The Riebeek Cellar Wine Co was established in 1941 and is today owned by 30 shareholders, with some 900 hectares of vineyard under cultivation. Under the watchful eye of Sheree Nothnagel, who was previously at Wildehurst Cellar, who moved across at the end of 2019 to head up the Riebeek Valley Wine Co.’s boutique cellar with the Raar range of wines being the small production “jewel in the crown” at this Swartland winery.
Samples of their new vintages were received and tasted recently and I continue with part 2 featuring their eclectic Petite Syrah red and Palomino white.
Raar Petite Sirah 2024, WO Swartland, 13.5% Abv.
This delicious red cultivar is perhaps more famous for producing examples from California than the Swartland, but Petite Sirah or Durif as it’s known as in Australia, originates in France and was cultivated as dry farmed bush vines, producing grapes that were fermented with wild yeasts using 30% whole bunches and extended post fermentation maceration before being aged in old French oak barrels for 8 months. A deeply coloured wine in the glass, the aromatics are exotic and lifted boasting detailed layers of sweet herbs, Christmas spices, black pepper, blood orange, black cherry and a dusty granitic minerality. In the mouth, the wine is generous and fleshy, incredibly supple with pliable tannins, a soft tangy well integrated acidity, and textural layers of savoury black currants, earthy mulberries and black raspberry fruits. Soft and harmonious on the palate but certainly does not lack intention and focus. A beautiful expression that avoids gratuitous fruit sweetness in favour of a spicy, mineral complexity. Another thoroughly smashable bottle of red. Drink now to 2032+.
(Wine Safari Score: 93/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Raar Palomino 2024, WO Swartland, 13.5% Abv.
Palomino has long been considered a bit of ‘hipster’ grape cultivar when made in a dry white wine style rather than a fortified flor sherry style. Like the Raar Palomino, it is clearly a cultivar that has a real affinity with the Swartland terroir, offering up smoky, dusty, mineral aromatics of crushed granite, rock salt, brine, and oyster shell over hints of white blossom, peach stone, lemon peel and lime pith. On the palate, there is an attractive salty, maritime character showing flavour intensity together with an impressive glycerol weight, hints of honey, bergamot, lemon grass, and Japanese green tea ice cream on the finish. A deliciously characterful wine that will be the perfect accompaniment to all seafood and sushi dishes. Drink now to 2030+.
The Riebeek Cellar Wine Co was established in 1941 and is today owned by 30 shareholders, with some 900 hectares of vineyard under cultivation. Under the watchful eye of Sheree Nothnagel, who was previously at Wildehurst Cellar, who moved across at the end of 2019 to head up the Riebeek Valley Wine Co.’s boutique cellar with the Raar range of wines being the small production “jewel in the crown” at this Swartland winery. Samples of their new vintages were received and tasted recently and I kick off with two of my favourites.
Raar Grenache Blanc 2024, WO Swartland, 14% Abv.
Fermented using wild yeasts in old French oak barrels and aged 6 months on its lees yields a deliciously fresh, zesty Grenache Blanc with alluring aromatics of pithy white citrus, white peach, dried orange peel, pear drops, dried herbs, and a delightfully dusty, mineral Granitic undertone. The fabulous precision and clarity evident on the nose follow to the palate that is seamlessly textured, fine grained and pithy with a delicate phenolic grip. In the mouth, notes of white peach, quince and yellow citrus intermingle with a gentle tangy acidity, tangerine peel spice and a sleek liquid minerality. There is plentiful concentration and fruit intensity, which is conveyed with delicacy and elegance, making this a moderately sophisticated offering that will definitely appeal to Southern Rhone white wine lovers. Enjoy on release and over 3 to 5 years.
(Wine Safari Score: 91+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Raar Shiraz Carbonic Maceration 2024, WO Swartland, 13.5% Abv.
