Ian Naudé doesn’t make Cinsault… he listens to it. In a country that once poured this grape into anonymous blends and bulk wine, he has made the case for old bush vines as something worth treasuring, wines of transparency and grace rather than muscle and extraction. Ian Naudé has always been a Cape winemaker with a reputation for precision.

His Cinsault comes from venerable, low-yielding old vine vineyards in the Darling ward (Swartland), where age and restraint do the heavy lifting. The result is a red wine that is perfumed, supple, and quietly profound, full of bright red fruit, a savoury thread of earth and spice, and a freshness that makes you reach for a second glass. This is Cinsault at its most expressive, and the new release is a fine place to begin.

Naude Family Wines Werfdans Cinsault 2018, WO Darling, 12% Abv. 

There has been a fairly long wait for the release of Ian Naude’s new Werfdans Cinsault, but it has been worth the wait. His 2017 was highly rated (97/100 GSMW) and benchmark quality in every respects and this 2018 seems a more than worthy successor. The wine sees the use of 100% whole bunches in the traditional manner with layers of stems, before being matured for 15 months in used French oak barrels. The aromatics are fragrant and deliciously succulent and lifted showing sweet scents of rose petals, Turkish delight, sun dried cranberries, rooibos tea and subtle earthy raspberry ripple nuances. In the mouth, the wine is deceptively fleshy and fulsome, loaded with sweet and sour notes of red currants, Victoria plums and spicy bramble berry confit notes on the pinpoint pure finish. There is such an attractive generosity to this wine that seems to show a more ambitious mid-palate weight and texture than normal, yet remains incredibly fine grained, polished and elegant. With eight years of age from vintage already, this sumptuous Cinsault is ready to enjoy now but should evolve beneficially for another decade or more. 

(Wine Safari Score: 95/100 Greg Sherwood MW)