Few white wines produced in South Africa evoke as much emotion and mystery as the Sadie Family Wines maiden release Old Vine Series Mrs Kirsten 2006 Chenin Blanc, made from the oldest surviving Chenin Blanc vineyard still in the ground in South Africa, located in the Jonkershoek Valley in Stellenbosch.
The story of how this very special Sadie wine joined the range is best explained by the man himself, Eben Sadie…
”One day I was visiting a friend of mine in Stellenbosch, Carlo Suter, who is a farmer, oenologist and cabinet maker. And also someone practising bio – dynamic viticulture. During the visit we went for a walk on the property and we walked past this block of very old and very neglected Chenin Blanc. On asking him about the parcel of vines , he told us that it belonged to a Mrs. Kirsten, aged about 85 and that she was not farming the vines anymore.”
Eben Sadie overseeing his new cellar construction.
“The reality was a lot of very obvious potential in the parcel, for one, the very fact that the block was older than Mrs. Kirsten… and secondly, it having been planted on a very special site. Then the idea came to mind to approach her and ask if we may lease the vineyard and take care of it. From there onwards, we have been taking very special care of this vineyard, firstly by pruning out all the dead arms of the vines (years of them), and secondly by ploughing the soils and converting the vineyard back to organic farming.”
A modern vintage of the Mev. Kirsten Chenin Blanc (Afrikaans for Mrs Kirsten)
“Since 2006 we have been producing about 300 bottles annually out of one hectare of vines, which relates back to a very uneconomical 3 hl/ha yield, but the concept of such a project is rather to finance a vineyard in a world driven by profitability and return. It is a vineyard that has given more to us than numbers and has resulted in the production of a uniquely different and individual wine.”
Vinification involves the sorting of each individual berry for the entire production in small “strawberry” cases. The grapes are de-stemmed and fermented on their skins for about two days at low temperatures and then pressed in an old basket press and the juice run off directly into barrel without settling. Natural fermentation continues in tight grained French oak, the oldest barrel at any stage in the cellar being at least 10 years of age, insuring they impart zero oak influence to the taste.
The aging takes place for 12 months on the lees and then the wine was racked. An additional six months of aging on the fine lees took place afterwards. Total time spent in oak was 18 months. Total production for 2006 was a meagre 283 bottles.
Sadie Family Wines Mrs Kirsten Old Vine Chenin Blanc 2006, 13.65% Abv.
1.8g/l RS | 6.2g/l TA | 3.45pH
A beautifully rich old gold, old honey Sauternes-style copper / bronze colour. A slight disconnect between colour and taste, this bottle is in perfect condition with the aromatics tightly concertina’ed, slowly unwinding to reveal aromatics of apricot compote, nutty yellow orchard fruits, nectarine, salted toffee, crystallised ginger, caramelised fig and savoury notes of damp leaves and wet moss. You get a sense that this wine has a lot to offer, with a slow reveal in play. The palate is intricately spicy and pithy with layers of peach stone fruits, quince and savoury notes of mealy warm peach crumble with hints of vanilla pod spice. A beautifully textured wine with fine grained, phenolic, spicy tannins and a cool, pithy, spicy ginger infused yellow fruited length with an enticing salinity on the finish. A fascinating expression of Chenin Blanc and undoubtedly an iconic unicorn wine of note!
One of the greatest measures of a wine’s quality and style can usually be achieved when lining up the finest creations in a blind line-up against all one’s global peers. If you want to be the best, you need to pit yourself against the best. This philosophy applies equally in business, sport and of course fine wine and it was this simple principle that inspired the original “Judgement Tastings” many years ago… the first popularised benchmark exploration being the Judgement of Paris held by the late Steven Spurrier back in 1976, pitting the best of California against the best of France.
In the same pioneering spirit of competition, a group of London fine wine enthusiasts set out, some years ago, to compare the finest Grenache wine expressions from around the world in a rigorous blind comparative tasting. Roll on several years, and not only have the finest offerings from around the world increased in number, but the “Grenache fine wine category” itself has evolved dramatically to include some incredible new expressions, primarily from Spain and South Africa.
So with the latest 2023 edition of the Judgement of Wimbledon held recently with one of the most impressive line-ups to date, the results were always going to be highly anticipated. This year, the 14 wine blind flight included 3 wines from Sierra de Gredos, the mountainous region west of Madrid, 4 wines from Priorat in Catalonia, 1 wine from Monsant next door to Priorat, 1 wine from Vinos de la Tierra Castilla y Leon, 3 old vine wines from South Africa, 1 wine from Rioja and 1 from the USA. Where possible, the latest releases were included covering vintages 2020 to 2014.
