CELEBRATING her 335th birthday in 2020, the Grande Dame of Cape Town’s winelands ranks as one South Africa’s Top 30 cellars. Chardonnay and dessert-wine fans might argue that Groot Constantia is among the country’s top five or six estates, at least, although it can be challenging to pinpoint exactly which category the team is best at or the property most suited
BIG INVESTMENT, considered approach, dogged determination… These don’t always guarantee success in the wine business but the owner and manager of Quoin Rock Estate, Ukrainian businessman Vitaly Gaiduk and his son Denis, who lives in South Africa, have set the stage, while of the performers, the Quoin Rock and Namysto collections have been praised around the globe. Most applauded has
THE STAND OUT WINES in South Africa’s 2019 Sommeliers Selection feature a Glen Carlou Chardonnay and the Grand Plaisir red blend from the slopes of the Simonsberg in Paarl. Both are described as Elegant & Classy among the Listed Wines hailed in various categories that include Economically Savvy, Fresh & Crunchy, Voluptuous & Rich, Luscious & Aromatic. The competition is
TALK ABOUT extreme winemaking! There’s no cellar closer to the sea than the Fryer’s Cove outfit at the waterfront of Doringbaai, over 300km from Cape Town on South Africa’s West Coast. And their small blocks of vineyard nearby in the tiny ward of Bamboes Bay – north of Lambert’s Bay, south of Vredendal and Strandfontein – are so close to the
Gold medal at the Global Rosé Masters, Listed in the Sommeliers Selection, double gold medal at Rosé Rocks… No other South African rosé has been as well received in 2018 as the 2017 vintage from Franschhoek winery Holden Manz. The wine is ever-so-slightly wooded, and made in a style that the producers refer to as Provençal – in part, no doubt,
WE SEE where they’re going with their Winelist, but The Sommeliers Selection takes a bit of getting used to – adjusting to the calibration, you could say. Of over 300 entries, 72 made the cut, all accorded the same recognition, but with no scores given, no stars or medals. Although, among the Listed competition winners there is reference to four
IT’S A UNIQUE COMPETITION insofar as all of the judges are members of the South African Sommelier Association – although it’s owned and run by Darielle Robertson of DnA Events Management in Cape Town. It’s also unusual, insofar as the judging culminates in drawing up a Cape Winelist, with listings presented according to Wine by the Glass, Fresh & Crunchy, Elegant
THE SECOND annual Sommeliers Selection was announced with little fanfare – the names of the ‘listed wines’ only posted some days after the private awards function and various questions remaining unanswered at the time of writing. Nevertheless, the competition is interesting as regards the unique nature of the event and the calibre of entries. The judges are all members of the South
