Ava Marie Chardonnay 2023

Restless River is a family-run estate in the Upper Hemel-en-Aarde Valley, established in 2004 by Craig and Anne Wessels, who left careers in animation and modelling to pursue something completely different. Craig is entirely self-taught, having begun making wine out of curiosity before releasing it to the public from the 2012 vintage. Located a few miles from the Atlantic Ocean on ancient, decomposed granite soils, the estate benefits from a cool maritime climate that allows for an extended ripening season. Craig's minimal-intervention approach, which includes early harvesting and the use of indigenous yeasts, produces wines of real precision and character, making Restless River one of South Africa's most talked-about small estates.