Brampton Estate, Roxton, 2018, South Africa
I visited Brampton vineyard many years ago and found it to have excellent wines and port. This red blend is no exception for me it’s a crackling red wine. Dry, with solid body and tannins and good length this has flavours of red and black fruits, leather, oak, vanilla and hints of chocolate and tobacco.
The down side is the price at £17 a bottle, not outrageous but not your everyday wine.
Christiena, Trousseau, Cap Classique Method, Brut, South Africa
South African sparkling wine is normally very good and this one Christiena in the Robertson area of the western Cape is no exception. It’s dry, crisp and with good levels of balanced acidity. The flavours of lemon and lime are subtle allowing the crispness to shine though. On itsown or with sea food it’s a quality wine.
Rupert and Rothschild, Classique, 2018, Paarl, South Africa
Rupert and Rothschild, Classique, 2018 from Paarl, South Africa It’s a truly staggering wine for it’s got so much flavour and depth and balance that it will just blow your mind. There’s plenty of dark red and black fruits with hints of chocolate and tobacco with an undertone of oak with firm tannings to bind everything together. At about £30 a bottle it’s not cheap but then again this is fantastic wine
Sparkling wine from South Africa has come along way in the last 15 years. This Jacques Bruere, Brut Reserve, 2013 shows how good it can be. There’s a freshness znd ziggyness to it, lots of fruit, peach, grapefruit, lemon and balanced acidity. Pair it with seafood or just enjoy with friends. At £15 a bottle it’s great value.
Rustenberg, John X Merriman, 2020, Stellenbosch, South Africa
Made with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Malbec snd left in the cask for 20 months makes this red blend from Rustenberg rather good. There’s plenty of red and black fruit flavours, spice, leather, oak notes with a slightly smokey under tone lifts this above the completion. At £14 a bottle it’s not cheap but it’s very nice.
Catherine Marshall, Peters Vision, 2017, South Africa
Made with cab franc and merlot this is good morning red from South Africa. So pretty bold wine reasonably smooth with Titanic’s and very dry. You have flavours and aromas of black fruit, oak and herbaceous notes but with a leather and earthy undertone.
It’s one to drink with food definitely a good steak or tomato based pasta and at £25 a bottle it’s a little bit on the pricey side that said it’s a very good bottle.
I have a soft spot for Rustenberg as the wines are generally good quality I could prices and this pretty much follows through in this Chenin Blanc. Deep lemon in color and although it’s not meant to have been aged in any Oak you do get much more richness that you might expect, I think this is partly because it’s been left on its lees for maturing. It’s dry and crisp and lots of flavor of pear and citrus possibly a little strong for my liking that said it would go very well with white meat fish and Chinese food so from that aspect a thumbs up. At about £6 a bottle it is good value.
Rustenberg Estate, Chenin Blanc, 2018, Stellenbosch, South Africa
Nederburg, Sauvignon Blanc, Auction Reserve, 2015, South Africa
Sauvignon Blanc from South Africa is generally good, more french than New Zealand but this Auction Reserve from Nederburg is superb. Suble aromas of lemon, pineapple and hints of gooseberry and minerality and added flavours that include lime and peach.
There’s lots here but all in harmony and working together. Excellent, truly excellent.
We went to Hartenberg on our last trip to the Western Cape, South Africa and its still as great as when we first tried. There’s a big hit of petroleum on the nose with hints of ripe tropical fruit. Its an off dry riesling that comes across sweeter on the taste with floral, pear, tropical fruits it there. The texture is fuller than many white wines but below that of a traditional german Riesling. Excellent with a vegetarian sweet and sour meal and at £13 a bottle, fair value.
Hartenberg, Occasional Riesling, 2016, South Africa
South Africa does some really good Merlot and Shiraz and this blend brings some good qualities. That’s not a huge amount of aromas on this blend but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. You do get flavours of raspberry and plum with more red fruit in there.
It’s a decent red just for drinking ?.
Crows Fountain, Shiraz, Merlot, 2018, South Africa