This slightly esoteric Carbonic Maceration Shiraz was created by encouraging the intra-cellular fermentation inside the grapes using 100% whole-bunch fermentation with a coating of carbon dioxide… a la Beaujolais in France. This is combined with extended skin contact before the wine is barrel aged for 8 months. I remember the first time I tasted this wine and thought… Oh yes… this is just the ticket for a warm summers evening around the braai when served fridge chilled. The aromatics are fragrant and perfumed, packed full of raspberries, red plums, macerated strawberries and savoury bramble berry fruits with a subtle undertone of sappy talky spice, dried herbs and fynbos nuances. On the palate, the savoury bramble berry fruits come to the fore supported by hints of strawberry compote, wood smoke, cherry pipe tobacco and pithy, granitic mineral hints. Packed full of juicy berry fruits, vibrantly energetic, this is just the type of wine a new generation of young wine consumers are embracing. Drink on release and over 3 to 5 years.
While noise around the Swartland region and its many cult wines seems to be subsiding somewhat, as long as rock star producers like Eben Sadie, Adi Badenhorst, David & Nadia and Chris and Andrea Mullineux keep releasing high scoring whites and reds, wine critics will remain fixated on this versatile region.
But not everyone making iconic wines in the Swartland attempts to steal the wine headlines at every opportunity. One such talent is Jasper Wickens, who along with his wife Franziskia, is creating some of the most profound wines from fruit grown on their Waterval farm in the Paardeberg, next door to both Eben and Adi. With Jasper’s new 2023 vintages landing on my doorstep today, I thought I’d set the scene for my upcoming 2023 vintage reviews of Tiernes and Wolwekop with a compilations of some unreleased back vintage notes.
Jasper in one of his Chenin Blanc Vineyards at Waterval farm.
JC Wickens Swerwer Chenin Blanc 2022, WO Swartland, 13% Abv.
After the long, cool harvest of 2021, 2022 reverted back to more “normal” conditions with several heatwaves taking place during the early season in the Swartland forcing some wineries to harvest grapes perhaps a little sooner than they normally would have in order to preserve acidity. The Chenin Blanc grapes in this 2022 are all grown on deep decomposed Granite soils and offer up classical Swartland notes of wet hay, wet stone minerality, dried baking herbs, white peaches, orange blossom and pithy white citrus and pear fruit characteristics. With its impressively low, cool alcohol level of only 12.5%, the palate displays a light touch balance and elegance with cool, savoury peach notes, quince, and tangy apple puree. The acids are soft, well integrated, but bright and pithy and the finish stony and mineral with a certain degree of phenolic grip. A delicious wine with purity and precision that is ready to drink on release and over the next 6 to 8+ years.
(Wine Safari Score: 93+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
JC Wickens Swerwer Shiraz 2022, WO Swartland, 14% Abv.
A seductively dark purple black plum colour in the glass, this attractive Syrah is made from Paardeberg grapes from the Wickens Waterval Farm grown on 100% decomposed Granite soils. 100% whole-bunch fermented, the aromatics on the 2022 are perfumed and lifted showing red and black berries, violets, lavender, hints of cranberry and pomegranate with delicately complexing notes of fynbos, crushed gravel and kalamata olives. In the mouth the wine is medium bodied but beautifully sleek, soft, and harmonious with silky fine grained chalky tannins, mouthwatering tangy acids and a long, succulent berry fruited finish. So enjoyable to drink in its youth with its fabulous generosity of fruit, vibrancy, and accessible structure. Drink on release to 2034+.
(Wine Safari Score: 93/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Tiernes Single Vineyard Chenin Blanc planted in 1982.
JC Wickens Tiernes Single Vineyard Old Vine Chenin Blanc 2022, WO Swartland, 13% Abv.