The Judgement of Wimbledon 2023 tasting featured seven judges, 14 wines double decanted, tasted blind and rated using the 100-point scoring system. With regards to the wine selection, a more elegant, classical, mineral and pure fruited aesthetic was followed in conjunction with high critical scores from international reviewers for the vintages on the tasting, or else for previous vintages if the latest releases had not been rated yet. Previous Judgement tastings have including more “obvious” riper expressions of Grenache from Australia, the USA, and Chateauneuf du Pape (Rayas), so these were excluded from this years selection as a point of difference.
My personal tasting notes and scores were as follows, followed by the group average results.
The Judgement of Wimbledon Tasting Line-up: (including Greg Sherwood MW’s blind notes)
Wine 1 – Terroir al Limit Les Manyes 2019, Priorat, Spain
Light translucent colour reveals an aromatics of tar and leather, freshly tilled earth and bramble berry spice. Very sappy, smoky with a deep peppery spicy seam. Quite phenolic and very spicy on the palate with quite a dense glycerol mouthfeel, plenty of crushed peppercorns, austere liquid minerality and wood spice on the finish.
(Wine Safari Score: 92/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Wine 2 – Comando G Rumbo Al Norte 2020, Gredos, Spain
Very pale colour in the glass before a nose of vermouth spices, strawberry reduction, tomato juice, dried orange peel, tangerine and blood orange. The palate is taut and incredibly saline with a very polished textural feel, tight knit tannins and a quite exotic finish of red berries, Xmas spices and granitic minerality.
(Wine Safari Score: 94/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Wine 3 – Telmo Rodriguez Pegaso Granito 2018, Vinos de la Tierra Castillo y Leon, Spain
A darker, deeper expression on the eye and the nose, showing complex layers of black currant pastille, cassis and salty blueberry. The tannins are pure silk showing a powdery texture, a tight grained minerality, pear notes and a long focused harmonious finish. Impressive and immediately hedonistic.
(Wine Safari Score: 95/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Wine 4 – Naude Family Wines Grenache 2019, Darling, South Africa
Another light, translucent coloured expression. The nose shows a delicate smoky elegance layered with sapidity, crushed granitic spice and dried herbs. On the palate there is a supremely elegant mouthfeel, pinpoint acids, delicate freshness and a wonderfully cool, focused saline precision on the finish. Very harmonious and classy despite its evident youthfulness.
A much riper, denser opulent expression with plenty of sun dried red berries, hints of diesel rag, and sweet grilled herbs. On the palate there is a plush texture, plenty of fleshy red berry fruits, red bruised apple, notes of raspberry coulis and wood spice. The entire package is very impressive with a sleek texture and compact mouthfeel. Very classy.
(Wine Safari Score: 94+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Wine 6 – Mas Martinet Els Escurcons 2019, Priorat, Spain
Another dense, darkly coloured expression. On the nose the aromatics show a nervy, crushed gravel, limestone mineral dustiness mixed with sweet grilled herbs, sweet leaf, red cherry, orange peel and sweet vermouth botanical notes. There is impressive ripeness on the palate with a fleshy richness, Poire William and balancing acidity complimented by supremely creamy chalky tannins. An impressive wine with red and black berry fruits and a deliciously creamy persistence.
Medium dark colour with some transparency. The nose is quite lifted and perfumed with notes of cherry cola, herbal tea, cherry tobacco and leafy spice. The palate is as attractive as the aromas, showing deliciously vibrant acids, a glycerol textured breadth but also lovely complexity, a smoky minerality, and a long, powdery tannic finish. Very powerful and intense making for a serious wine indeed.
(Wine Safari Score: 97/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Wine 8 – Torres Mas de la Rosa 2018, Priorat, Spain
Another dark coloured wine, the aromatics are expressive and perfumed with raspberry herbal tea, red cherry, cherry cola and subtle vermouth herbal spices over a subtle blueberry muffin spice. There is a lovely fleshy richness that offers breadth and depth with a sweet / sour acidity but also incredible precision and balance. Some ripeness here but also a beautiful acid balance.
(Wine Safari Score: 97+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Wine 9 – Mas Martinet – Cami Pesseroles 2019, Priorat, Spain
This is a more lush, plush opulent expression with plenty of depth and breadth both on the nose and palate. The nose reveals warming stewed black plum, dark orchard fruits and subtle sweet vermouth and grilled herb spices. The palate is medium to full with an intense fruit concentration tempered by an earthy tart sweet / sour acidity, and a very sweet tannin profile. Lovely concentration on a wine that leaves a little less to the imagination but delicious nevertheless.
