Fram Wines Chardonnay 2022
-
Wilfred
Wong
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
In the Robertson appellation, we find some calcareous soils, and calcium is Chardonnay’s friend. Calcium helps us in the sense that it gives this wine a brilliantly defined minerality, supported by yellow citrus fruits and an elegant cereal note on the entry of the palate. 2021 was a very good vintage throughout the Western Cape, with wines displaying generous fruit and a fine balance.
Professional Ratings
-
Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2022 Fram Chardonnay deftly combines fruit and soil, producing a wine representing the Robertson growing region. TASTING NOTES: This wine offers aromas and flavors of Golden Delicious apples, dried leaves, suggestions of mineral notes, and shading of earth. Enjoy it with a lightly-spiced roast chicken. (Tasted: April 24, 2023, San Francisco, CA)
Other Vintages
2021-
Wilfred
Wong
Fram is the personal passion project of Thinus Krüger, founded with the promise to “always sail into unchartered waters, to boldly search for whatever grapes lie behind the next hill, over the next horizon.” After over a decade making wine for other people, Thinus took his extensive experience to explore the outer reaches of the Cape wine lands, the here be dragons area of the wine map. In the spirit of exploration and discovery, Thinus works closely with farmers in the remote region of Clanwilliam, an area where the heat is fierce, yields are low, but quality is pristine for those who know how to manage the elements. In search of other special corners across the Western Cape, the regions of Robertson and the Swartland are also represented in the Fram range. Thinus asserts a quiet confidence - he knows grapes, and he knows how to let them shine. Vintage after vintage, Thinus never fails to impress in the quality and balance of his wines.
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.
Within the Breede River Valley in South Africa, Robertson is a warm and dry winegrowing region notable for its white wines. The region is home to an increasing number of estates and cooperatives.