Méthode Cap Classique is the classic method of producing Champagne in the Cape of Good Hope. It’s abbreviated to MCC and the street name is bubbly, because it’s the bubbles that inspired Dom Perignon to exclaim, “come quickly, I am tasting the stars” years ago in a convent in Hautvillers, in the north-eastern corner of France.
Creativity is central to celebrating, always captured in the possibility of a new beginning and therefore also key in Cap Classique. The ultimate celebration of creativity in MCC, however, is the art of blending. Blending of varietals in sparkling wine, dates back to when man first started to produce wine: to be aware of the different components and orchestrating them to create the ultimate complementary style. In MCC, the varietals most commonly blended is Chardonnay and Pinot noir while Pinot Meunier also gained some popularity of late.
Recently launched, the Mulderbosch MCC 2014 encapsulate the wonder, significance and creative power of Méthode Cap Classique. The company’s reputation for innovation, creatively pursuing and endeavouring its own course in wine style, this MCC continues the tradition with the inclusion of a meaningful Pinot Meunier component. According to Adam Mason, chief winemaker at Mulderbosch, the intention was to produce a unique house style of MCC unlike anything currently available in South Africa.
“The inclusion of 26% Pinot Meunier provides a richness, texture and opulence to the blend that sets it apart,” says Mason.
The rest of the blend comprise of 53% Pinot noir and 21% Chardonnay. The Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes are grown on Mulderbosch, while the Pinot Meunier is sourced from the Polkadraai Ward and thereby bringing to the blend an added combined expression of site, climate and soil.
For Mulderbosch, distinctly known for its unique strip label, the addition of a MCC to the classic Mulderbosch range symbolizes the ethos of finding your passion in life and having fun living it. If creativity is having fun with science, then the MCC 2014 is the result. Mulderbosch MCC 2014 is, as Charles Dickens famously stated, the “elegant extra in life”; it is the creative result of innovation in wine making and builds on a tradition of excellence. But first, it’s about the bubbles.