(Wine Safari Score: 97+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Wine 10 – Sadie Family Wines Soldaat 2021, Piekenierskloof, South Africa
Light and translucent in colour, this youthful expression is smoky and reductive with saline maritime notes over black currant pastille and purple rock candy and subtle musk notes. The palate is salty and spicy, tart yet rich, taut and nervy with plenty of red berry fruits, tart red apple, and a sweet plummy complexity.
(Wine Safari Score: 94/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Wine 11 – 4 Monos La Isilla 2019, Gredos, Spain
A more classical rendition of Grenache with all the archetypal notes of grilled herbs, smoky black berry, hints of salty cassis, oyster shell and subtle tar and roses complexity. The texture is dense and fleshy, bristling with more red fruits, bright acids and sweet and sour Victoria plum notes. Tight knit, polished and very impressive indeed.
(Wine Safari Score: 97+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Wine 12 – Comando G El Tamboril 2020, Gredos, Spain
A taut, classical note with plenty of herbal aromatics, hints of plum and tar, smoky railway yard and earthy black berry. The palate shows a hint of saline flinty reduction but also massively mineral drying tannins, chalky grip and immense power. This is muscle in a bottle, one for the cellar, but a potential block buster. Very impressive.
(Wine Safari Score: 98/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Wine 13 – Naude Family Wines Grenache 2020, Darling, South Africa
Light and ethereal in colour, the nose shows sweet sappy red berry fruits, cool red cherry, earthy red plum and grated red apple skins. The palate is liquid lazerbeams, saline and tart yet mouth-wateringly salty and mineral. This is elegance with extreme precision and power but all delivered so deftly. A really incredible expression.
(Wine Safari Score: 96/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Wine 14 – A Tribute to Grace Morro View Vineyard Santa Barbara County County Grenache 2014, California, USA
Rich and ripe with sur-maturité notes on the nose with hints of sweet figs, caramel, stewed plums and earthy savoury cherry liquor. The tannins are rasping and dry, mouth puckering and grippy with dried fruits that indicate the grapes were picked perhaps a bit too late.
(Wine Safari Score: 92/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
The Group Tasting Score Averages and Rankings:
The tasting group in deep discussion after results where completed and submitted for auditing.
Conclusions and Observations:
One thing you can be sure of when you do blind tastings like this is that the results will never conform to preconceived expectations. Indeed, that was certainly the case with the 2023 Judgement of Wimbledon tasting. Some of the obvious surprises were the low ratings for both the Comando G Rumbo Al Norte 2020 and the Les Manyes 2019, though this could be down to their youthfulness. Equally, a big surprise was the dominant performance of another Sierra de Gredos wine, the El Tamboril 2020, that shone incredibly brightly and seduced all the tasters.
Plenty of happy faces all round! Viva Grenache! (The Sadie Pofadder 2012 Cinsault was a delicious post-tasting treat!)
Also, taking previous critical ratings and retail prices into consideration, all three South African Grenache wines performed incredibly well, with purity, precision and balance in the face of stiff competition from wines that were sometimes close to 10 times their price. The Naudé Family Wines Grenache was one of the original wines that inspired the Judgement tastings all those years ago, so hats off to an impressive 4th and 5th placing for Ian Naudé’s two incredible reds. World class in every sense of the word! Until next year and the 2024 Judgement… cheers!
Sadie Family Wines are located in the Swartland region of South Africa and is without doubt one of South Africa’s most sought-after producers. But it wasn’t always like this. Before Eben Sadie settled down to carve out his career as a winemaker, he travelled and worked extensively in several major wine regions of the world, including Germany, Austria, Italy, Oregon and Burgundy. After returning to South Africa, he found employment alongside South African icon Charles Back, at The Spice Route in 1998. Sadie Family Wines, as we know it today, was founded in 1999, with the first two vintages produced at Charles Back’s Spice Route facilities.
While everything Eben puts his hand to nowadays becomes instantly collectable, his personal winemaking focus remains his signature wines, namely his white blend Palladius and his red Syrah based blend, Columella. But the fine wine world often has other designs, relentlessly craving his small production single vineyard wines made from some of South Africa’s oldest vineyards in the Cape. One of these, the Soldaat Old Vine Series, is made from ungrafted and unirrigated old bush vines that are planted at 708m altitude on decomposed granite soils on a 6-hectare site that Grenache shows such a great affinity for, and it really shows on this incredible wine. After manual harvesting, fermentation occurs spontaneously with indigenous yeasts. Maceration and fermentation is carried out in concrete tanks for 30 days and aging lasts on average 12 months in old oak barrels.
