There are few places more beautiful than an ancient old vine vineyard perched high in the mountains above a beautiful hamlet like Franschhoek. But that’s where you’ll find the magical 84 year old vines that have produced the fruit that made the new release Naudé Family Old Vine Semillon Gris 2019 bottled exclusively in magnum. In fact that’s actually a godsend as the wine is so delicious, at 12% Abv, one regular 75cl bottle will hardly touch sides!

This famous vineyard has over the years supplied fruit to such iconic producers as Alheit Family Wines, Boekenhoutskloof, John Seccombe of Thorne & Daughters and Adam Mason of Raised By Wolves. Now Naudé Family Wines joins this elite club. When chatting to Ian Naudé, he requested that I taste and review the wine over several days. Having done exactly that with incredible results for some of the Leeu Passant old vine reds recently, I had no objections what so ever in doing so. Also, tasting from magnum surely demands it!?

My impressions of this profound wine are captured below over three days of tasting.

Naude Family Wines La Colline Groendruif Semillon Gris 2020, WO Franschhoek, 12% Abv. (Bottled in Magnum)

Day 1…

Rich and fleshy with a broad glycerol weight and textural harmony. Lots of white peach and yellow orchard stone fruits with a spicy, grassy, herby peppery finish. There’s a lot going on here. Certainly a contemplative wine.

Day 2…

The wine seems to have really tightened up to show nervy white citrus, white pepper, liquid minerality, pithy peach stone, lemon iced tea with textural spice, phenolic grip, grape skin tannins and a dry bitter lemon persistence. Lovely wound spring tension with a stony pure focus on the finish.

Day 3…

Super excited to taste this again on day three and see what direction the wine has travelled. The nose is now full of pithy citrus and hints of crunchy green fruits with exotic notes of unripe tangerines and naartjies. The palate remains steely and crisp, bright and super taut with tart green apple, white peach and complexing layers of dried herbs and crushed granite minerality. Piercing and super focused, this is a very serious fine wine expression of majestic old vine Semillon bottled exclusively in magnums. Drink now and over the next 10-15+ years.

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