Tokara aims to set new benchmark for SA Cabernet

FOR THE Ferreiras to call the second super-premium wine from their Stellenbosch estate ‘Tokara Simonsberg Cabernet Sauvignon' is intriguing. The vines that the grapes come from for this single-varietal wine are planted on the slopes of the Simonsberg, but the same applies to other Cabernets from Tokara that carry the name of Stellenbosch on their front labels but not that of the mountain at the base of which various other top wine outfits also call home – Thelema, Rustenberg and Kanonkop, to name a few.

Launched on the 25th anniversary of Tokara having been founded, the new Simonsberg Cab, vintage 2021, was said to be going onto the market at R1850 a bottle. It's positioned above the farm's standard and reserve labels at R145pb and R395pb, above the Cab-led Director's Reserve blend at R485pb, though below Tokara's most premium-priced Telos, which, with the 2017 vintage, was a blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Petit Verdot (2017 vintage), but which changed to 100% Cabernet with the current-release 2018 priced at R5100pb. So, make that two new super-premium Simonsberg Cabs!

As Tokara winemaker Stuart Botha commented on the Simonsberg Cabernet Sauvignon: “This wine is a celebration of our dedication to expressing the unique characteristics of the Simonsberg terroir.” To which general manager Karl Lambour added that it: “Not only represents the very best of our vineyards but also the collective expertise and passion of our entire team. We believe it will stand as a benchmark for South African Cabernet Sauvignon.” And surely the same goes for the Telos, if not more so! In the Top Wine SA Hall of Fame for many years, Tokara already produces one of the country's most applauded Cabernets under their Reserve label.

At the time of writing, the only other South African Cabs on sale at over R1500pb were two more Stellenbosch luxury expressions: at R1700, The Garland 2018 from Simonsig in the Koelenhof area, and at R5500, the Laurence Graff Reserve 2018 from Delaire Graff in the Banghoek ward, just across the way from Tokara alongside the Helshoogte Pass.  (For more about the luxury SA wines of all sorts, click here)