59 WINES from 49 producers were reviewed for Winemag’s 2023 Report on Cape Bordeaux Red Blends, i.e. combinations of two or more of the varieties Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Malbec. Delaire Graff’s Botmaskop of Stellenbosch came top in the tasting, although it was scored the same as Allée Bleue of Franschhoek and Constantia Glen – the
Read moreR44 555 was the second-highest price paid to date for a rare bottle of the GS Cabernet 1966 – the highest being R91 040 in 2021 – and/but no other South African wine came close in terms of demand for what was on offer at the Strauss & Co auction in Cape Town on 26 March. That said, a five-litre bottle of
Read moreKANONKOP, De Toren, Vilafonté, Meerlust, Raats, Alto… These were the most-wanted wines in terms of South African producers at Strauss & Co’s Bordeaux-themed auction conducted in Johannesburg mid-2022. Kanonkop Paul Sauer 2015 fetched nearly R4000 a bottle. SA ‘first growth’; good vintage. However, the really big-ticket items were from France, Italy and the USA: Pétrus, Screaming Eagle, Harlan, Haut Brion,
Read moreAWKWARD! Who was more embarrassed: the good folk at Spier Wine Farm in Stellenbosch, the South African National Wine Show Association who organise the Veritas Awards, or the sponsors of the competition? Whereas De Grendel Wine Estate in Panorama/Durbanville would be forgiven if they felt robbed! The 2021 prize-giving took place in early November and the Duimpie Bayly Veritas Vertex
Read moreOF THE SOUTH African wines auctioned by Strauss & Co on 25 July 2021, Cordoba Crescendo 2003 attracted most interest from the online bidders. Although, selling for R2150 a bottle (R12 898 for 6×750ml bottles), it fetched less than what many might have expected of such a ‘cult’ label, a Cab Franc-driven blend from the Helderberg in Stellenbosch – this vintage
Read moreHOW ABOUT THAT! Two of South Africa’s top-scoring wines in the 2021 Prescient Cape Bordeaux Red Blend Report come from cellars in Stellenbosch Kloof, the third from a winery a bit further west of the town centre, where Stellenbosch meets Kuils River. 96 points for DeMorgenzon Maestro Red 2017: “Extraordinary. Profound.” 95 points for Overgaauw Tria Corda 2017 and Zevenwacht
Read moreCELEBRATING 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
Read moreCOULDN’T help it! At first glance, what first ‘jumped out’ of Winemag’s 2019 Cape Bordeaux Red Blend Report was that one of the Top 5 is from a cellar in Worcester, and selling for a lot less than most of the top-rated submissions from Stellenbosch and Somerset West! Turns out that the Leipzig Grand Master 2017 is made from grapes
Read moreIN THE 2018 report on South African Bordeaux-Style Red Blends by Winemag.co.za, six wines were rated outstanding (93 to 94 out of 100) and 27 were considered excellent (90 to 92). In total, 81 wines from 64 producers were reviewed by the panel comprising Winemag’s Christian Eedes (chair), Roland Peens and James Pietersen (both of Cape Town merchant Wine Cellar).
Read moreGIULIO BERTRAND’S spread in Somerset West is a fine place to visit. The restaurant 95 at Morgenster serves superb, authentic fare with an Italian slant (e.g. great lamb ravioli!) to complement the good wines, a number of which are made from Italian varieties. It’s with French cultivars, however, that Morgenster has had most success on the world stage: the Bordeaux-style
Read moreAT THE 2017 edition of Concours Mondial du Sauvignon in Bordeaux, France, 861 wines from 22 countries were scored by 65 judges from 17 countries over two days, with trophies awarded for eight wines and medals for 242 – 87 gold and 155 silver. Two of South Africa’s 45 Sauvignon Blanc entries – one from Diemersdal and another from Steenberg – won
Read moreWORD IS GETTING OUT! It was just a few months back that he impressed with a 5 Star rating in Platter’s SA Wine Guide for his 2007 Bordeaux-style blend, Wine of Origin Stellenbosch. Then he released a tiny quantity of the first top-end Pinot Noir under his own label, a 2011 WO Polkadraai Hills. And now we can look forward
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