapes suited to his requirements. His knowledge of the Cape’s different regions of origin and the ways in which their microclimates influence fruit character allows Ian to mentally compose the wine he wants to produce, before picking.
Taking climatic variations of the vintage year into account, Ian and Lucas seek out the vineyards offering the flavours that will come together in the final blend. It may be no more than a few rows of vines from a given vineyard, but once chosen, the parcel is managed to their specifications. Yield is also prescribed, and if the green harvest reduces yield by even as much as forty percent, the grower is still paid for normal tonnage in exchange for quality.
Blending – as the grapes are brought into the winery, fermentation is set off, and each lot starts to evolve, Ian begins to construct the architecture of the blend.
With Lucas and a small team, he takes the flavours and textures each lot offers into consideration, first constructing the core mid-palate of the wine. Filling the rest of the palate from the centre out, he adds nuance, dimension, and weight to the wine’s profile and smoothes off the rough edges. The ultimate question is how each component fits into the context of the final blend. Ian thinks of each wine as a circle, balanced, complete and as near to perfection as blending can bring it. His philosophy is that if any component of a blend tastes better alone than in the blend, the blender has missed his mark.
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The Great White Tasting (GWT)
Hoping to shift the prevalent local perception of white blends as ‘cheap and cheerful’ quaffing wine, Ian and Eben Sadie initiated the Great White Tasting (GWT) in 2004. Initially aimed only at the media and trade, the event now attracts international speakers and a large subsection of winemakers, its participative format including discussion on the wines, winemaking techniques and international trends.