Testalonga El Bandito Skin Contact is a unique white wine that is produced using traditional techniques by winemaker Craig Hawkins. This wine is a blend of Chenin Blanc and Palomino grapes, which are sourced from old vineyards in Swartland, South Africa. The grapes are harvested by hand and then macerated with their skins for fifteen days, which gives the wine its orange color and adds depth to its flavor profile. Testalonga El Bandito Skin Contact is a complex and tannic wine with notes of dried herbs, citrus, and honey that linger on the palate. It has a minerality that makes it perfect to pair with seafood, white meat, and cheese.

About the Winery

Testalonga Winery is one of the newest wineries in the world. It was set up by Craig and Carla Hawkins in the year 2008. Located along the Swartland Mountains of South Africa, this winery is slowly picking up a name for itself in the winemaking industry. The owners of this winery recently announced that they were taking around 11 hectares of the organic vineyards on the granite soils of Paardeberg and 4 hectares of vineyards on the sandstone soils of Piketberg on rent.

Craig and Carla Hawkins set up the winery in 2008 with the sole aim to make wines from natural grapes without using any additives. In the year 2015, they took the first step to progress when they purchased the Bandits Kloof vineyard located in the northern mountains of Swartland. Rich in slate soils, this was the place that the Hawkins chose when they planted their first vineyard in 2018.

The Hawkins chose Mediterranean Grapes as their focus and wanted to make wines as naturally as possible from these. The first wine that was released from their label was the 4-week Skin Macerated Chenin Blanc. The Hawkins had lots of reasons to cheer as the Testalonga El Bandito Cortez Chenin Blanc was rated as one of the best wines for November 2018.

Craig Hawkins, the talented winemaker, has been appreciated by experts in the field for this knack to create authentic and special hand-crafted wines with great consistency. The wines from Testalonga are loved by many because they contain no additives and they are created with wild ferments, which lend a rich flavour to the products.

The Chenin Blanc, the medium-bodied white wine was very-well appreciated by experts for being an excellent blend of unique aromas and texture. Its honey & bread aroma combined with its dry & racy texture made the South African wine a huge hit.

Find out more