Sadie Family Wines Old Vine Series Soldaat Grenache 2012
Pronounced earthy, sappy, green leaf style with notes of dried herbs, fynbos, sandalwood and leafy red currant tangy berry fruits. The acids are electric, cool and glassy. Just a measured amount of tertiary complexity developing. 92/100? (95/100 Jan 2023 Tasting)
(Wine Safari Score: 95/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Note: In the original vertical tasting, this wine seemed more evolved and savoury, but on tasting again in January 2023 from a different batch, the wine positively radiated energy and freshness, implying that the 2012 bottle initially assessed was perhaps not in top condition. Even my note on this wine in 2016 said… “you best bury a few bottles away if you have any left! (Wine Safari Score: 94/100 Greg Sherwood MW) – This could potentially be a 95, 96, 97 point classic one day when it nears maturity. Yes, it’s that good!”
Sadie Family Wines Old Vine Series Soldaat Grenache 2016
Lovely warming nose of strawberry jam on warm scones, crushed gravel and sweet fynbos herbal notes before bramble berry fruits with a distinct savoury, meaty finish.
(Wine Safari Score: 93+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Sadie Family Wines Old Vine Series Soldaat Grenache 2017
Definite note of reduction evident with hints of wet slate, crushed chalk, black currant, oyster shell and bramble berry spice. The palate is taut and compact, sappy and intense with a creamy textural balance and a herby, brambly, savoury finish.
(Wine Safari Score: 95/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Sadie Family Wines Old Vine Series Soldaat Grenache 2018
Lovely bright red fruited nose with red currant, crushed strawberry and bramble berry spice. Palate is glycerol, dense and super serious with stony tannins, graphite spice and a savoury red berry finish.
(Wine Safari Score: 95/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Sadie Family Wines Old Vine Series Soldaat Grenache 2019
Offers a beautiful melange of fynbos, crushed granite, dried herbs and red currant spice. Plush, opulent and seductive, this is a very impressive wine with superb power, precision and balance.
(Wine Safari Score: 96/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Sadie Family Wines Old Vine Series Soldaat Grenache 2020
Dense, bright, pure red fruited nose with delicious creamy depth, layers of red currant, strawberry and seductive red cherry fruit together with a complexing sapidity, tobacco leaf and a stony minerality. Beautiful harmony, seamless balance, and a long, pristine finish. Wow!
(Wine Safari Score: 96+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Wines are available on strict allocation to the trade in the USA from Broadbent Selections and in the UK from FMV. Retail is circa £50 per bottle on release.
Earlier this year, Eben Sadie made his first trip to London in several years and with so any new projects and developments taking place in the world of Sadie Family Wines, a visit to explain all the exciting new developments was considered long overdue. With Eben producing the most sought-after selection of red and white wines in South Africa, every change he makes in the winery or in the vineyards is closely watched and examined.
Starting in the early 2000s, Eben started to strive to improve the freshness on all his whites and reds with the effects of climate change becoming more and more apparent vintage after vintage. Over the past years, Eben has planted a range of esoteric white and red grapes, many with their origin around the Mediterranean – Agiorgitiko, Mencia, Cinsault Blanc, Grillo, Assyrtiko, Picpoul de Pinet, Trincadeira, Alicante Bouchet, Cunoise, Mavrotragano, etc. all on specially chosen sites with suitable soil types that allow the grapes to express freshness, brightness and elegance.
Following a policy of only making large scale changes once every 10 years, Eben firmly believes that what needs to be learnt takes time even if the actions you took and the changes you made end up ultimately being unsuccessful. The wines tasted in this masterclass reflect the learning and changes that have occurred at Sadie Family Wines over the past 20 years. To complement this fascinating masterclass, I followed it up with a visit to the winery in October to see some of the new developments first hand.
Eben Sadie surveying the new wine cellar building works.
Walking through the newly acquired old vine Rotsbank Chenin Blanc vineyard.
Top of the “to do list” was visiting the Rotsbank Old Vine Chenin Blanc vineyard that Sadie Family Wines recently acquired. This vineyard previously supplied some Chenin Blanc for blending into the Palladius, but following the purchase, Eben will release his first new Old Vine Series wine in 13 years and also his first single varietal Swartland Old Vine Chenin Blanc with the 2022 vintage. Also on display, were the extensive building works which mark the building of a new winemaking facility and archive cellar on the farm. So plenty to look forward to!
