KLEIN CONSTANTIA Vin de Constance 2008 was one of six superb wines chosen to be served during the state banquet hosted at Buckingham Palace by the Queen of England Elizabeth II for Chinese President Xi Jinping and attended by 150 dignitaries who also included British Prime Minister David Cameron and Prince Andrew. The other wines: Ridgeview Grosvenor Brut 2009 (Bubbly from
THE WINNING wines in South Africa’s 2015 FNB Sauvignon Blanc Top 10 competition do not include any that were made at cellars in Darling, Durbanville, Cape Agulhas or the Cape Peninsula – some of the areas renowned for quality, interesting wines in this class. However they do include the Cederberg Private Cellar and Stellenbosch stalwarts Kleine Zalze and Tokara (using Elgin grapes) and Nederburg of Paarl
WHEN a group of Stellenbosch (and Somerset West) wine producers collaborated to present a line-up of 20 Cabernet Sauvignons to media and industry folk on the occasion of the Cape Wine 2015 trade show, it was to be expected that Thelema would count among the beauties included in a tasting billed as the ‘Kingdom of Cabernet’. The Webb family’s Thelema Mountain
FOR YEARS the reputation of Fleur du Cap as a collection of top quality, interesting wines from Distell’s Bergkelder in Stellenbosch was built mainly on the strength of whites in the ‘Unfiltered’ range – such was the consistency that Fleur du Cap Unfiltered soon ranked among South Africa’s top-ranked classified Chardonnays, Semillons, Viogniers and white blends. And it wasn’t long before the
KWV was by far the most successful producer overall at the 2015 Veritas Awards, with double gold medals awarded for their leading Cape Blend, Abraham Perold Tributum 2013, their Tawny port and four wines in The Mentors range – plus eight gold medals presented for various other reds, whites and fortified wines in the KWV portfolio. Nederburg and Spier were also very
ONCE AGAIN South Africa has excelled at the Six Nations Wine Challenge in Sydney, Australia. At the 2015 edition of the competition, up against Australia, New Zealand, the USA, Chile and Argentina, Cape cellars achieved four trophies and dominated the classes Chardonnay, White Blends and varieties including Chenin Blanc and Cabernet Franc. The Challenge was won by New Zealand, with Australia second and
LOOKING BACK on what went down at the 2015 Nederburg Auction of rare South African wine in September and the Cape Winemakers Guild Auction of special bottlings in October, as was to be expected, clearly bidders were primarily interested in the classified wines and cellars on offer – those with good track records. Also in demand were wines that have been properly matured
RANGING in colour from shocking pink to salmon and pale onion, Rosé can be made by blending red and white grapes, but mostly it’s made from red grapes whose skins are left on the must during fermentation – the juice is run off the skins soon after pressing and treated the same way as white wine, ranging from dry to sweet, and
THE GOOD people of Kanonkop on the Simonsberg in Stellenbosch regularly mention that doing well in competitions is not of prime concern… Yet the estate and/or their agents continue to enter various vintages in various taste-offs and they continue to shine with their Pinotage, their Bordeaux-style red blend Paul Sauer, their Cabernet. And it can be frustrating, albeit understandable, when the award winners are ‘sold out’ at
EIKENDAL’S latest releases of their so-called ícon wines – the 2014 Chardonnay at R127 pb and the 2013 red blend Classique at R223 pb – promise much. Such are the good track records of these wines that it’s amazing to some that the Stellenbosch property still has a low profile relative to many of the other Top 50 wine cellars in South Africa. It was
THE 2015 Michelangelo International Wine & Spirits Awards attracted 1665 entries from 364 producers for assessment by panels comprising judges from around the world. Seventeen specialists from 15 countries deliberated over six days in choosing the various class winners, trophy laureates and recipients of platinum, double gold, gold and silver medals. Platinum denotes a score of 96 or more out of 100, with
LOUISVALE… Very low profile in recent times, and then POW! Top rating with a Bordeaux-style red blend in the first Ultra Value Wine Challenge after it had collected silver at the Trophy Wine Show earlier in the year, and then the title of Best Rosé at the annual Cap Classique Challenge for South African sparkling wines made according to the traditional
A SURPRISING result, to say the least! The winner of the 2015 Amorim Cork Cap Classique Challenge contested by 114 bubblies comes from a farm better known for red wines, especially Pinotage, aromatic whites including Gewürztraminer and Sauvignon Blanc – and not forgetting the Italian variety Barbera. However, while Altydgedacht has been making sparklers from Chardonnay in the traditional way since 2008,
THE FIRST Ultra Value Wine Challenge for SA wines priced at under R100 a bottle was a curious affair with the judges scoring “almost 500” wines according to a 100-point scale involving both quality and price. Top value rating of 99 went to the Bordeaux-style red blend Dominique 2013 from Louisvale in Devon Valley, Stellenbosch – which at R75pb must be a case
WHAT were the chances! Another branch in mankind’s family tree is discovered beneath the bushveld and they call it Naledi, the same name that adorns a range of Savanha wines produced by Spier in Stellenbosch… Amazing to think of a species not that unlike us wondering around the Magaliesberg of Gauteng hundreds of thousands if not millions of years ago, staring up at the
YOU COULD be forgiven for wondering whether Perold Tributum’s success at the Pinotage Association’s Perold Absa Cape Blend competition was stage-managed, engineered… However, the KWV flagship has also got the nod at Veritas, the International Wine & Spirit Competition and International Wine Challenge, the Decanter World Wine Awards, etc, etc. So nothing untoward! The producers’ association holds the view that a Cape Blend should include
AVONDALE has been rated top MCC sparkling wine after several rounds of ‘blind’ tastings chaired by one of the world authorities on bubbly and a panel of judges including Masters of Wine and one of the gurus of the Australian wine industry. The Paarl cellar won the trophy for best South African sparkling wine at the 2015 ‘Champagne & Sparkling Wine World Championships’ with their
THE 2013, white version of Faithful Hound from Stellenbosch winery Mulderbosch was the top-scoring wine in the 2015 ‘Riscura White Hot Wine Awards’ staged by Winemag.co.za. The ‘Hound’ was made from Franschhoek Semillon and Elgin Sauvignon Blanc, with a couple of 100% Elgin entries – Oak Valley Mountain Reserve 2011 and Highlands Road Sine Cera 2013 – also excelling in this competition
A CLASSIC Wine Trophy in the first quarter of the year, a trophy at the International Wine Challenge in London during the second quarter and then selection among the Standard Bank Chenin Blanc Top 10 in the third… It’s a wonder that the 2014 DeMorgenzon Reserve Chenin Blanc hadn’t already sold out by the time the Chenin Blanc Association’s latest awards
THE HONOUR for most trophies won by a producer at the Absa Top 10 Pinotage competition since it began 19 years back (1997) is shared by Kanonkop of Stellenbosch and Rijk’s of Tulbagh at 10 each. However during the last 10 years of the shoot-out (2006 to 2015), the judges on the Top 10 tasting panels have awarded seven to Rijk’s, six to Windmeul
