South Africa: New releases

The Ramnasgras Cinsault is as pure and complex an expression as you’ll find of Cinsault, also known as Hermitage in South Africa, and the country’s workhorse red grape. It comes from a vineyard planted in 1966, and is ageworthy, mineral, and stunningly long. There's loads of pomegranate fruit, salinity, and iron oxide in 2019. So complex.

The Family White is a blend of Chenin Blanc alongside Grenache Blanc, Verdelho, Roussanne, Palomino and Semillon. It shows the classic tautness of the Paardeberg’s granite soils, but with a few years in bottle, it flourishes, becoming waxy, mineral, honeyed but yet still savoury. This is stunning. Orchard fruit, grapefruit and a hint of cinnamon. This is so complex, so much tension and a finish that lasts an age. Brilliant.

Just twelve long rows make up the Raaigras Grenache vineyard. Planted in 1952, it’s the oldest Grenache vineyard in the Cape, and faces south east, allowing the longest ripening time possible. Adi jokes that its name rhymes with Rayas, but this is a serious, delicious, ageworthy Grenache in its own right.

Brazen is a blend of Fernao Pires - from 37 year old vineyards in the Swartland - alongside amphora-aged Palomino from a 47 year old vineyard in Piekenierskloof, and Grenache Blanc from the Voor Paardeberg. It’s a savoury, textured, vibrant white, with a mineral finish that lasts for minutes.

Aasvoel is Verdelho, from a single plot in Stellenbosch, that Pieter’s always desperate to get his hands on. So much so, that he feels like a vulture - Aasvoel in Afrikaans - waiting to pick over the vineyard. It's a textured, mouth filling white, but with loads of focussed energy.

Ultra, meanwhile, takes its name from the farmer’s love of trance music - and more specifically a gig named Ultra. It’s a Chenin Blanc from the Swartland, and is generous, textured, and astonishingly good value.

A blend of 71% Syrah, 11% Grenache, 9% Cinsault, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon, and just a dash of Viognier, the 2019 Chocolate Block is a wonderfully pure, elegant expression from the heart of the Swartland. Red berry fruit and wild flowers drift from the glass, while the palate shows crystalline purity and a beautifully mineral finish. It punches way above its weight: that they manage to produce this in such quantities is one of the wonders of the wine world.

The first wine that put this estate on the map was the 1997 Syrah, and even today the estate Syrah remains a South African benchmark. Since 2016 it’s been entirely Swartland fruit, benefitting from the minerality of the Porseleinberg, and the rounded fruit from the brown schist of Goldmine. Gottfried has also tweaked the vinification for this, focussing more on larger oak, and a purer expression of Syrah.

The Franschhoek Cabernet Sauvignon comes from four different sites, including some coming on stream from the estate itself. It’s a wonderfully exuberant yet pure expression of Cabernet, that’s one of the Cape’s finest. A little Cabernet Franc makes it into the blend, too, which gives a touch of floral character.

Reenen Borman’s Epilogue Syrah has fast become one of the legendary wines of the Cape, and this 2018 demonstrates why. Notes of rust and wild berries, with wild flowers giving lift and energy. Incredibly pure, focussed, and long, this is more than a match for the greatest wines of the Rhône. It’s not to be missed.

Awarded 97 points by Christian Eeedes, the 2019 Sons of Sugarland from Reenen Borman is a stunning single vineyard Syrah from the Karibib vineyard in the prized Polkedraai area of Stellenbosch. It's reminiscent of great Northern Rhone Syrah, with peppery fruit and tons of texture, and a blood orange element too. This is complex, long, and delicious. Bravo.

In 2019 this is a one-off: just 5,000 half bottles of a straw wine: Lost & Found. It comes from a Hanepoot (Muscat of Alexandria) vineyard that was referred to as productive in 1900, but which was likely planted in the 1880s. 450+g/l of residual sugar, 7% alcohol, and spectacular acidity make an explosive wine that will last forever, if you can let it. Notes of marmalade and apricot jam, and still a real savoury, saline character. This really is a treat.

Cartology is the backbone of the estate, and is, in Chris’s words, “a vinous exploration of Cape heritage.” It comes from dry farmed bush vines, with a minimum of thirty years old, and most of forty to fifty years old, from around the Cape: from the Skurfberg, Piekenierskloof, Paardeberg, Bottelary, False Bay and Tygerberg, while in 2019 the 10% Semillon component comes from the 1936-planted La Colline vineyard in Franschhoek. The 2019 is brilliant: on a par with the spectacular 2017. Incredibly textured, with notes of grapefruit oil and a herbal note, too. Brilliant.

