Wine of the Week 67: Sijnn Red 2023

“People thought he was crazy to start a winery here,” says winemaker Kruger Theunissen, gesturing across a Martian sweep of rolled ochre stone, the emerald vein of the Breede River in the distance. A wooden table stretches out under an awning, the landscape framed in front of us. The winery is to our backs, constructed out of the same river stones, designed by the ‘he’, owner and trained architect David Trafford. Unobtrusive, it swells up with the surroundings.

Perched on a plateau about 15 kilometres from the southern oceans of Africa, Malgas is its own Wine of Origin, and Sijnn is not only the only winery in it – but it is the only one for miles around.

An unforgiving landscape

Trafford (of the Stellenbosch winery) arrived in 2003 with his wife Rita, looked at this unforgiving, arid place and decided to plant vines. No small feat: the soils are roughly 90% rock; reminiscent of Châteauneuf-du-Pape’s famous galets, along with boulders of quartz, glimmering in the sun. After more than 200 soil profiles, around 10 hectares were planted. They named it Sijnn, from a Khoisan word meaning ‘riverbank’.

Hardy, drought-resistant bushvines were planted and, along with predominantly chenin blanc and syrah, encapsulate a Mediterranean spread: assyrtiko, verdelho, touriga nacional, tinta amarella, grenache and tempranillo. With Trafford’s Stellenbosch background, cabernet sauvignon just had to be planted too, finding its way as a small percentage into the flagship red, giving backbone and juicy cassis.

“Bushvines and klipspringers are unfortunately the same height,” laments Theunissen. The buck, and its contemporaries, are known to enjoy the berries. Birds are prolific, with a constant sweep of wings through the vines and aloes.

A new winemaker

Theunissen is the newly minted winemaker, taking over from Charla Bosman, who spent a decade in this remote place, bringing its distinct wines to bottle. Now it’s his turn, the 2026 vintage his first harvest. The occasion today is the Sijnn Long Table, a relaxed affair to showcase their new releases, White 2024 and Red 2023.

He’s inherited a role with a clear identity. The approach remains low-intervention: no commercial yeast since the first vintage in 2007, minimal additions, and a cellar that relies on gravity rather than pumps. Bottling, labelling and packaging are done on site, largely by hand.

“This isn’t forgiving land. If the vineyard survives, it’s because you’ve earned it,” laughs Theunissen. “That’s what drew me here, along with the chance to handle both viticulture and winemaking. It’s less of a job and more of an adventure.”

Sijnn Red 2023

A blend of syrah 41%; tinta amarella 13%; grenache 11%; cabernet sauvignon 10%; mourvèdre 10%; touriga nacional 8%; tempranillo 6% and carignan 1%. Handpicked and pressed in a traditional basket press. Maturation mostly 225Ls French oak barrels in the first year, then 700Ls in the second. 20% new for 22 months. This judicious oaking delivers a silky-soft wine with chalk-edged tannins. A sense of place; aromatics of sun-warmed stone, black olives, cinnamon-spice. The palate is long and languid, as lazy as the river it comes from; the finish dry, savoury and persistent.
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