Columella Vertical: 2004 to 2018
Sadie Family Wines Columella 2004, WO Swartland
A beautifully cool, precise year that is an exceptional vintage for the wine but with Eben giving most of the credit to vintage conditions – “they merely didn’t mess it up in the winery, preserving the greatness of the vintage”. Wonderfully pure and perfumed with potpourri, garrigue, bramble berry spice and cured meats. The tannins are polished and silky, precise and pin point with fabulous mineral layering supported by bright tangy, crunchy acids with just the most subtle, reductive, saline cassis nuance on the finish. A supremely classy, classical expression.
(Wine Safari Score: 97/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Sadie Family Wines Columella 2007, WO Swartland
A warm, dry vintage that led to many vines shutting down and thus offering long hang times on paper but with out the corresponding ripening. So a difficult vintage known for its pyrazines, especially on the whites. The nose shows rich, plumy, earthy characters with cured meats, black olive, plum compote and hints of tannery leather. The tannins are sweet and plush, creamy and opulent with a fine line of acidity wrapped in voluptuous layers of sweet red and black berry fruits. An impressive offering for the vintage and drinking beautifully at the moment.
(Wine Safari Score: 95+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Sadie Family Wines Columella 2010, WO Swartland
Semi-warm vintage, less warm and dry than 2007. The aromatics are earthy and savoury with plenty of tannery leather, tilled earthy, stewed plums and spicy grilled herb notes. The palate shows a stony minerality together with a more restrained fruit depth, spicy graphite, bramble berry and pithy black currant. Tannins are soft and quite polished, finishing with a subtlety and elegance. A fascinating, mineral driven expression.
(Wine Safari Score: 96/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Pre-Masterclass interview with Jancis Robinson OBE MW.
Sadie Family Wines Columella 2018, WO Swartland
The end of the drought vintages, this shows an incredibly old world, Rhone style aromatics with savoury black fruits, garrigue, grilled herbs, black currant, black cherry, raspberry compote, and a meaty, chargrilled component. The palate shows a delicious crunchy, raspberry fruited vibrancy with hints of red bramble berries, wild strawberry and red cherries combined with a beautifully precise fresh acidity, impressive fine grained tannins and a wonderfully elegant, harmonious, poised finish. Very classy indeed.
(Wine Safari Score: 97+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Palladius Vertical: 2007 to 2019
Sadie Family Wines Palladius 2007, WO Swartland
Dry and hot vintage, the aromatics show a defined, honied yellow fruited oxidative complexity with layers of grapefruit jam, melted honey on buttered white toast. Massive glycerol texture with oxy fig and caramelised peach nuances, tangy acids and a deliciously exotic, saline, tropical finish. Offers a lot of wine and leaves it out there for all to see, leaving little to the imagination.
(Wine Safari Score: 93+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Sadie Family Wines Palladius 2010, WO Swartland
Warm vintage again, the 2010 shows almost like a white Tondonia from Rioja with oxy yellow peach and condensed milk notes, tart tatin, and caramelised apples. The texture is creamy and dense, plush and opulent wth peach stone fruit, bruised yellow orchard fruits and a lactic, oaky, vanilla pod finish. But it’s ever so funky, luscious and delicious.
(Wine Safari Score: 95/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Sadie Family Wines Palladius 2016, WO Swartland
The second very hot and dry vintage for the Cape, yet miraculously, many of the Chenin Blanc based blends defied the conditions to produced superb wines. A lot earthier and honied showing savoury characteristics with a much more aromatic, phenolic expression. But fabulously glycerol and balanced, seamless and focused with finely intertwined acids. Really delicious now. A triumphant wine.
(Wine Safari Score: 96/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Sadie Family Wines Palladius 2019, WO Swartland
The vineyards and blend reach a nice equilibrium in this vintage. The aromatics are pure and pinpoint with a pronounced pithy, mineral, crushed granite dust on the nose, intertwined with pithy yellow orchard fruits. The texture boasts great intensity along with harmonious balance and an ever present power. Hints of peach pastille and green apple cordial carry the full, textural palate weight effortlessly to a long and incredibly harmonious finish. Really impressive vinous architecture on display here.
I recently watched another zoom interview with Eben Sadie after his new 2019 vintage releases and it became crystal clear that he has now officially joined the exclusive global ranks of iconic wine producers who don’t actually have to “sell” their wines but merely allocate them on a spreadsheet, thus joining the likes of Coche-Dury, Romanee Conti, JL Chave, Thierry Allemande etc., as one of the most sought after producers in the world.
