SHIRAZ from South Africa’s Hartenberg, Kleine Zalze and Cederberg cellars were among the top gold medallists at the international Syrah du Monde 2023. Contested by 20 countries, the competition takes place in Ampuis, a town in the Rhône region of France, where 80 of the 241 wines assessed during the panel tastings earned gold (34) and silver (46) medals. Australian
MANY WOULD wager that GREAT reviews for wines at under R100 a bottle are a thing of the past. Not so according to the judges assessing what was entered for various top panel tastings in 2022 including the Chenin Blanc Challenge, the Michelangelo International Wine Awards and the Top 10 Pinotage Competition – to name just the most recent shows.
THREE wines of South Africa placed among the Top 10 at Syrah du Monde 2022, held in the Northern Rhône Valley of France. This was on a par with Australia and just one fewer than France, however it was a Cape Shiraz – the 2019 vintage of Glen Carlou Syrah of Paarl – that the judges ranked No. 1. Pity that
BEFORE 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
THE GOLD medal winners at Syrah du Monde 2021 included the Cederberg Private Cellar of David Nieuwoudt and Nick van Huyssteen’s Saronsberg in Tulbagh, where Dewaldt Heyns is the cellarmaster. France was most impressive with five wines considered among the best on show, followed by Australia (3), Chile, Macedonia, South Africa, Portugal and Morocco. South Africa’s standout Shiraz was the
THERE WERE 307 wines from 27 countries on the tasting bench at Syrah du Monde 2020, the 14th edition of this international competition held in the Rhône Valley, France. After three days of judging dry and sweet wines, reds, rosés, bubblies and desserts made from Shiraz, 101 medals were awarded – 87 silvers and just 14 golds, of which two
HARTENBERG Estate’s charming underground cellar is not only the home of maturing Shiraz and then some, but also a gallery of 12 artworks by German coppersmith Karl Heinz Wilhelm depicting the various phases of cultivating and producing wine. On the surface, the Mackenzie family’s vineyards are planted to a number of different varieties, however this farm in the Bottelary
THEY SAY they produce the world’s best Shiraz. A bold claim by the Hartenberg producers in Bottelary, Stellenbosch. And at the 2019 edition of Syrah du Monde, France, they were certainly up there with some of the best, their ‘Stork’ flagship placing among the Top 4, and Bon Courage of Robertson also one of the Top 10 – their ‘Pepper
THE SORT of place you can fall in love with. Quaint. A wine farm in the traditional sense. Sprawling vineyards. Dirt roads. Classic design. Duck pond and gardens. Organic feel. Welcoming yet somewhat secluded: only open to the public on Fridays and Saturdays (otherwise by appointment), and only four wines, apart from the occasional once-off. Also selling under Kleinood’s Tamboerskloof
THE WINELANDS of Tulbagh are best known for Cap Classique, Pinotage and Shiraz. Or vice versa, you could say. And when it comes to Shiraz from this district in the Upper Breede River Valley, Saronsberg is second to none. From one of the Top 20 cellars in the country, both the Rhône-style blend Full Circle and the single-varietal Shiraz are among
ONE OF THE three most topical wines of the Breede River Valley during the first half of 2018 originates half in Robertson, half in Worcester… From the South African wine region that stretches southeast of Tulbagh and Ceres to Bonnievale, northwest of Swellendam, comes the sparkling wine judged best Cap Classique at the National Wine Challenge. Celine Brut NV, which
ONLY R94 a bottle, and in such good company! You might well have expected Bon Courage to lead with their flagship Inkará Shiraz, yet it’s with the relatively humble Pepper Tree version that they have excelled at Syrah du Monde in the Rhône Valley, France – the 2016 vintage from this Robertson wine estate selected among the Top 10 gold
SYRAH du Monde 2017 involved 372 entries from 26 countries. Judging took place over two days at the Ampuis Castle overlooking the Rhône River and surrounded by grapevines in the heart of the Côte-Rôtie, France – although 55 of the 100 panel members were from outside France. Once all was said and done, gold medals were awarded for 33 wines,
AFTER three days of judging 374 wines from 23 countries, the judges at Syrah du Monde 2016 in the northern Rhône Valley of France awarded 124 medals – 35 golds, including five to South African wine producers, and 89 silvers, 11 to cellars in the Cape. And of the gold medallists, two South African wines went on to be selected among
TALK ABOUT hitting it off with the French! The 2013 vintage of Groot Constantia Shiraz has been voted one of the Top 10 among the gold medallists at this year’s Syrah du Monde in the village of Ampuis, Northern Rhône Valley, France. SA GOLD MEDALLISTS AT SYRAH DU MONDE 2015 Cederberg CWG Auction Reserve Teen die Hoog Shiraz 2012 Groot Constantia Shiraz
THERE WERE raised eyebrows among the Francophiles when results of the eighth Syrah du Monde were announced in the northern Rhône, France. The judges reviewed 405 wines from 26 countries and at the end of three days there were four South Africans among the Top 10, versus two from France. And in their own back yard! Ooh la la!!
SYRAH du Monde is held in May every year at Château d’Ampuis in the northern Rhône, France. A taste-off involving some of the world’s best Shiraz, it’s a respected international competition which in 2013 involved 423 wines from 28 countries. Gold, silver and bronze medals are awarded, with much praise heaped on the Top 10. This year five South African
ANNOUNCED in quick succession, the results of the 2012 Decanter World Wine Awards and International Wine Challenge in London offered tips aplenty – albeit with few surprises in the gold medal stakes when it came to South Africa’s top-performing cellars. Among the attention grabbers on both stages were the 21 Gables Chenin Blanc 2010 from Spier, who have done so well
