THIRD TIME LUCKY? Chamonix of Franschhoek had earned gold medals at previous editions of the Cab Franc Challenge with their 2015 and 2016 vintages in 2018 and 2020 respectively. Then, come 2022, they won the overall title with their 2020 vintage. But the Challenge judges haven’t been the only ones
THREE wines of South Africa placed among the Top 10 at Syrah du Monde 2022, held in the Northern Rhône Valley of France. This was on a par with Australia and just one fewer than France, however it was a Cape Shiraz – the 2019 vintage of Glen Carlou Syrah of
THE PRICE of over R1000 a bottle puts Bouchard Finlayson’s flagship Pinot Noir from the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley into the realm of South Africa’s luxury wines, although for less than half that you can get the same vintage of their Galpin Peak. In fact it wasn’t that long ago that the
THE R43 244 fetched for a single bottle of the 1966 GS Cabernet at the Strauss & Co auction in Johannesburg on 15 May 2022 was the second-highest price ever paid for this wine – the highest being R91 040, fetched in a sale conducted by the same auction house
OF COURSE wine ratings matter! Reviews by panels of experts, that is, i.e. if you want to gauge just how good a wine is. We’re talking about assessments of what’s in the glass by those in the know, labels out of sight – reaching consensus without being influenced by the
NOW IN ITS 38th year, the International Wine Challenge (IWC) is one of the world’s most rigorous wine competitions. Every medal winner is assessed ‘blind’ on at least three separate occasions by a minimum of two panels of judges tasting together, and then again by two of the show’s co-chairs,
“CHENIN BLANC is famously versatile, and it would be wrong to say that any one style prevailed among the top performing wines,” said Winemag editor Christian Eedes in the 2022 Prescient Report, compiled after the assessment of 82 entries from 61 producers in the Cape winelands. “Chenin is South Africa’s
“THE BEST Shiraz is nothing if not peppery and many will have quite grippy tannins as a result of whole-bunch fermentation… Shiraz is for those who aren’t afraid of some flavour intensity.” So says Winemag editor Christian Eedes, who chaired the panel tasting of 99 South African wines from 82
ON THE FARM Dekkersvlei in Klein Drakenstein, Paarl, Mellasat is off the beaten track. At these vineyards, proprietor Stephen Richardson, cellarmaster Gizelle Coetzee and their team like to do things somewhat differently. In fact this one’s never been done before… There’s nothing else quite like it. Not the first Cap
WITH SOME vintages it’s recommended that for a refreshing drink you can chill this blend, described by the De Villiers family as a “fun-loving” wine. In recent years, however, the Paul Hugo Red has over-delivered relative what you might expect from the second tier in Landskroon’s portfolio. The 2020 is
R300 FOR a good sirloin or pepper-crusted fillet with fries, salad and a decent glass of red. Or R300 for salmon, potatoes, greens and a decent glass of white. On the deck or patio, under the oaks, outside a top restaurant of a top cellar on a sunny afternoon
IN THE ANNUAL address by the director general of the Paris-based International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV) about the state of the wine industry worldwide, Spain’s Pau Roca reported that 2021 had seen a boom in international trade, a record high in both volume and value. “However the scenario
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