ODDLY ENOUGH, not all of the cellars in Wellington are members of the local wine route. Not officially, that is. For example, Mischa Estate to the north and Napier Vineyards on the Bainskloof Road to the east are not part of the ‘Go Wellington‘ movement. Nor is Roodekrantz north-west of the town, though perhaps they’re considered more Swartland than Wellington.
Read moreCOGNAC, ARMAGNAC, CAPE BRANDY… An acquired taste, some would argue. Thrice as strong as most red and white wines. Aqua vitae, the water of life! Distilled wine, in basic terms, but in its finest form a wonderful spirit savoured in sips. And those bottles… Medicine for the soul! Originating in the vineyards, as they do, the brandies of South Africa
Read moreBEFORE considering the majority vote… Upon conclusion of the 2021 Ultra Value Wine Challenge, the guys and gals at BuyBetterWine.com announced their SA red and white wines of the year to be the 2018 vintage of Stellenbosch Hills Merlot, at the cellar-door price of R92 per bottle, and the 2021 Goudini Chenin Blanc at R60pb from uniWines in Rawsonville. Also
Read moreDURBANVILLE and Wellington cellars emerged as the superstars of South Africa’s 2021 Old Mutual Trophy Wine Show, with Diemersfontein’s Thokozani Cabernet Franc 2019 and De Grendel Op die Berg Chardonnay 2020 the top-scoring red and white respectively, Diemersdal Estate the most successful producer overall. Given the price of R115pb for the Thokozani Cab Franc at the winery in Wellington, Diemersfontein
Read morePINOTAGE is the red that they are best known for, although there’s also a Malbec in the Diemersfontein Carpe Diem Reserve range of “world-class, innovative wines” from David Sonnenberg’s estate in Wellington. Indeed, the Carpe Diem Pinotage has a distinguished track record, ranking among South Africa’s Top 100 wines over the past decade, with Carpe Diem Malbec also included in the
Read moreTHE 2020 National Wine Challenge of South Africa – a.k.a. Robin von Holdt’s Top 100 Wines – attracted “well over 500” entries, down on previous years but not bad given the lockdown(s) due to Covid-19. The coronavirus pandemic resulted in the judges all being locally based, with Greg Sherwood MW unable to fly out from the UK. Ginette de Fleuriot
Read moreTHERE ARE some quaint names among South Africa’s 2019 Rosé Rocks competition winners: “The Quintessential Couple” (Bellingham), “Pyjama Bush” (Darling Cellars), “Frankly My Dear” (Esona) and “The Strawberry” (Mooiplaas), for example. Hopefully they’ll be back again next year, and then some; good, long track records are not something that pink, salmon and onion-skin-colour wines are renowned for in South
Read moreWHERE TO EAT along the Wellington Wine Route, on a farm, among the vines? And which wines to seek out, what the panels of experts have recommended recently? For lunch, head to Diemersfontein, where their restaurant was revamped and re-opened earlier this year as Aan Tafel (pictured above), where the signature dishes include boerewors and burgers, bunny chow, curries
Read moreTHE 2017 ABSA Top 10 Pinotage competition culminated with the presentation of trophies to winning wine producers at Cavalli estate outside Somerset West. The event commemorated 21 years of the Pinotage Association’s competition that contributes to setting benchmarks as regards South Africa’s most successful ‘indigenous’ variety. There were 147 entries and the laureates were applauded as fine ambassadors of Wine
Read more“PINOTAGE has the heart of a lion and the tongue of a woman; after drinking a certain quantity you can talk forever and fight like the devil!” – Anonymous. More memorable wine quotes here. The Top 10 Pinotage in terms of South African wines with the best track records over the past 10 years (2006 – 2015) are the following: Beyerskloof
Read moreThe Three Pines vineyard at Stark-Condé, Jonkershoek Valley STARK-CONDÉ WINES in the Jonkershoek Valley of Stellenbosch was the Most Successful Producer at the 2013 Old Mutual Trophy Wine Show, followed by the cellars of KWV, Delaire Graff, Rustenberg, Cederberg, Rijk’s, Jordan, Diemersfontein, Eikendal, Hillcrest and Simonsig. And just as interesting as the latest reviews regarding some of South Africa’s top quality
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