The Smiley / Terracura winery project has been one of the funkiest, new wave, experimental projects on the South African wine scene for the past few years. With former winemaker Ryan Mostert moving to London to work in the on-trade, step in multi-talented Chris Groenewald, the once barman, sommelier, wine importer, and distributor to take over the winemaking reins. With plenty of wine trade experience behind him as well as a DipWSET diploma, since 2022, Chris has taken a shared ownership in the Terracura winery project along with original founder and investor, Michael Roets. With the old Swartland winery facility abandoned for storage, the wines are now made in a customised warehouse facility in Parrow, northeast of Cape Town.
With a lot of enthusiasm and effort, Chris Groenewald and Michael Roets have successfully resurrected this once favoured natty wine cult brand in the local Cape market and have now taken these highly accomplished wines with a difference, back into the international market once again, partnering with UK distributor and keen purveyor of South African wines, Woodwinters. If the quality I tasted across the range with Chris is anything to go by, you can expect this well-conceived wine brand to go from strength to strength.
Smiley Fresh White V1 NV, WO Western Cape, 12.5% Abv.
An impressive blend made up of 82% Chenin Blanc and 18% Grenache Blanc, 60% from 2022 and 40% coming from a combination of vintages from 2016 to 2021. A clean, fresh style, with all the sweet tangy bruised yellow orchard fruit notes that point to the Swartland combined with exhilarating notes of tangerine and yellow grapefruit confit. The palate shows a beautiful balance, a creamy glycerol texture and complex sweet pear notes on a long vibrant finish.
(Wine Safari Score: 92/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Smiley Fresh White V2 NV, WO Western Cape, 11.5% Abv.
A blend of 46% Chenin Blanc, 15% Colombar, 9% Clairette Blanche, 9% Sauvignon Blanc, 9% Semillon, 6% Grenache and 6% Palomino with 52% of the wine coming from the 2023 vintage and 48% from 2022, all with circa 10% skin contact employed. Plenty of lift and exotic spice on this white with aromatic layers stem ginger, ripe quince, crystallised fig, green banana peel and bruised yellow orchard fruits. Cool and fine on the palate, the acids are tangy and the mouthfeel, sleek, harmonious and glycerol despite the meagre 11.5% Abv. Deliciously vibrant and energetic with a mouthwatering freshness on the finish.
(Wine Safari Score: 93/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Silvervis Chenin Blanc 2023, WO Swartland, 13.5% Abv.
67% of grapes sourced from the higher altitude Sky old vine Chenin Blanc vineyard that sits on deep decomposed Granite soils (kept on their skins for three days) and 33% from the Kweperfontein old vine vineyard Chenin Blanc planted in 1964 on the Waterval farm in the Paardeberg, which was kept on its skins for five days. Shows complex aromatics of fynbos, wet straw, lemon oil and yellow golden delicious apple fruits before white pear, honied peaches and a rich textural mouthfeel with soft tangy acids, spicy ginger and gentle salty Granitic mineral undertones. Very impressive expression.
(Wine Safari Score: 94/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Smiley White NV V6, WO Western Cape, 12% Abv.
A blend of 86% Chenin Blanc and 14% Grenache Blanc, from vintages spanning 2016 to 2021 (60%) and 40% from 2022, employing 20% skin contact, 3% maderised wine and 1% fermented under flor in old barrels. Maturation vessels include stainless sleet, demijohns, old barrels, and concrete egg. Notions of sweet and savoury with a lovely freshness, notes of orange blossom, ginger, nectarine, sour plum and pineapple wedges with a stony liquid minerality beneath. Lovely balance, elegance and bright tangy mouthwatering acids and a honied, peachy intense savoury finish.
(Wine Safari Score: 94+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Speciale 2023, WO Western Cape, 12.02% Abv.
Made from a blend of 67% Chenin Blanc and 33% Clairette Blanche. The Clairette Blanche saw whole bunch maceration for 3 days and the Chenin Blanc seven days skin maceration. Aged 12 months under flor in a single 300 litre barrel, the aromatics are rich and exotic with a subtle spicy maritime salinity, a sweet sappy fatty complexity, green apple puree, kerosene, and earthy, savoury cedar spice nuances. Rich and fresh in the mouth, there is a polished bright tangy mouthfeel with zippy acids and a soft, waxy citrus peel and yellow orchard fruit pithy intensity. Long, exotic, and delicately sappy but dry on the finish.
(Wine Safari Score: 92/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Smiley Red NV V6, WO Western Cape, 13.5% Abv.
A blend of 45% Syrah and equal parts Touriga Nacional, Grenche, and Cinsault all from the 2021 vintage despite its NV certification. Combination of large old oak and concrete eggs used for maturation. Dark black fruited nose with hints of black currant, coffee beans, fynbos, black olive and savoury meaty nuances. Texture is soft and fleshy with a savoury sweet and sour plummy mocha choc powder spiciness and a delicately mineral, pink musk laden finish. Accessible with creamy powdery tannins and a very friendly seductive length.
(Wine Safari Score: 93/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Smiley Fresh Red V1 NV, WO Western Cape, 12.5% Abv.
Made from a blend of 43% Cinsault, 31% Syrah and 26% Carignan, 69% of the wine from 2023 and 31% from the 2021 vintage. Whole bunch fermented except for 50% destemmed Cinsault portion. A rich plummy bramble berry character permeates the glass with hints of raspberry compote and stewed strawberry fruits with a sweet and sour tangy acidity, sour red plum, quince, dried herbs, and exotic sappy peppery wood spice hints on the finish. Generous, mouthwatering and thoroughly delicious.
(Wine Safari Score: 89/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Terracura Syrah 2015, WO Swartland, 12.5% Abv.
A wine with almost 10 years age from three terroirs… Granite, Schist, and Iron soils, aged in concrete eggs and a few old oak barrels. Complex and savoury on the nose, the aromatics are not without freshness and savoury, sappy red and black berry fruits, fynbos, black chocolate cocoa notes, and delicate black olive tapenade nuances. The mouthfeel is creamy and mouth coating with lactic chocolate hints and black plum fruits, fine grained spicy tannins and a mineral laden savoury meaty finish. Decidedly old world in style, this will appeal to the legions of Rhone Rangers out there. Drink now and over the next 3 to 5+ years.
(Wine Safari Score: 94/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
The Smiley and Terracura range of wines are imported exclusively into the UK by Woodwinters Wines. Email: Andrew@woodwinters.com for trade and retail prices. (The wines range in retail price from circa £23 for the Smiley White V6, £25 for the Speciale 2023, £30 for the Silvervis.)