Alheit Vineyards Cartology 2024
€256 In Bond TA 96
Case of 6 •€42.67 / btl Due In
Alheit VineyardsCoastal Region, South Africa
Alheit Vineyards Hereafter Here 2024
€175 In Bond
Case of 6 •€29.17 / btl Due In
Alheit Vineyards Magnetic North 2023
Citrusdal Mountain, Olifants River, South Africa
€521 In Bond TA 97
Case of 6 •€86.83 / btl Due In
Showing 1–3 of 3 wines
Rated as a South African First Growth by leading wine critic Tim Atkin MW
Alheit Vineyards is the project of Chris and Suzaan Alheit, and it is built on a single conviction: that old Chenin Blanc vines growing on the ancient soils of the Western Cape are capable of producing white wines of a depth, complexity and longevity that no other grape variety and no other wine-producing country can currently match at the same price point. The wines they have made since their first vintage in 2010 have demonstrated that conviction to be entirely justified, establishing Alheit Vineyards as one of the most celebrated and critically admired producers in South Africa and earning Chris Alheit a reputation as the Cape's most passionate and eloquent advocate for old vine terroir.
Cartology, their flagship Chenin Blanc, is assembled from multiple old vine sites across the Western Cape, blending the character of different ancient vineyards into a wine of remarkable complexity and consistency. It is one of the most distinctive and personally expressive white wines produced anywhere in South Africa, and it has attracted devoted collectors worldwide who recognise that what Chris and Suzaan Alheit are doing with old Chenin Blanc vines represents something genuinely irreplaceable.
Estate at a Glance
Alheit Vineyards is based in Hemel-en-Aarde Ridge, with vineyard sources drawn from across the Western Cape wherever Chris Alheit identifies old Chenin Blanc vines of sufficient age and quality. The estate was founded by Chris and Suzaan Alheit with their first vintage in 2010. The focus is entirely on Chenin Blanc, with small amounts of other varieties produced from exceptional old vine sites. The style is driven by the character of individual old vine parcels, unified by minimal intervention, no new oak and a commitment to expressing terroir rather than winemaking.
Chris and Suzaan Alheit
Chris Alheit grew up in South Africa and trained as a winemaker before spending years travelling through the wine regions of Europe, developing a deep understanding of old vine viticulture and the specific character that ancient vines contribute to wine. Suzaan brings the same philosophical rigour to the business side of what they do, and the project they have built together is a genuine partnership of conviction and shared purpose.
Chris's approach to sourcing is unusual in South African wine. Rather than farming a single estate, he identifies old Chenin Blanc vineyards across a wide area of the Western Cape, building relationships with farmers and securing access to vines that might otherwise be replanted or neglected. This detective approach to terroir, seeking out the oldest and most characterful sites regardless of where they are located, has given Alheit Vineyards a breadth of old vine raw material that no single estate could match.
The commitment to old vines is not simply philosophical. The practical reality of working with Chenin Blanc bushvines of 40 or more years old, growing in deep granite and schist soils without irrigation, is that the vines produce fruit of an intensity, natural balance and complexity of flavour that younger vines planted in more accessible conditions cannot replicate. This is the foundation of everything Alheit Vineyards does.
The Old Vine Philosophy
South Africa has an extraordinary heritage of old Chenin Blanc vines, planted in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s across a wide range of soils and climates in the Western Cape. These vines were planted when Chenin Blanc was the workhorse variety of the Cape, producing large volumes of basic wine for the co-operative system. Over the subsequent decades, as fashion shifted and more internationally recognised varieties took precedence, many of these old plantings were removed or neglected.
The Alheit project is premised on the recognition that these surviving old vines are one of South Africa's most precious and irreplaceable viticultural assets. Vines of 40 or 50 years old, growing on their own roots in deep soils without irrigation, develop root systems of extraordinary depth and complexity, accessing minerals and water from deep within the earth and producing fruit that reflects the specific character of the site in ways that younger vines simply cannot match.
Chris Alheit is a key figure in the Old Vine Project, South Africa's formal initiative to identify, certify and preserve heritage vineyards of 35 years and older. His advocacy for the value of these old plantings has influenced a generation of Cape winemakers and contributed to a shift in perception about what South African Chenin Blanc is capable of at the highest level of quality and ambition.
Winemaking Philosophy
The winemaking at Alheit Vineyards is guided by a consistent and disciplined set of principles: minimal intervention in the cellar, no new oak at any point in the winemaking process, natural fermentation, and extended time on lees to develop textural complexity and aromatic depth without the imposition of any external influence on the wine's natural character.
The objective is always transparency: to allow each vineyard, each soil type, each vintage's specific character to express itself as clearly and faithfully as possible. Chris Alheit's role in the cellar is to observe, guide and protect rather than to impose or to shape. The result is wines that taste unmistakably of their place of origin, developing with impressive complexity over five to ten or more years in the finest examples.
Signature Wines
Cartology
The flagship wine of Alheit Vineyards and one of the most celebrated white wines produced in South Africa, Cartology is assembled from multiple old vine Chenin Blanc sites across the Western Cape, blending the character of different parcels into a wine of remarkable complexity, consistency and depth. The name refers to the practice of mapping, reflecting Chris Alheit's approach of charting the hidden landscape of old vine terroir across the Cape. Developing beautifully over five to ten years and capable of ageing for fifteen or more in the finest vintages.
Single Vineyard Wines
Alheit Vineyards produces a range of single vineyard Chenin Blancs from individual old vine sites, each expressing the specific character of its source with the precision and transparency that the estate's minimal intervention philosophy allows. These wines provide the most direct and specific expression of individual old vine terroir available from any producer in South Africa.
Why Buy Alheit Vineyards?
Alheit Vineyards makes wines that are genuinely impossible to find from any other producer: old vine Chenin Blanc of a depth and complexity assembled from the Cape's finest heritage vineyards with a philosophical rigour and a commitment to terroir expression that has attracted devoted collectors worldwide. Cartology is one of South Africa's most important and most collectible white wines, and the single vineyard range provides a uniquely specific survey of what old vine Chenin Blanc can achieve across the Western Cape.
All Alheit Vineyards wines purchased through Fine Wine Library are held In Bond, excise duty free, with guaranteed provenance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who makes Alheit Vineyards wines?
Alheit Vineyards is the project of Chris and Suzaan Alheit, founded in 2010. Chris Alheit is regarded as South Africa's most important advocate for old vine Chenin Blanc and a founding figure in the modern Cape wine renaissance.
What is Cartology?
Cartology is the flagship wine of Alheit Vineyards, a Chenin Blanc assembled from multiple old vine sites across the Western Cape. It is one of the most celebrated and consistently excellent white wines produced in South Africa, developing remarkable complexity over five to ten or more years.
What is the Old Vine Project?
The Old Vine Project is a South African initiative that identifies, certifies and promotes the preservation of heritage vineyards of 35 years and older. Chris Alheit is a key figure in the project, which certifies qualifying vineyards with its Certified Heritage Vineyard seal and advocates for the exceptional quality of old vine South African wine.
How long should Alheit Vineyards wines be cellared?
Cartology and the single vineyard wines develop well over five to ten years and the finest examples can continue developing for fifteen or more years, revealing increasing mineral complexity and aromatic depth with careful cellaring.