The Tiernes vineyard planted in 1982 is very special indeed, overlooking the whole Waterval Farm of Francisca and Jasper Wickens from the top of the hill. With the vines grown on some of the deepest decomposed granite soils on the farm, the old vine Chenin Blanc grapes yield an incredibly complex and intense wine with aromatics packed with crushed rocks minerality, rain on granite boulders, lemon grass, grated lemon and lime peel, and delicate quince jelly notes. The palate is wonderfully intense and crystalline with real verve and vigour, a fruit purity of note with a chiselled mouthfeel of tart limes, fresh fennel, white peach, and yellow grapefruit pith. The concentration is slightly lighter and more ethereal than the 2021 but the purity and refinement are unmatched. The single vineyard Tiernes is undoubtedly one of the most profound Chenin Blanc expressions produced in the Swartland and a wine every fine wine collector should follow and buy. Drink on release and over the next 10+ years.
(Wine Safari Score: 95+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
JC Wickens Wolwekop Single Vineyard Old Vine Semillon 2021, WO Swartland, 12.5% Abv.
The back label of the Wolwekop simply states… “a pure expression of Semillon, Granite and Nature.” Well, if you didn’t have time to read a full tasting note, this would succinctly sum up the exceptional quality of this delicious terroir driven Old Vine Semillon sourced from a majestic Swartland vineyard planted in 1963. The long, cool, atypical 2021 vintage needs no introduction, already being well regarded and widely lauded as one of the best vintages in the Cape in the past decade. From a Zalto Universal glass the aromatics are notably lean, mineral and overtly stony, revealing a relatively shy bouquet, but once transferred to a bigger Burgundy bowl glass, the wine explodes into life offering up fragrant notes of savoury waxy lemon peel, lanolin, fennel root, lemon herbal tea and subtle beeswax notes before a pronounced wave of crushed gravel and dusty granitic minerality follow. The palate is equally complex and beguiling, featuring a bold spicy mineral laden glycerol palate with wet stone minerality, bergamot, green melon, yellow apples, and tart yellow quince that’s beautifully framed by bright, searing crystalline acids before a dried herb laden finish with a delicately nutty, almond skin nuance. Packed with energy, focus and drive, this must surely be a wine Jasper is very proud of. Drink now on releases and over the next 10 to 12+ years.
(Wine Safari Score: 97/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
JC Wickens Wolwekop Single Vineyard Old Vine Semillon 2022, WO Swartland, 13% Abv.
After the high scoring 97/100 point benchmark Wolwekop 2021, Jasper Wickens has pulled a little more magic out the bag to produce yet another enticing Semillon offering in 2022. A golden yellow colour, the wine displays a complex aromatics of pithy lemon citrus, leesy lemon biscuits, buttered white toast, brewed green tea, lemon grass, honey and delicate green herb nuances. Full and fleshy in the mouth, there is a clear harmony and balance punctuated by a stony granitic minerality supported by well-integrated acids and a pithy, peach stone fruit strand with peppery, sappy, lanolin hints. Another Old Vine masterclass from Jasper. Drink now to 2035+.
(Wine Safari Score: 96/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
The Jasper Wickens Swerwer wines are imported into the UK by South African specialist merchant Museum Wines.
This is the third red release from Sakkie Mouton, one of the Cape’s most exciting winemaking talents who seems to keep going from strength to strength. With a now well-established quality track record for his crisp, complex, saline white wines from the Weskus, his wines have become incredibly sought after including his red wines.
Simply speaking, you can sell a cultish brand once, maybe twice, but if it doesn’t deliver the quality collectors and connoisseurs expect that’s where it will break down. Sakkie’s followers are however true converts, buying and drinking his wines vintage after vintage, standing as a true testament to the authentic character and ever-increasing quality of his wines.
The Dawn of the Salty Tongues label is a reference to the rise of the West Coast as a new wine region and showcases divers picking grapes under the ocean, which contributes to the “salty” taste of the palate. “Salty Tongues” also happens to be Weskus slang for the rather spicy language some of the local farmers and fishermen are known to use on a regular basis!
Sakkie Mouton Family Wines Dawn of the Salty Tongues Syrah 2024, WO Oliphants Rivier, 12.86% Abv.
