THE Top Wine SA Uber Value Wine of the Year: Treaty Tree Reserve Sauvignon Blanc Semillon 2019 from the Flagstone cellar outside Somerset West! A 97-point gold medallist at the Veritas Awards (SA), class winner at the National Wine Challenge (SA) and the most highly rated wine at the SA Terroir Awards. It’s the only one of over 80 Uber Value wines at under R150 a bottle to be highly rated by more than a couple of top panels, and the only one of them with such a good track record as to be included among the Top 10 white blends in the SA Wine Classification spanning the past 10 years.

That’s right. 97. Although the Veritas ‘brains trust’ won’t announce the scores of their double gold medallists, they let the producers know, and they sell bottle stickers with the numbers on them should the competition winners wish to get specific in broadcasting their success. “It’s a magnificent wine,” said Veritas spokesman and Cape Wine Master Bennie Howard in presenting a trophy to the winery for top-scoring at the SA Terroir Awards, which also fall under the SA National Wine Show Association.

The grapes for the Treaty Tree white blend come from vineyards near Elim in the Cape Agulhas district. Here, says cellarmaster Gerhard Swart, there are “very mineral, rich soils, and you get that minerality coming through on the wine. It’s a wine that’s close to my heart, that I love producing.” Yet despite its success at various shows over the years, the Treaty Tree remains fairly niche – just 3000 to 3500 litres per annum – and it isn’t made every year. The next release will be the 2022 vintage, due on the market in 2023, and not made using fruit from Elim but from Darling.

Flagstone, Somerset West / Strand

FLAGSTONE TREATY TREE RESERVE SAUVIGNON BLANC SEMILLON 2019
WO Elim. 70% Sauvignon Blanc, 30% Semillon, with 30% of the Sauvignon fermented in French oak barrels (75% new) for six months. Both components kept on the fine lees (spent yeast) for six months. Vegan-friendly.
Alc 14 | RS 2.8 | TA 6.2 | pH 3.3
From Winemaker’s Tasting Notes: On the nose, focused aromas of asparagus, fresh thyme, gooseberry and sweet melon. In the background, a hint of white pepper and nutmeg. On the palate, a creamy texture, with flavours of taut citrus, a hint of toasty oak. Complex.
Ageability: “This wine can easily be enjoyed 10 years from vintage.”
Producer’s Pairing Suggestions: Steamed mussels in tomato sauce; braaied crayfish with olive oil and garlic basting; braaied snoek with marmalade. “The wine can also stand up to a steak.”
R130pb ex-cellar, Somerset West/Strand – Flagstone belonging to Accolade Wines, which represents some of the most highly respected wineries in Australia and numerous brands across the New World

Flagstone Tasting Room