But with this fame comes the added clamour from customers to drink his wines on release, highlighting and indeed exacerbating one of Eben’s greatest disappointments – that not enough people cellar his wines long enough to allow them to reach their true drinking potential. So, with the recent 2019 Skurfberg Chenin Blanc garnering a lofty 100 points from Tim Atkin MW in his recent South Africa 2020 report, I thought I’d revisit an older vintage of this iconic wine to check on its evolution.
Made from unirrigated parcels of old bush vines planted between 1940 and 1955 on decomposed sandstone in the Oliphants River Region, these knarled dry grown old vines struggle to survive with only the sparse local rainfall to rely on. But it is precisely this struggle that makes these old vines produce such sumptuously expressive grapes. So if you have the ability to cellar any wines, save some of your allocation and follow Eben’s advice.
Sadie Family Wines Old Vine Series Skurfberg Chenin Blanc 2012, WO Olifantsrivier, 14.5% Abv.
Drunk over 3 nights, just incredible to see this wine slowly unwind and unfurl over time. At its height of expressiveness, the bouquet positively bursts forth with lemon and lime marmalade, tangerine peel zest, pressed oranges, sweet dried herbs, honeysuckle, nougat and a fantastically expressive granitic mineral under vein. The breadth, depth and complexity of flavour on the palate is just mind boggling, with multiple layers of lime preserve, caramelised figs, grapefruit jelly and an intense finish of lemon cream biscuits and spicy, pithy gravelly minerality punctuated by a final zippy acid reprise. A wine that encapsulates perfectly why Eben Sadie’s wines are so sought after the world over! Start drinking this one now but certainly no rush. A true white icon wine for a new generation of drinkers.
I’ve been involved with the activities of the Cape Wine Auction Charity on and off since it’s first auction seven years ago. In 2020, I was very privileged to be invited to be their Honorary Global Fine Wine Ambassador and attend this special event that helped raise over R17 million rand for 25 well deserving wine land children’s charities, but which also crucially, took the seven year total raised to over R100 million to date! (£5.1m)
A brace of Pinotage unicorn wines.
One of the lots sold at last years auction in 2019 was an uber rare lot comprising of two barrels worth of Pinotage, one made by Hamilton Russell winemaker Emul Ross from Ashbourne Winery fruit and the other made by Swartland rock star Eben Sadie with fruit from the same vineyard at Ashbourne. Each wine was vinified in their own home cellars without the two winemakers liaising or comparing notes. In fact, after harvest, the first time the two spoke together again was around two months later and neither tasted the others wine until the actual day of the auction.
Emul pointing to the thin wedge shaped vineyard that provided the grapes.
The two barrel auction lot was bottled and labelled and offered exclusively at the 2019 Cape Wine Auction, which in the end, after frenzied bidding, raised £1m Rand and was divided between four bidding parties, with each paying R250,000 for just over 150 bottles, or just under R2000 per bottle.
The Ashbourne barrel.
Man & Soil Ashbourne Pinotage 2018, WO Hemel-en-Aarde Valley, 13.5 Abv.
Emul’s version obviously bears a great resemblance to the flagship Ashbourne Estate Pinotage that he also makes. Wonderfully bright, pure fruited and crunchy on the nose, one anticipates vibrancy and vigour to follow on the palate and you’re not disappointed. There are expressive notes of black and red cherry, damson plum, wet leaves and tart black bramble berry fruits. The palate shows incredible freshness and energy with tart crisp acids framing pure notes of raspberry, blueberry and mineral laden earthy black plum. The oak is almost imperceptible allowing the wine to confidently boast its finest fruit and mineral characteristics. Very impressive.
(Wine Safari Score: 94/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
The Sadie Family barrel.
Man & Soil Sadie Family Wines Pinotage 2018, WO Hemel-en-Aarde Valley, 13.5 Abv.
Incredibly, this wine shows an earthy musky Swartland perfume and fragrance that is certainly not just in my subconscious. There are seductive notes of fresh potpourri, crushed rose petals, Jasmin and Iris blossom melting into sun raisined cranberry, damson plum and pink musk complexity. The palate shows a softer, rounder, riper more generous fleshy accessibility that reaches all corners of the mouth and washes over the tastebuds in waves of sweet earthy savoury black plums, loganberry and earthy red currant complexity. Plush and seductive without lacking any structure, this wine exhibits all the fabulous Sadie X factor that has made his other wines so famous!