A new name, but not a new wine, for 2019, is the Broom Ridge. It was formerly known as Fire by Night, but comes from the farm that Chris and Suzaan bought in 2019, so Chris wanted a new name to tie the wine to that place. It’s a blend of a few different vineyards, planted between 1972 and 1985 on various slopes, and is an incredibly taut, focussed expression of Chenin Blanc. On the Paardeberg, the decomposed granite soils bring a tension to the wine, which has a slightly herbal character, notes of lemon zest, and a long and saline finish.

Nautical Dawn comes from a Stellenbosch vineyard, facing east and in sight of the ocean, planted in 1978. Here, the shallow granite soil warms fast, and the resulting wine has a breadth, volume, and ripeness that’s not found in Chris’ other wines. There’s notes of yellow fruit, and plenty of spice here. It’s mouth filling and silky, with a long and voluminous finish.

Magnetic North comes from a high mountainous ridge at 520m elevation, with two parcels quite close together on a gentle south-east facing slope. One was planted in 1984, the other in 1981, and the wine is taut and incredibly explosive: a legend in the making. Notes of grapefruit oil, and an almost tonic-like character.

The 2019 Mabalel is a delicate, perfumed Pinot Noir from a master of the grape variety in Peter-Allan Finlayson. Notes of pomegranate and grapefruit swirl with wild strawberries and plenty of spice. So elegant and finessed, it’s a real beauty.

The 2019 Cuvée Cinema has a bit more richness than the Malabel. Intense darker fruit and a real juicy intensity combine with slightly grippy tannins, and a very savoury, stony finish. There’s a wonderful interplay between sweet and sour here; a brilliant, complex Pinot Noir.

For David & Nadia, here two grapes reign supreme. Their Chenin comes from seven old vine vineyards planted between 1962 and 1984, on the different soils of the Swartland. It’s a true an expression of Swartland Chenin as you’ll find. This is taut and energetic, with yellow fruit and a lovely, long, pure finish.

The latest addition to the range is the Plat’bos, and this is just the second vintage released. This is a 1981 planted vineyard on decomposed granite, right nextdoor to Skaliekop. North facing, it’s the warmest site, and produces a spicy, ageworthy Chenin Blanc. Very citrus in character, there’s plenty of grapefruit here, and also hints of gunflint and rose petal. Very complex, and very grippy, notes of fennel come through on the finish. This is taut, linear, and profound. Bravo.

From a vineyard planted in 1985 on the Paardebosch farm. This vineyard is an anomaly: an island of schist on the normally granite Paardeberg. Indeed, the name means hill of Shale, and this gives a mineral, reserved character to the wine. Slightly shy on the nose at first, this is all about floral detail and texture, and an incredibly mineral, savoury palate. The finish is focussed and very, very long, and the wine seems to blossom with time on the palate. Leave it a few years.

Made‌ ‌with‌ ‌40%‌ ‌whole‌ ‌bunch,‌ ‌the‌ ‌Syrah‌ ‌on‌ ‌Sandstone‌ ‌is‌ ‌floral‌ ‌with‌ ‌stunning‌ ‌purity‌ ‌and‌ ‌loads‌ ‌of‌ ‌strawberry‌ ‌and‌ ‌cranberry‌ ‌fruit.‌ ‌So‌ ‌silky‌ ‌and‌ ‌elegant,‌ ‌it‌ ‌smells‌ ‌so‌ ‌gorgeous:‌ ‌of‌ ‌violets‌ ‌and‌ ‌white‌ pepper. This is such a pure expression of Syrah. Brilliant.

Here, on the Oudam farm, vines planted in 1961 on deep, sandy soils craft a brilliant white, that would go toe-to-toe with any wine being produced in South Africa today. But here the drought is taking its toll. The 3 hectare vineyard would, ten years ago, produce 8-10tons a vintage. Now it will produce a maximum of 5 tons, and has dropped as low as 1.7tons in the driest years. And that means there’s not very much to go around. What there is, is spectacular. Not to be missed in 2019.