2.6g/l RS | 6.1g/l TA | 3.40pH
The Salty Tongues Syrah 2024 is a 100% Syrah red made from grapes sourced from vineyards in Vredendal located 25 kilometres from the West Coast Atlantic Ocean that were picked early morning to preserve freshness before being destemmed, with 30% of whole bunches lining the bottom of the open top fermenters. After fermentation, the wine was aged for 12 months in 500 litre barrels before being bottled unfiltered and unfined. Planted in 1999, these 26-year-old vineyards are starting to yield some incredible quality with striking aromatics of pressed violets and lavender, bramble berries and pomegranate before hints of black cherry, blood oranges, nori seaweed and bloody raw meat develop. This 2024 shows more dry extract, more substance, and more depth of fruit and oak spice than either of the previous two vintages. With incredible elegance, vivacious tangy acids and a silky plush depth, the palate never loses its mouthwatering red and black berry Weskus salinity that gently melts away into a concentrated, intense, piercing finish. This is a beautifully crafted red wine from Sakkie. Drink on release and over the next 8 to 10 years.
(Wine Safari Score: 96/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
The Sakkie Mouton Wines are imported into the UK for retail and private clients by South African specialist merchant Museum Wines and for On-trade and Scotland by Wood Winters.
With the never-ending search for new and exciting cultivars in South Africa continuing unabated, presumably it was only a matter of time before the Cape’s vignerons discovered the versatile potential of Old Vine Colombard beyond acting merely as a suitable distillation grape. Being widely planted up the Weskus (West Coast), Ian Naude managed to source some of the most expressive Old Vine fruit planted in 1983 from vineyards near Vredendal. The rest, as they say, is history.
Now releasing his fourth vintage of Langpad, meaning the ‘long road’, the 2023 from Ian Naude has had some extra time in bottle which is why, perhaps more so than any of the previous three releases, the Langpad bears a striking resemblance to Greece’s Assyrtiko wines with a pronounced phenolic minerality and maritime salinity… though perhaps more in the style of Nemea or mainland Greece’s Assyrtiko expressions rather than those from the volcanic island of Santorini.
Naude Langpad Old Vine Colombard 2023, WO Cape West Coast, 11.5% Abv.
A vintage renown for its concentration and fruit intensity, the 2023 Langpad Old Vine Colombard is at first quite reticent on the nose, showing aromatics of crushed granite, white flowers, dried herbs, yellow citrus, and waxy yellow apples before more pronounced notes of maritime sea spray, dried kelp and oystershell emerge. The fleshy glycerol concentration is more evident on the palate, that’s cool, crisp, and resplendently pure and fresh with a mouthcoating tangy acidity and complex hints of honeydew melon, pithy green apple and quince jelly. Quite a phenolic and spicy expression of Colombard that finishes with a saline wet stone mineral austerity that makes this white perfect for food matching. Start drink now and over the next 3 to 5 years.
After focusing on single cultivar Cinsault, Grenache, Chenin Blanc and Colombard for several years, in 2023, Ian Naude was finally tempted to dabble again with another white blend for the first time since 2010. The 2023 Soutbos was the result, and the wine was a veritable revelation (scoring 97/100 GSMW), adding to the growing number of slightly excentric but deliciously unique premium white blends from top producers such as Sadie Family Wines’ Skerpioen and Sakkie Mouton’s Full On Misfit, which is also made from Vredendal, West Coast fruit.
Happily for Ian’s legion of supporters and fine wine collectors, the 2024 Soutbos is about to hit the market and sticks to the winning formula of a 25% Old Vine Chenin Blanc (planted 1988) and 75% Old Vine Colombar (planted 1983) blend. Picked in small crates, from the truck and straight into whole-bunch pressing. Natural fermentation started after about three days. Thereafter the wine was kept on the lees for as long as possible, because that is where the “magic” happens as complex flavours and textural layers develop. “Because nature has already done the hard work, the winemaking process is kept as natural as possible with minimal interference” says Ian.
Naude Family Wines Soutbos White Blend 2024, WO Cape West Coast, 12% Abv.
