Tag Archives: Bonnievale

Glen Carlou ranks among Top 10 at Chardonnay du Monde, Burgundy

SOUTH AFRICA achieved three gold medals at the 2024 edition of Chardonnay du Monde in Burgundy, France, with one of the winning wines – the 2023 vintage of Glen Carlou’s wooded version – ranked among the Top 10. WO Paarl, R190pb ex-cellar! Some 200 wine experts from around the world were involved in the judging of 579 entries comprising various

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A rather rare, very unusual wine… Lozärn Carménère

THE BORDEAUX grape variety Carménère is extremely scarce in South Africa – less than 10ha of vines in total, of which there is less than a couple of hectares at the Doornbosch farm outside Bonnievale in the Robertson district, home of the Smuts family and their Lozärn range of wines. The first block of their Carménère was planted less than

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Sauvignon Blanc can develop beautifully with age: Top 10 Awards

GIVEN THAT over half the number of entries in the 2022 FNB Sauvignon Blanc SA Top 10 Competition were made in 2022, i.e. 86 out of 161 wines from 102 producers, it’s perhaps no surprise that this vintage dominated at the awards presentation: six in the Top 10, with 13 in the Top 20. This was despite what some have described

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Cap Classique and Chardonnay adventures to explore at ‘new’ Weltevrede

WHEN THE going gets tough, the tough get going! Nearly two years of COVID-19 restrictions had a significant impact on tourism around South Africa and the world in general, let alone that in the Breede River Vally and country towns such as Bonnievale. However, with things beginning to return to some form of normality the Jonker family at Weltevrede had

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Robertson’s Wacky Weekend discontinued for the good of the valley

THE ANNUAL Robertson Wine Valley’s winter wine festival has been cancelled… Having been enjoyed by revellers for the past 17 years, the Wacky Wine Weekend will not take place again! “It is a bitter-sweet decision, but it was time,” said Robertson Wine Route manager Beatrix Galloway. Apparently the festival was giving the wines of Robertson a bad name [busloads of

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Exceeding expectations… Bonnievale Wines delivering on their promise

  BONNIEVALE WINES have upped their game in recent years and the title of Discovery of the Show at the 2019 Old Mutual Trophy Wine Show for Best Value Gold Medallist is a sign that their intent goes deeper than face value. Yet “unpretentious” is stated on the label, and R97 a bottle from the cellar is “welcoming and soothing”

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Painted Wolf ‘top dog’ at Trophy Wine Show, Bonnievale Cab Best Value

A MULDERBOSCH single-vineyard Chenin and a reserve Cabernet from Stellenview were the top-scoring white and red wines at the 2019 Old Mutual Trophy Wine Show. However, the trophy for most successful producer overall went to Painted Wolf Wines of Paarl and that for ‘Discovery of the Show’ to Bonnievale Wines for a Cab of gold medal standard that sells for

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For wine lovers targeting reigning champions on Robertson wine routes

WHETHER you’re a festival-goer, wine-router or heading to a wine shop in search of the best on offer from South Africa’s Robertson Wine Valley, this will prove useful: a checklist of every red, white, sparkling and dessert wine vintage from the district that’s got the experts on the top panels smiling big time in 2017 and 2018 to date. Ashton, Bonnievale,

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Which wines to aim for in Robertson? Bonnievale? Ashton? McGregor?

ROBERTSON’S ‘Wine on the River’ as summer gets underway, the ‘Robertson Slow’ at winter’s end, the ‘Wacky Wine Weekend’ mid-year and the ‘Hands-On Harvest’ time in February/March attract thousands to the Breede River Valley and the Robertson district in particular. The festivals are fun times for the local communities from Rooiberg west of the hub to Ashton in the east and Bonnievale as

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