The Hamilton Russell Chardonnay, meanwhile, shows generosity of fruit, and spice that comes from 45% new oak, but also plenty of minerality and focus. It’s a classically styled, Côte de Beaune-like expression of the grape.

This Chenin Blanc is different from all the other Chenins in our range: it comes from Elgin, one of the coolest grape-growing regions in South Africa. Planted on Bokkeveld Shale - not all that dissimilar to the soils of the Loire’s Savennières - this is as cool and precise as South African Chenin gets.

In 2015 she started with the Nom Pinot Noir. It comes from Kaaimansgat Vineyard in Elandskloof, the same plot that Peter-Allan Finlayson’s Malabel comes from. Indeed, it was Peter-Allan who originally planted the plot in 2008. The vineyard is at 700m of altitude, but the property, which is mostly planted with apple trees, goes even higher. On the peaks that surround the vineyard, there used to be snow every month of the year other than January. Nom stands for nombulelo (gratitude in “Xhosa”) and Nomkhubulwane (a forgotten African goddess of agriculture), and the stunning label was designed by Isabella Kuijers. This is wonderfully floral and lifted, with incredible energy. Delicious.

Paul Sauer is the calling card of the estate, named after the farm’s most famous owner. It was the first South African wine to be awarded a perfect score by a major international critic, with the 2015 receiving 100 points from Tim Atkin MW. In 2017 it’s a blend of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Cabernet Franc, and 7% Merlot, from vines of an average of 29 years old. It is, as always, a contender for South Africa’s finest Bordeaux blend.

For many people, Pinotage is what Kanonkop does best: indeed most winemakers in South Africa view it as the benchmark for this divisive grape variety. The grape variety was first planted on Kanonkop in the 1940s, and this comes from bush vines that are aged between 31 and 65 years old. Fermented in open top concrete tanks, and aged in 80% new barrels, it’s a wine that blossoms with time in bottle, becoming more and more reminiscent of its Pinot Noir roots.

The Terrasse White comes from terraced vineyards, including the old Riverside Chenin Blanc vineyard, planted in 1971, which is also bottled on its own. The Terrasse also has Chenin from two younger vineyards and varying fractions of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Viognier, and from 2017 some Roussanne and Marsanne from recently planted vineyards. It’s a white that ages beautifully. This is beautiful perfumed, notes of rose petal and plenty of fresh peach. All about salinity on the finish. Very good indeed.

From a 0.7ha vineyard on a ridge, planted on red clay with a base of granite, the 2016 Steepside Syrah is a floral, perfumed example of the grape, that wouldn’t look out of place in Côte-Rôtie. There’s real drive on the finish, which lasts an age. This is grown up, and brilliant.

Alex is also passionate about the Cabernet Franc produced on the estate, and is making a single vineyard wine, the Pondokrug Cabernet Franc. From deep clay soils, this is an intense, ripe and powerful wine, but one that benefits from Alex’s delicate winemaking. Really savoury, floral, and very delicate, too. Lovely length here. This is outstanding with plenty of tension. Really Cabernet Franc in character, with clear terroir definition.

The 2019 Clara comes from three high altitude vineyards, with the Perdeblokke added for richness and intensity. It’s an astonishing Sauvignon. Notes of peach and spearmint swirl from the class, with a textured palate, and real focus on the finish. Matt Day is a brilliant winemaker, and this shows why: this is one of the best Sauvignons we know.

The Metis Sauvignon Blanc was inspired by Matt’s time in Sancerre. It comes from a single plot at high altitude, with more granite in the soil than the single vineyards. Treated naturally in the cellar, with as little intervention as possible, Matt leaves this on the lees for longer than when he started, and is putting more and more of the blend into oak. The result is a wine that impresses with its tension and sizzling energy, but that doesn’t lack breadth, or mouthfilling texture.

The Syrah is a blend of 30% Greyton fruit, and the rest from a shale and sandstone vineyard in Elgin. These cool vineyards produce a Syrah that’s all about pepper and rose petal: a joy to behold.

Howard John is in honour of Franco’s dad, and is a red blend that comes, from 2019, entirely from the Swartland. Lovely fruit. So much delicate energy, lovely mouthfeel. Plenty of perfume, then grip and a long and pure finish. Very detailed and very long.

Chenin Blanc from Durbanville just outside Cape Town. The Blouklip shale soils give a real richness to the fruit. There’s lovely purity here. Quite rich and spicy, with lovely energy, too. This is nicely balanced, with plenty of darker fruit on the palate.