1.0g/l RS | 6.3g/l TA | 3.4 pH
The 2024 is delightfully cool, fresh, and crystalline, initially boasting bold Chenin Blanc notes of yellow orchard fruits, wet straw, and white peach before slowly revealing subtle Colombard hints of green apples, ripe guavas, and sherbet dusted white citrus bon bons. There are intricate accompanying notes of sweet fynbos, wet stone minerality and subtle saline maritime sea breeze hints that tip their hat towards the Weskus terroir. On the palate the concentration is notable yet subtle and understated, showing layers of white peach, guava roll, Granny Smith apples and apricot skins with tight knit, glycerol, textured layers that carry the fruit persistence with real purpose on the finish. A deliciously complex, suave offering that will, once again, appeal to dedicated South African white blend lovers. Drink now and over the next 8 to 10+ years.
The story of how the red wine focused winery of Natte Valleij started making the Axle Chenin Blanc is now famous. Quite simply, Alex Milner finally gave in and agreed to make a white wine for his wife after several requests. Still the only white in his range, this Old Vine WO Darling Chenin Blanc from the Swartland has created its own unique following with each annual release selling out rapidly.
Until this vintage, Alex used a basket-press to extract the juice for the grapes, accumulating up an impressive 80 hours of manual pressing in 2023, which he says “practically finished me off!”. So, he has now bought a pneumatic press and the 2024 vintage was done mechanically, which means that the wine was exposed to oxygen for less time and the 2024 is notably lighter in colour and fresher in character than the 2023 vintage.
Old Vine Certified Heritage Vineyard planted in 1985.
Natte Valleij Axle Old Vine Chenin Blanc 2024, WO Darling, 13% Abv.
The 2024 vintage is proving to be a good one for many of South Africa’s top white wines and this beautiful new Old Vine dryland bush vine Chenin Blanc release from Alex Milner at Natte Valleij is no exception. Aged for 9 months in barrel, the aromatics show a beautifully pure, crisp, crystalline delineation that’s tightly packed with yellow honeysuckle, pineapple chunks in syrup, white peaches and sweet granadilla before more subtle hints of tangerine, apricots and dried guava develop. The deep Granitic soils give the palate an incredible clarity, purity and wound spring tension with the pineapple and passion fruit layers gently buffered by stony mineral phenolics and bright, mouthwatering, tangy acids. The cool 13% alcohol is simply the cherry on the cake giving the wine a fresh, suave, sophisticated elegance. Pure class. Drink now to 2032+.
(Wine Safari Score: 96/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
The Natte Valleij wines are imported into the UK by South African specialist merchant Museum Wines.
The 2024 Revenge of the Crayfish Chenin Blanc was the earliest harvest of this vineyard ever as the region experienced tremendous heatwaves up the West Coast and a generally earlier vintage across the Western Cape. As a result, the 2024 harvest involved and initial earlier pick for freshness and a slightly later pick for ripeness and body. This process might explain the tantalising interplay on the nose and palate between taut, tense, fresh flavours and richer, honied exotic fruit notes, components that marry incredibly well in the final blend to deliver a wine that is a slight departure from Sakkie’s more mineral, saline, pithy, maritime Weskus style.
The vineyards in Koekenaap are located around 5kms from the ice-cold Atlantic Ocean on well drained Sandstone soils. Grapes were hand harvested early in the morning, then taken to a cold room and cooled down for one night. The next day the grapes were whole bunch pressed in a membrane press, with the juice being taken to a stainless steel tank for natural cold settling. No enzymes were added except for a little sulphur.
Sakkie in his Koekenaap Chenin Blanc vineyard.
Clear juice was racked off the next day into a stainless steel tank and some 500 litre barrels for natural fermentation to start. Fermentation took about 120 days (the longest fermentation time to date). Afterwards, all the finished wine was moved into old 500 litre barrels to age for 12 months on its gross lees before being bottled unfined and unfiltered. This is the first Crayfish that underwent 100% Malolactic Fermentation.
Sakkie Mouton Family Wines Revenge of the Crayfish Chenin Blanc 2024, WO Koekenaap, 13.41% Abv.
