THERE ISN’T A CELLAR DOOR on the Cape’s wine routes where you can head to for a tasting of The Bernard Series under the Bellingham label. There isn’t a manor house to marvel at or a restaurant to wine and dine in, and the reds and whites in the Series are made using grapes sourced from various areas of the
JC Le Roux Scintilla 2003 is theMCC Challenge winner for 2012 THE HOUSE OF KRONE was among the highlights of this year’s Méthode Cap Classique Challenge, sponsored by Amorim Cork and organised together with the Cap Classique Association which represents South Africa’s leading bubbly producers. The House of JC Le Roux won the competition with their 2003 Scintilla blend and scooped
CAN’T HELP IT… One look at the SA Sauvignon Blanc Interest Group’s Top 10 for 2012 and two producers stand out: Diemersdal Estate, a Sauvignon specialist in Durbanville, and Lomond of the Cape Agulhas district, whose grapes are hauled across to Stellenbosch each year to turn into wine at The Bergkelder, Distell’s ‘mountain cellar’. Lomond’s Sauvignon Blancs take somebeating, with
LEOPARDS and wine? Well, it’s a stronger link than between wild dogs and wine (apologies to the makers of Painted Wolf Wines who did so well in the Top 10 Pinotage Competition). In fact, while the winelands of the Cape are far away from the great game reserves in the northern and eastern reaches of South Africa, the chances of seeing
Painted Wolf Wines join“Pinotage brotherhood” NO KANONKOP or Beyerskloof wine among the Pinotage Association’s Absa Top 10 competition! Can this be? And it doesn’t stop there: there’s also no L’Avenir, no DeWaal and no Stellenzicht Pinotage among the award winners – not even among the Top 20! On the other hand, top performers in the competition to date who were called up
THE BEST VALUE wines of South Africa are particularly topical at around this time of year on publication of the annual Best Value Wine Guide sponsored by the Ultra retail group. Orange River Cellars in Upington won the award as Best Value Winery overall in the latest competition that will culminate with the release of the book, available now in an
There have been some great wine shops in South Africa that have come and gone. Some that were once special are now ordinary, with the good ones that are still around so few as to count on one hand. We’re not talking about liquor stores, bottle stores, places that deal in alcohol and where the staff wouldn’t know a fine wine even
These wines are generally under-valued, as in very competitively priced, many of them nothing short of cheap. In part it’s because some of the country’s very good Muscadels – red and white – are made in areas of the Cape winelands not renowned for top award-winning stuff when it comes to the unfortified wines of various sorts. In part it’s because
FRYER’S COVE VINEYARDS on South Africa’s West Coast some three-and-half hours drive north of Cape Town are so close to the sea that there is a distinct maritime influence on the wines! In fact some of their grapes grow just 600m from the waves where the cold Atlantic Ocean crashes onto the shores of Doringbaai, the fishing village south of
COLOMBAR is not considered to be one of the so-called noble grape varieties, but man can it make for a good drink. Few would argue that it could rival fine Chardonnay and Chenin for complexity and class, but it can be a delightful white wine when originating from healthy vineyards and entrusted to a winemaker willing and able to coax
THE COGNOSCENTI are curious about Spioenkop Wines for a number of reasons – not the least of which is the free-spirited nature of owner-cellarmaster Koen Roose. To meet this Belgian newcomer to the Elgin wine scene is to engage with somebody who’s obviously passionate about making seriously good, characterful wine on his hilltop in the Elgin valley – so passionate
IF YOU’RE planning a sparkling occasion with folk who appreciate the finer things in life and want to make sure they enjoy the bubbly you’re serving, well… According to some of the best wine critics locally and in the UK, the following vintage Cap Classiques will do very nicely thank you – and in most instances for less than a
I’M NOT SURE what to make of it, the new wine from Vergelegen – a Bordeaux-style red blend of Cabernet Franc (60%), Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon called ‘DNA’ that comes in a bottle with no mention of the producer on the front label which instead carries an illustration of winemaker Andre van Rensburg’s thumb-print. According to MD Don Tooth, it’s
GREAT VALUE Chenin Blanc – South African wines at under R50 a bottle that have received good reviews by one or more of the top tasting panels around the world during the past 18 months. Prices given in SA rand – ex-cellar, or approximate retail in the case of wineries that are closed to the public. At R22pb – Cape Weaver Chenin
GOOD VALUE sparkling wine from South Africa – Cap Classique for less than R95 per bottle as recommended by one or more of the top tasting panels around the world during the past 18 months. Prices given in SA rand – ex-cellar, or approximate retail in the case of wineries not open to the public. At R70pb – JC
GREAT VALUE Chardonnays – South African wines selling for less than R70 a bottle that have been recommended by one or more of the top tasting panels around the world during the past 18 months. Prices given in SA rand – ex-cellar, or approximate retail in cases where the winery is closed to the public. At R33pb – Drostdy-Hof Chardonnay 2010
GREAT VALUE from Sauvignon Blanc at under R65 per bottle – South African wines that have received good reviews by one or more of the top tasting panels around the world during the past 18 months. Prices given in SA rand, ex-cellar or approximate retail in the case of wineries that are closed to the public: At R50pb – Rietvallei Sauvignon
GREAT VALUE Cabs at under R80 per bottle – SA wines that have received good reviews by one or more of the top tasting panels around the world during the past 18 months. Prices given in South African rand, ex-cellar or approximate retail where cellars are closed to the public: At R33 a bottle – Riebeek Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon 2011,
GREAT VALUE Pinotage wines under R75 a bottle that have received good reviews by one or more of the top tasting panels around the world during the past 18 months. Prices given in South African rand, ex-cellar or approximate retail where cellars are closed to the public: @ R44pb – Koelenbosch Pinotage 2009 from Koelenhof, silver medallist at 2012 Trophy Wine
GREAT VALUE Shiraz – 10 SA wines that have received good reviews by one or more of the top tasting panels around the world during the past 18 months and which sell for under R65 a bottle. Prices given in South African rand, ex-cellar or approximate retail where cellars are closed to the public: At R22pb, Obikwa Shiraz 2011 (Distell)