(Wine Safari Score: 95/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
None of these bottles are commercially available and therefore register pretty high up on the ultimate unicorn wine list. The fact they are such high quality but also age worthy and made by two of South Africa’s best winemakers seals their legendary cult status. A real privilege to drink these two bottles with Emul and friends a few hundred meters from the vineyard itself!
Made from 44 year old Tinta Barocca sourced from a vineyard in the Swartland planted in 1974, the new 2018 Treinspoor release appears to have found yet another gear of superior quality not often seen with this variety in South Africa.
Reading my back notes on previous vintages for Treinspoor, I noted my own enthusiastic score for the 2016 while Eben Sadie regarded the 2015 as one of his finest expressions. This 2018 certainly has an elegance and sophistication I’ve not seen on any Tinta Barocca reds from South Africa before. Chatting to Eben about Tinta Barocca in the past, he always says he feels that this red grape Tinta Barocca “might well transport the Swartland terroir best into liquid form, purely because it captures the soils and the earthiness of the place.”
Sadie Family Wines Old Vine Series Treinspoor 2018, Swartland, 13 Abv.
This 2018 aged in old foudres really is a delicious, supremely impressive rendition of one of the slightly less acclaimed reds in the Old Vine Series wine range. Possibly the most seductive vintage produced to date, this incredible Swartland Tinta Barocca boasts a wonderfully perfumed nose of fresh lavender, incense, fynbos and garrigue over a plush aromatic melange of blueberry reduction, black cherry and wood smoked dried herbs. The palate is cool, complex and compact with a fine soft fleshy black berry concentration that shows hints of Parma violet rock candy, grape jelly, pink musk, granitic minerality and finely textured chalky tannins. But it’s the overall harmonious balance paired with a regal intensity and freshness that just possibly elevates this 2018 expression to the finest Treinspoor Eben Sadie has produced so far. A very impressive wine indeed!
The Fine Wine Safari Top 10 Red Wines of the Year was a modest attempt to illustrate South Africa’s finest benchmark wines and styles for all to see and to give international collectors and drinkers a handful of names and labels to look out for. However, one of the absolute cornerstones of the recent global success of the South African wine category has been its incredible diversity and in many cases it’s inspired eccentricity combined with outright quality.
So in an attempt to show the more experimental and alternative “off-piste” face of South African wine, I have enjoyed compiling my Top 10 list of most memorable reds, truly outstanding wines produced by producers that do not necessarily aspire to 100 point ratings or mass market appeal. Nevertheless, these wines are all more than worthy of a slot in your cellar!
Sadie Family Old Vine Series Treinspoor 2017, Swartland
Franco Lourens Howard John Red Blend 2017, WO Western Cape
David & Nadia Pinotage 2017, Swartland
Fram Grenache Gris 2017, Swartland
Kleine Zalze Amphora Grenache 2017
Craven Wines Cinsault 2017, Stellenbosch
Restless River Wanderlust Grenache 2017, Hemel-en-Aarde Valley
Scions of Sinai Feniks Pinotage 2017, Stellenbosch
What a fabulous year for South African wine it has been! Of course for many 2018 was extra special because a lot of people who may not normally go to South Africa regularly made the pilgrimage down to Cape Wine 2018 in September. Personally, I made four separate visits to South Africa this year including a mammoth 10 day mega session that covered both the Nederburg Auction and the entire week of the Cape Wine trade fair.
— 🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁 …. drum roll ….
So for 2018, myTop 10 South African White Wines of the Yearare as follows:
I’m very excited to be attending the Alheit Family Wines new release 2017 tasting tomorrow in London at the offices of the Institute of Masters of Wine with Chris Alheit. Indeed it was Rosa Kruger and Andre Morgenthal’s recent Old Vines Project Masterclass Tasting a few weeks ago that reignited the excitement surrounding old vines, old vine culture and the changes in philosophy with regards to viticulture and vine growing taking place in South Africa.
A pair of Chris Alheit’s superb 2017 wines featured prominently on the July tasting and certainly helped set the scene for yet another SA tasting of old vine wines that promises to display some of the most exciting dry Chenin Blanc’s produced anywhere in the world. Just reading through the below Old Vine Masterclass tasting notes has already got me salivating.
Below are my raw notes taken from the Masterclass with Andre and Rosa.
Old Vine Project team Andre Morgenthal and Rosa Kruger in front of London’s Millennium Bridge.
