SOME AWARDS carry more weight than others, and there’s something to be said for a wine that ticks the boxes for a number of top tasting panels. Over 1500 South African wines were highly rated around the world in 2021, and the following are the sparkling wines among them that received the most glowing reviews of the year – bottled-fermented
Read moreMmmm! The 2021 Champagne & Sparkling Wine World Championships held in England came and went, the CSWWC results were published and, for the second year in succession, the best South African producers could muster were silver medals presented for a couple of Cap Classiques from Graham Beck of Robertson and one from the Cederberg Private Cellar. No golds. This was
Read moreWINNER of the 2021 Amorim Cork Cap Classique Challenge: Kleine Zalze Vintage Brut 2015. South African sparkling wine made according to the traditional method made famous in Champagne, France. Stellenbosch cellar of Kobus Basson. Stellenbosch grapes: 60% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot Noir. Bottle-fermented, matured for five years prior to disgorgement. R238pb ex-cellar. This follows glowing reviews for the 2013 vintage, best
Read morePIETER FERREIRA is synonymous with top Cap Classique and Graham Beck, South African sparkling wine made in the traditional way for which the top brands of Reims, Épernay and elsewhere in the Champagne region of France are world-famous. Some refer to him as ‘Bubbles’ Ferreira, cellarmaster at the Graham Beck outfit in Robertson since Day 1, back in 1990. Many
Read moreTAKEN BY SURPRISE! Just recently added to the Pongrácz range of Cap Classique bottle-fermented sparkling wines, the non-vintage Blanc de Blancs (white from white) version made entirely from Chardonnay – no Pinot Noir or Pinot Meunier – has been quick to find favour among bubbly connoisseurs. The Vertex trophy winner as top-scoring wine overall and the only Chardonnay to win a
Read moreA GOOD YEAR it’s been for Domaine des Dieux up on the Hemel-en-Aarde Ridge, between Hermanus and Caledon. 2018 began with inclusion among the Top 10 bubblies in the SA Wine Classification, then came a gold medal at the Sparkling Wine World Championships in the UK, and now No. 1 at the Amorim Cap Classique Challenge with the 2012 vintage of
Read moreWE ARE NOT crazy about the name of this competition; a case of lost in translation! Effervescents du Monde reminds some of us about the sort of fizzy fruit salts you might take to sort out a bout of indigestion: ENO! But there are plenty of Champagne and other bubbly houses that participate in this ‘Sparkling World’: the 2017 edition attracted over
Read moreFAMILIAR AND not-so-familiar names among South Africa’s most successful sparkling wine producers in 2013… The following bubblies achieved outstanding reviews from the judges at blind-tastings around the world during the past 12 months: TOP SOUTH AFRICAN SPARKLING WINE RATINGS IN 2013 Ayama Blanc de Blanc 2008 – 4½ Stars in Classic Wine Magazine Bon Courage Jacques Bruére Brut Reserve 2008 – Double Gold
Read moreBOSCHENDAL bubbly winemaker Lizelle Gerber is on a roll. The 2008 vintage of the Grande Cuvée Brut didn’t perform as spectacularly as her 2007 but the 2009 is off to a great start with a gold medal at the recent Michelangelo Awards and now first place in the latest Amorim Tsogo Sun Méthode Cap Classique Challenge even before the wine is
Read moreSPARKLING DAY OUT: scene from the inaugural Casa Labia Bubbly Festival CAN’T WAIT for midday Saturday (16 March) and an afternoon of sipping sparklers on the lawn of Casa Labia in Muizenberg while nibbling various delights and gazing at the waves, surfers and boats on one of the quaint strips of False Bay coastline… From the time the first drinks
Read moreCAP CLASSIQUE sparkling wines highly recommended this year by one or more of the expert tasting panels around the world AND which cost less than R100 a bottle – with prices given ex-cellar, or approximate retail if the cellar is closed to the public. Fantastic for those festive season parties. BOSCHENDAL Le Grand Pavillon Brut Rosé NV – R99 DARLING CELLARS Blanc de
Read moreJC Le Roux Scintilla 2003 is theMCC Challenge winner for 2012 THE HOUSE OF KRONE was among the highlights of this year’s Méthode Cap Classique Challenge, sponsored by Amorim Cork and organised together with the Cap Classique Association which represents South Africa’s leading bubbly producers. The House of JC Le Roux won the competition with their 2003 Scintilla blend and scooped
Read moreIF YOU’RE planning a sparkling occasion with folk who appreciate the finer things in life and want to make sure they enjoy the bubbly you’re serving, well… According to some of the best wine critics locally and in the UK, the following vintage Cap Classiques will do very nicely thank you – and in most instances for less than a
Read moreGOOD VALUE sparkling wine from South Africa – Cap Classique for less than R95 per bottle as recommended by one or more of the top tasting panels around the world during the past 18 months. Prices given in SA rand – ex-cellar, or approximate retail in the case of wineries not open to the public. At R70pb – JC
Read moreVILLIERA cellarmaster Jeff Grier and sales boss Cathy Grier-Brewer are among the best ambassadors for the Stellenbosch wine route. Cape Wine Masters of many years standing and, together with fellow director and viticulturist Simon Grier, at the helm of a winery with a reputation for good Cap Classique sparklers and several other fine wines, the siblings were as welcoming as
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