Mother Rock, Chenin Blanc Brutal 2021

Johan was the first South African producer to receive the invite to the exclusive ‘Brutal!’ club of winemakers. Brutal! started from a conversation three winemakers had a few years back (two are Catalan and one is French). The two Catalans, Laureano Serras and Joan Ramon Escoda exclaimed when tasting one of Anthony Tortul’s wines that it was ‘Brutal!’ or as Americans would say ‘dope/kick ass.’

Anthony didn’t get the reference and thought they were saying the wine was garbage. So he made a quick makeshift label with ‘Brutal!’ handwritten and the rest is history. Today ‘Brutal!’ is very much part of the ‘natural’ or ‘raw’ wine movement. The only requirements are that it’s ‘zero/zero’, meaning nothing added and nothing taken out. It also signifies the wine that is an experiment. Johan Meyer a.k.a. Stompie puts his mark on this 100% Chenin Blanc version from a vineyard site near Malmesbury in the Swartland. It joins the vault of ‘Brutal!’ wines made by natural-wine pundits such as Christian Tschida, Valentina Passelacqua, Matassa, and Do.t.e.

The oxidative handling gives this wine a deliciously smoky, nutty quality. It has a certain spice akin to peppercorns and a tang like cider. It is best when consumed rapidly, but that shouldn’t be much of a problem.

Type: White
Producer: Mother Rock
Varietal: Chenin Blanc
Country: South Africa
Region: Swartland
Farming: Organic, Zero sulphur