This is made from Cinsault fruit from Stellenbosch, and is made in a pale, delicate, provencal style. Wild strawberries and crunchy cherries on the nose give way to a textured, intense palate, that’s simply delicious. This is a wine you can’t stop drinking: from a real star of South Africa. Not to be missed.

Trust your Gut is Lukas’ attempt “to make the perfect western cape Chenin”. In 2019 it’s 73% from the Paardeberg, from next door to Eben Sadie’s farm, which brings texture and tension, and 27% from the granite soils of Stellenbosch’s Polkedraai, which brings intense yellow fruit. The name refers to the importance of the picking date for these grapes: in the 2019 vintage, Lukas has got it spot on. This has lovely green pineapple notes, with loads of savoury elements, plenty of salinity, and a slightly creamy, zesty finish.

Breton is the old Loire name for Cabernet Franc, which are some of Lukas’ favourite wines. This comes from the farm on the Polkedraai where Lukas lives, and is, in his words, “a glass of wine you want to smell the tension on”. This is a baby, but has impressive potential. Lots of graphite and wild berries, and blueberries in particular. There’s lovely energy here: it’s very Loire-like. It will require a few years in bottle: with that, it will be a truly glorious glass of red wine.

Stars in the Dark Syrah comes from Elim, near Cape Agulhas, in the far south of the Cape. In 2019 it comes from two separate vineyards. The first, planted on Koffieklip soils, brings a floral, fragrant element, while the second, on schist, brings much more savouriness and a restrained fruit profile. The interplay between the two makes a refined, impressive Syrah, that is sure to age beautifully.

This is a real contender for South Africa’s finest Grenache. She calls Grenache “South Africa’s Pinot Noir”, and is always looking to make as elegant and precise an example as possible: this comes in at just 13.5% abv, yet is perfectly ripe. It comes mainly froma farm on the Paardeberg, next to Eben Sadie’s farm, with a drop of Voor Paardeberg and Bot Rivier fruit in 2018, from young vines and carefully selected clones.

This Tinta Barocca, meanwhile, is a real labour of love. She loves the grape variety, and this comes from three different, old vine sources: one in Bot Rivier, one in Stellenbosch, and then a parcel on the same farm on the Paardeberg as the other two wines. This is a bottling that benefits from a couple of years in bottle: with that it develops wonderful smoky notes, and hints of blood orange.

The Kweekamp Chardonnay comes from a high altitude vineyard, planted on limestone. Limestone, the top pick for Chardonnay plantations throughout the world, is a rarity in the Cape, and this is a tense, mineral yet pleasingly open expression of the grape, with a lovely lick of oak spice. Just five barrels are made. In recent years, as well as being bottled by the Bruwers, this vineyard is also around one third of the blend of Capensis, South Africa’s most expensive Chardonnay, made by Jackson Family Wines.

From a plot in Franchhoek planted in 1932, there are just 5,000 bottles of the Franschhoek Old Vines Lötter Cinsault.

The Granite Syrah comes from the Paardeberg, from 24 year old vines, and is incredibly elegant and floral in style, with real focus.

There are just 1,800 bottles of the Wellington Old Vines Basson Cinsault, from a plot planted in 1900.

With softer, slower extraction than previous vintages, Callie Louw has taken what was already a spectacular wine and lifted it to an even higher level. There’s violets and pomegranate on the nose, with an intense and silky palate, and a wonderfully intense and concentrated palate of ripe cherries and a hint of blood orange. The finish is long and savoury, and so complex. Astonishingly good Syrah.

The Rall Red is a blend of 70% Syrah 12% Grenache 10% Carignan and 8% Cinsault, with all the fruit coming from the Swartland. A lovely nose, very southern French in style: this is like a cool and sophisticated Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Notes of lavender and baked earth, and also plenty of mulberry and other wild berry fruit. Very well defined, and very long indeed.

Named after Donovan’s young daughter, it comes from schist soils, from a farm just outside Riebeek Kasteel, that Donovan and his team farm themselves. Tiny yields and incredibly hard work account for the higher price point. Incredibly peppery on the palate, there’s notes of violets and core of intense, ripe, yet not overbearing fruit. The texture is stunning here, and the finish seems to last an age. This is really very impressive.