3.2g/l RS | 7.7g/l TA | 3.02p
The 2024 Crayfish Chenin Blanc is a very impressive creation boasting a rich, golden bronzed yellow hue in the glass. In this vintage, Sakkie seems to have shifted to a higher gear with a far more elaborate peacock’s tail array of exotic aromatics. Noticeably richer and more intense, there are layers of dried apricot, white peach, pineapple, and green apple with top notes of white blossom and tangerine citrus peel. The pithy pineappley fruit intensity does initially mask some of the maritime salinity and gravelly minerality but linger over your glass a little longer and these Weskus hallmarks eventually reveal themselves. The palate shows incredible depth and explosive intensity, fleshy and broad with lashings of tangy yellow orchard fruits, tart pineapple chunks, peaches in honey, salted caramel, and crystallised green apple on the finish. I don’t know if Sakkie has discovered a few new tricks in the cellar or if the vintage has played into his hands with graceful precision, but I suspect it’s a combination of both. This is undoubtedly a statement wine, a wine that demands attention and then delivers in bucket loads. The slight hint of added exoticism definitely suits Sakkie’s winemaking style! I am simply blown away by this new release! Drink now to 2035+.
(Wine Safari Score: 98/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Sakkie Mouton Family Wines are available from award winning South African specialist merchant Museum Wines.
Tasting the new release whites from Eben Sadie is always one of the fine wine highlights of the year. With the 2023 wines now mostly safely in collectors’ cellars, I thought it would be a good time to publish my notes from a recent tasting at 67 Pall Mall in London where we drank these enthralling new white releases over dinner. Tasting is one thing, but drinking a fine wine is a completely different affair, allowing one to fully appreciate the wines.
As Eben Sadie showcases his new multi-million rand wine cellar on his Paardeberg farm, he has also decided to tweak his Old Vine Series range, renaming it the “Distriksreeks” or District Series, for reasons as he explains below.
“The South African wine industry, in a testament to its commitment to quality and authenticity, embraced the significance of origin in 1973. This commitment was further solidified by its enforcement through law, as the importance of demarcation and origin continued to grow. The districts, the most significant of these early demarcations, remain the cornerstone of the origin scheme. We essentially work with the following districts: SWARTLAND (Skerpioen, Pofadder, Treinspoor, Voetpad & Rotsbank, Columella & Palladius), CITRUSDAL MOUNTAIN (Skurfberg, Kokerboom & Soldaat) and last but not least, for good measure we work with STELLENBOSCH with the Mev. Kirsten vineyard. As time passed, we realised that our focus had moved to the regionality of the districts and their characteristics. We now want to highlight the notion of the individual terroirs rather than the mere age of the vines. The site will always be more important than any other singular condition.” – Eben Sadie
“This 2023 Rotsbank bottling displays match flint, almost crushed oyster shell aromas with grapefruit aspects. The wine is incredibly concentrated on the aromatics, and the tannins have massive tension. The wine’s substantial acidity and dry finish suggest that it will only benefit much from the time in the bottle. It is one of the most linear expressions of the year. It is a blue steel Chenin.” – Eben Sadie
Sadie Family Wines Die Distriksreeks Rotsbank 2023, 13.5% Abv.
Crystalline and star bright in the glass with a youthful green tinge, alluring struck flint reduction, crushed Granite minerality, crunchy green apple, and wet straw aromatics. Intense, linear, incredibly focused and precise with a big mid-palate breadth but a slightly clipped entry and finish in its youth. Give this time to fully flesh out and fill its frame. Drink from 2026 to 2038+.
(Wine Safari Score: 96+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
“For this 2023 Skurfberg vintage, we also opted to pick seemingly prematurely, as it is in the Citrusdal Mountains and shares the same seasonal dynamics. The physiology of the fruit seemed delayed, yet the wine also yielded 13.9% alcohol. The combination of the volume of the wine and the firm acidity makes for an incredible wine that is essentially built to last. The trademark granny smith apple, pear skin, and lanolin are very present in the aromas. The wine’s viscosity and volume, combined with the cutting acidity, suggest that this vintage has the mechanics to age incredibly well, like Kokerboom.” – Eben Sadie
Sadie Family Wines Die Distriksreeks Skurfberg 2023, 14% Abv.