Huis van Chevallerie Filia Brut Kap Klassiek 2014, Swartland – Vines Planted 1974
Savoury apple purée, honey and sun dried peaches, vermouth botanicals and sweet fynbos herby spice. Beautiful richness, peachy, leesy autolysis and a gravelly, mineral length.
Rich, deep, earthy, mealy character, hairy yellow peaches, honey, lanolin, peach purée and a solid vein of gravelly, granitic minerality. Creamy and texturally very fine showing piercing white citrus and crunchy yellow fruit intensity, white peach pastille and a kiss of pineapple. Very impressive.
Beautifully nuanced nose with pronounced minerality, dusty granite and limestone, where the fruit component of the wine takes a back seat to the terroir minerality. Hints of struck match and tart fresh acids give way to lemon and lime pith, flinty white peaches and savoury pineapple. A really excellent expression.
Rich perfumed nose showing soap stone, white citrus, green apple zest, creamy white peach and liquid minerality. Beautifully textured palate, complex and very harmonious. Very classy indeed.
(Wine Safari Score: 95/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Alheit family Huilkrans Chenin Blanc 2017, Swartland – Vines Planted 1976 and 1986
Wonderful melange of pure mineral, granite, grated apple, white peach and crunchy green pear with hints of orange blossom, tangerine and dried herb spice. Incredible harmony and balance, precise textural focus, sleek concentration and liquid mineral depth. A thought provoking wine, confounding the senses, stimulating the palate. Grand Cru texture, focus and precision.
(Wine Safari Score: 97+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Cartology Chenin Blanc / Semillon Blend, WO Western Cape 2017 – Vines aged between 32 and 82 years old from multiple plots, mostly 40 years old
Big, broad expansive yellow orchard fruit aromatics, subtle yellow blossom and then an overriding dusty gravel quarry minerality. The palate shows amazing depth, typical Alheit pineapple fruit pastille concentration, lemon grass and an incredible saline, grassy, herbal pithy length. Another epic effort from Butch.
(Wine Safari Score: 94+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Alheit Fire By Night 2017, Swartland, 13 Abv. – Vines planted in 1938, 1940 and 1944
Bright, crystalline and intense, wonderfully taut and intense, loaded with liquid minerals, limestone and green gauge, green apple and white pears. Pithy phenolic notes, spicy, pear purée expression and such clarity and focus. Mouth watering acidity, this wine tells an amazing story and delivers on so many levels with subtlety.
Dusty granitic mineral aromatics, powdered sandstone, white citrus, white pepper and hints of orange blossom. So textural, intense and expertly finessed into a really profound version of Semillon.
(Wine Safari Score: 94+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Boekenhoutskloof Semillon 2005, Franschhoek – Vines Planted in 1902, 1936 and 1942
Complex aromatics reveal notes of capsicum, white citrus and chalky granitic herbal green spice aromatics. Plenty of honied lemon, herbal fynbos notes and subtle oxidative, honied, lanolin length. Very expressive and complex.
(Wine Safari Score: 93/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Boekenhoutskloof Semillon 2015, Franschhoek – Vines Planted in 1902, 1936 and 1942
Crunchy white peaches, citrus, crushed gravel and white pepper dominate the nose. Palate is packed full of lime peel complexity, vibrant bright acids, textural linearity and a long, wonderfully focused finish. Exceptional.
(Wine Safari Score: 95/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Mullineux & Leeu Dry Red 2015, WO Western Cape – Vines planted in 1932 and 1900
Lovely peppery, spicy leafy nose of plum, peppercorns, sweet bramble berries, hedgerow, bergamot and sappy cherry spice. There’s a real opulent confit fruit character, impressive ripeness, fragrant but simultaneously mineral and restrained. There is also a real dusty granitic vein, a chalky, spicy texture and sweet red currant and raspberry sappy fruit. Punchy, intense, really focused but with real mouthwatering drinkability. Beautifully fine harmonious texture, and tight polished tannins. A very classy wine indeed.
(Wine Safari Score: 95/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Naude Cinsault 2015, Darling – Vines Planted 1980
Wonderfully open, fragrant and exotic nose showing salted cherries, rose petals, lychees and Turkish delight. Palate is incredibly sleek and creamy but impressively intense and focused. Delicious palate complexity of waxy orange peel, naartjie juice and earthy sappy cranberry sauce. Such a very pretty expression.
(Wine Safari Score: 94+/100 Greg Sherwood MW)
Jamie Goode tasting with Rosa Kruger at the Old Vine Project Masterclass held at High Timber Restaurant in July 2018.
Greg Sherwood MW 