First produced in 2015, his Grenache Blanc comes from 600-650m elevation in Piekenierskloof, and is a taut, elegant expression of the grape. This is really rather beautiful. Notes of apple blossom and ginger spice, and a silky and flowing mouthfeel. There’s an almost tonic feel to the finish. Cleansing and refreshing.

The Main Road and Dignity Cabernet Sauvignon comes from two vineyards, planted 21 years ago. Just 5km from the ocean, and at 1,200 feet elevation, this is one of the coolest spots in the Cape’s winelands. And that results in an elegant, pure, unique style of South African Cabernet. Here, Craig’s been known to harvest grapes as late as May: that’s the equivalent of November in the Northern Hemisphere. And with baboons and birds seeking out the final grapes on vines in the valley, the yields are pitifully small. But the wine is remarkable: already a Cape cult classic. Lovely energy here, saline and very pure, with grippy tannins and a very long finish.

The Reserve Red is 100% Syrah, from a south-east facing block on the farm. It’s a peppery, nervy Syrah, with tons of finesse.

The Reserve White is a Sauvignon Blanc, that’s vinified and aged in 95% new French oak barrels. It’s as serious as this grape variety gets: it astonishes with its texture, depth, and length.

This is a blend of 50% Chenin Blanc with 50% Palomino It comes from a rare thing in South Africa: a vineyard planted on pure limestone, just 2km from the ocean, planted between 1958 and 1967.

The white equivalent of Columella is Palladius: the Swartland white. It’s a blend of all eleven official Swartland white varieties, and comes from seventeen different vineyards across the region, mainly on the Paardeberg, but with vineyards by the coast in St Helena Bay, and on the Piketberg.

Pofadder is Eben’s ode to the Cinsault grape, from a 1973-planted vineyard on iron-rich slate soils on the Kasteelberg, in the heart of the Swartland. This is a complex, ageworthy wine: as good as Cinsault gets.

Made from parcels of Chenin Blanc Bush vines on the decomposed sandy soils of the Skurfberg, the wine that takes this mountain’s name comes from plots that were planted between 1940 and 1955.

From a 32 year old vineyard in Stellenbosch, this is a wonderful example of Cape Sauvignon Blanc, from a master winemaker. On the nose, orange blossom and plenty of grapefruit pith, while the palate is tense, textured, and stunningly long. This would pass for a wine at double the price. A brilliant white: not to be missed.

The Savage White remains as Cape White Blend. A mix of 64% Sauvignon Blanc, 20% Semillon and 16% Chenin Blanc, with fruit from Kaaimansgat, Villiersdorp, Piekenierskloof and Stellenbosch, it’s a wine that’s all about texture and finesse.

The 2020 Grenache Blanc is another hit from Chris Williams. Lemon pith and wet stones on the nose, and a long, savoury, beautifully textured palate. Incredibly well balanced, and fine-boned, it’s a simply delicious wine. And it’s one of the best value wines in our range.

The 2007 Syrah from Chris Williams comes from the Helderberg in Stellenbosch, and the wine is an intensely coloured, pure, expressive Syrah from a real master winemaker. Notes of white pepper and dark chocolate, and an intense core of dark fruit, are all supported by lively acidity and a pure, savoury finish. Brilliant.

Made by talented winemaker Miles Mossop, this is an astonishingly good Sauvignon Blanc, with just 15% Semillon in the blend. Notes of green pineapple, as well a sea spray and ginger, and plenty of grip on the palate makes this a simply delicious wine. It’s wonderful now, and just so quaffable (particularly at this price), but will continue to evolve over the next 5-10 years.

From this year we’re offering the Copper Pot Pinot Noir, which comes from five different sources in the Overberg region. In common with John's other wines, it’s a wine that’s all about subtlety and finesse, that’s a joy to drink.

A new wine in John's range, this comes from 35 year old Sauvignon Blanc bushvines in the Citrasdal mountains, on the Skurfberg itself. This is an impressive, textured Sauvignon: a really serious expression of the grape. All about nuance and the interplay of palate weight and acidity, this is a stunning wine, produced in tiny quantities.

The Wanderers Heart is a blend of 66% Grenache from the Paardeberg in the Swartland, 23% Mourvedre from Bot Rivier, and 11% Syrah from shale in the same location. With 60% whole bunches, it's a juicy, fresh, and fragrant red. While John's whites typically get the plaudits, this is getting better and better. Don't overlook it.