Displays tight slightly muted aromatics. But notes of earthy bruised yellow orchard fruit, waxy lemon peel, savoury pithy grapefruit and crushed minerals fill the nose. Broad yet taut, fresh, intense and fantastically focused, the flavours are joined by white peach, pear puree, lanolin, wet stone minerality, lemon thyme and a hint of dried guava roll on the finish. Tightly wound but plenty more to come. Drink 2028 to 2040+.
(Wine Safari Score: 96+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Special neck tag on the Skurfberg commemorating vineyard owner Basie van Lill.
“The 2023 Mev. Kirsten displays limey, citrus and melba toast aromas being coated by a fresher aspect that spills over into pear skin and green apple pulp freshness that continues. The vintage’s trademark across all the Chenin Blanc vineyards is that we yielded full wines with beaming acidity and linear finishes. As a result, this is one of the more restrained vintages in character with incredible complexity. As always, the wine has a substantial volume and viscosity.” – Eben Sadie
Sadie Family Wines Die Distriksreeks Mev Kirsten 2023, 14% Abv.
The aromatics are packed with lemon and lime peel, green apple, dried green baking herbs, wet granite minerality and a hint of crunchy yellow peach. Full, rich, round and textural, the concentration is punchy, fabulously intense with a prickly acidity together with notes of quince, yellow apple, and a gentle herby fynbos finish. Simply superb. Drink from 2028 to 2040+.
(Wine Safari Score: 97+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
“The 2023 Skerpioen displays the usual limey and citrus flavours associated with the vineyard. This wine’s distinctive saline qualities, salty taste, and minerality are again prominent. The Chenin and Palomino field blend is very stable annually in its expression. The tannins and the acidity are slightly softer than in the last two vintages, and this vintage could be savoured earlier as the balance and mouthfeel are already very balanced.” – Eben Sadie
Sadie Family Wines Die Distriksreeks Skerpioen 2023, 13% Abv.
Taut, pristine and crystalline, this is a next level, top drawer Skerpioen release with notes of wet slate, rain on granite, over pear and white citrus nuances. The palate echoes the nose, beautifully crystalline and pure, vibrantly fresh and precise with taut linear acids, a glassy texture, and a long intense saline stony finish. Wow! Drink from 2026 to 2036+.
(Wine Safari Score: 96/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
“This 2023 ‘T Voetpad displays limey, cordial, and citrus aspects with a racy entry point. The wine is firm and tightly coiled up, and it seems it is almost not ready to talk to us yet! It needs so much time. This vintage field blend is in perfect harmony, but we believe this will become one of the most age-worthy proponents. The wine is incredibly balanced and compact. We are looking forward to trying it again in 4 to 20 years to see where its development takes it.” – Eben Sadie
Sadie Family Wines Die Distriksreeks ‘T Voetpad 2023, 13.5% Abv.
A rich nuanced aromatics with plenty of wet straw notes, dried herbs, intense fynbos with a dusting of tea leaf dust. Medium to full bodied on the palate, deliciously joined up and harmonious, glycerol and fresh with tangerine, yellow peach and hints of yellow grapefruit on the long finish. A gastronomic marvel. Drink from 2028 to 2040+.
(Wine Safari Score: 97/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
“2023 Kokerboom displays the typical waxy, lanolin characters often associated with Semillon. For the second year running, we had very little rain in the Citrusdal Mountains, and the vineyard was in a stressful environment throughout the growing season. We opted again to pick the vineyard slightly earlier than what we naturally would be inclined to, and the wine still yielded 13,8% alcohol; notwithstanding its fresh appearance, it is mammoth wine. The tannins, acidity, overall texture, and volume in the wine are incredible, and we are in awe of the power of this terroir.” – Eben Sadie
Sadie Family Wines Die Distriksreeks Kokerboom 2023, 13.8% Abv.
