Blankbottle, Seelug, Stellenbosch, South Africa, 2025

Product code: 7083

Producer Profile

Blankbottle is the fiercely independent South African wine project of Pieter Walser, a winemaker known for rejecting convention in favour of curiosity, instinct and storytelling.

Founded in the early 2000s, the name stems from Walser’s early trade in unlabelled bottles and reflects his core philosophy: wine should be judged solely on what is in the glass, not what is written on the label. Each release is treated as an individual narrative, with no grape varieties listed and no fixed stylistic boundaries. Walser owns no vineyards, instead working as a modern-day négociant, sourcing fruit from exceptional sites across the Western Cape, often in extremely small parcels. The result is an ever-evolving portfolio of distinctive, site-driven wines, many of which are made only once and never repeated. Each label is handcrafted by owner-winemaker Pieter Walser, using a variety of techniques such as woodcuts, lino, pencil drawings, stencils etc. Having no indication of varietals on the label - leaving it BLANK - removing all preconceptions as to what lies beyond.

Viticulture

Sourced from a small single trellised Chardonnay vineyard on the foothills of the Helderberg facing the cooling influence of False Bay.

Winemaking

The grapes were picked at optimal ripeness and cooled overnight to 4 degrees celsius. The next morning the grapes were pressed as whole bunches. The juice underwent spontaneous fermentation in older French oak as well as 40% new barrels. Deep winter the wine received one sulfur addition. 10 months on the lees, blended and bottled.

Tasting Note

A fresh, elegantly oaked, limey and delicious Chardonnay - more to the serious side of things, and named after the sea air or SEELUG! pulled in by on-shore winds across this small (as yet) unnamed vineyard on the lower Helderberg, spraying a whack of cool, misty oyster extract over the grapes.