Tag Archives: Opstal

Who says there’s nothing to beat Rosé from the Med? SA Rosé Rocks!

THE FELLAS are just too nice, is all. The Rosé Rocks convenors – media man Eamon McLoughlin and Cape Wine Master Allan Mullins – are fans of the category, eager to raise the status of wines that, apart from the ‘pink’ bottle-fermented bubblies, often tend to be dismissed by snooty critics. Of the 147 entries in the 2020 competition, the

Read more

Good quaffing at under R100 a bottle – Ultra Value winners announced

CELLARS up and down the length of the Breede River Valley had a good year in the 2017 edition of South Africa’s Ultra Value Wine Challenge convened by BuyBetterWine.com – not that they had it all their own way. The top contestants were as follows: MOST SUCCESSFUL ENTRANTS Alvi’s Drift Private Cellar – Worcester Arabella Wines – Ashton De Wet Cellar – Worcester DGB  –

Read more

Breedekloof’s flagship Chenins promise much but it’s early days still

SPEAKING for the Breedekloof Makers, Attie Louw of Opstal Estate in the Slanghoek ward north-west of Rawsonville and Worcester reports that since 2015 the band of winemakers have been upping their efforts in focusing on the crafting of small-volume, boutique Chenin Blanc. They have committed to emphasising the [top] quality that specially selected, diverse sites in the Breede River Valley

Read more

Opstal one of the game-changers in the Breedekloof – well worth a visit

IT’S A LOVELY drive through the countryside to the vineyards of Slanghoek Valley. Visitors typically head out along the N1 highway, taking the R101 to Rawsonville just east of the Du Toitskloof Pass/Huguenot Tunnel (or via Worcester) before turning north along ‘The Route Less Travelled’ than most others in the Cape winelands. It’s alongside the Slanghoek Road in the Breedekloof that the

Read more

Very best value SA white blends at under R80pb in 2012

WHITE BLENDS from South Africa that have been highly recommended this year by one or more of the expert tasting panels around the world AND which cost less than R80 a bottle – with prices given ex-cellar, or approximate retail if the winery is closed to the public: ALTYDGEDACHT The Ollo 2011 – R75 ALVI’S DRIFT Chardonnay Viognier 2011 – R34 BON

Read more