A lovely expressive green apple and stemy aromatics with stalk spice, green herbs, thyme, sweet lemon, and delicious fynbos spice. Full and seductive on the palate, this is rich, intense and textured with herbs and spice, honied fig and apple puree.
(Wine Safari Score: 96+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
The Sadie Family Wines are imported into the UK by FMV / Berry Bros & Rudd.
Every year, I look at the wide array of phenomenal new wines being produced by the next generation of Cape young guns and am simply astounded by the ingenuity, attention to detail and precision these producers are able to conjure up often with bought in fruit parcels acting as their blank canvases. For me, no producer personifies this endless striving for excellence and creativity more than Sakkie Mouton, the Weskus maverick.
The eccentric new duo from Sakkie.
With Sakkie’s Revenge of the Crayfish now an established icon Chenin Blanc in the Cape’s annual new release schedule, I am always left wondering what new tricks Sakkie will pull out of his sleeve as his new vintage vinous treasures are revealed. This year, with the 2024 vintage, he has pushed the boundaries even further with not one but two eccentric new releases… a Piquepoul Blanc and a Lledoner Pelut / Agiorgitiko Rosé blend. I recently received samples of both and had a chance to taste these fascinating, paradigm shifting wines.
Sakkie Mouton Family Wines Piquepoul Blanc 2024, WO Oliphantsrivier, 12.3% Abv.
3.1g/l RS | 7.9g/l TA | 3.31pH
Produced from Piquepoul vines planted in 2021 on Karoo Sandstone soils 25km from the ocean, the colour shows a deep golden bonze hue with an incredibly enticing crystalline clarity and brightness. On the nose, the aromatics are rich, complex, and exotic as you would expect after two weeks maceration on the skins. There is a seductive perfume of white blossoms before intensely pithy aromas of freshly pealed naartjies, soft waxy orange peel, ripe pineapple chunks and crunchy white peach flow from the glass. There is a faint mineral dustiness and granitic spice lurking alongside hints of green apple, nori seaweed and Sakkie’s signature briney maritime Weskus salinity. The palate is medium bodied and compact in construction with delicious reinforcing tangy lemony acids, hints of tart pineapple, freshly squeezed grapefruit juice and a salty, wet stone minerality on the dry, pithy finish. I love the way Sakkie has managed to coax an extra layer of depth and texture out on the palate from 4 months extended gross lees contact, yet he manages to retain the wines majestic purity, freshness, and piercing salinity effortlessly. This is a far more complex and characterful Piquepoul Blanc than many consumers in Europe will be familiar with from the South of France and its deliciousness is simply off the charts. Enjoy the halo vibrancy of these young vines now on release and over the next 3 to 5 years.
(Wine Safari Score: 93/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Sakkie Mouton Family Wines Lledoner Pelut / Agiorgitiko Rosé 2024, WO Oliphantsrivier, 12.5% Abv.
7.5g/l RS | 12.5g/l TA | 3.24pH
A alluring bright orange pink colour in the glass, this young vibrant 2024 Rosé displays a dramatic array of aromatics with seductively complex notes of naartjie peel, orange citrus, sea breeze salinity, pink musk candy, Parma violets, Turkish delight and delicate hints of rose petals and crushed limes. In the mouth the wine shows an incredible balance and symmetry, with an intense concentration of oranges and limes, pithy ruby grapefruit, tart strawberry and chalky, stony cranberry nuances on a vibrant, zippy finish. An incredibly enticing, seductive Rosé that displays a mouth-watering moreishness… one sip swiftly inviting another. The delicate red berry and watermelon hints combined with a stony pithiness make this an incredibly food friendly wine. This innovative blend typifies Sakkie Mouton’s style at the moment as he l continues to flex his winemaking genius. Drink now, preferably with some Cape salmon or yellow fin tuna sashimi or any Asian fusion cuisine, and over the next 2 to 4 years.
