A SIGN OF THE TIMES! You can no longer find a really good Cap Classique bubbly at under R100 a bottle and it won’t be long before the same applies to various other categories – white and red, dry and sweet. In the 2020 edition of Platter’s South African Wine Guide published this month, around 350 wines were in the running for a 5 Star rating – 125 got the nod, some 230 were Highly Recommended –  and of these only two (2) were selling for under R100pb at the time of writing: a dry white from Oak Valley and a Bon Courage dessert wine.

At R92pb, the 2019 Bon Courage White Muscadel is the latest fortified sweet from a Robertson estate with a great track record in this sector of the market. And at R85pb from Elgin, Oak Valley’s 2019 Fountain of Youth Sauvignon Blanc – this from a wine farm better known for good Chardonnay, but hey, times change! Those familiar with the Oak Valley tasting room and restaurant might well regard a “flinty” Sauvignon to be more appropriate at the poolside.