Botanica 2011 Chenin Blanc

Why is it that some music is just better than the rest in a specific genre? I am currently listening to some blues, and the fact of the matter is that Muddy Waters, Clapton, and BB King are just a cut above the rest. And it doesn’t matter if another musician is technically just as good as the above mentioned Bluesmen, but the music they produce is for some reason just not a thing of legends.

I feel the same way about wine; some are just better than others, and that will always be the case. It is still very early to start labelling the Bonatica Chenin Blanc as a legendary wine, but the signs are there to suggest that this might just become one of those wines. The 2011 vintage shows tropical and citrus notes, with pineapple, peach and apricot to be found on the nose. The palate is full and complex with great oak integration (50% of the wine was matured in 400 liter barrels for 9 months). Hints of marzipan, citrus, and minerality on the palate will keep you sipping away all night long. A good acidity adds structure to the wine and will ensure that it ages for some time to come. It retails for about R140 per bottle. It is a massively good wine, and might just be a legend of Chenin Blanc in time to come.

17.5+

Alexander Fontein Chip Off The Old Block Sauvignon Blanc 2013

I don’t know if you have listened to the new U2 single recorded for the Madiba movie yet, but it is once again a great song! That’s the thing with U2; album after album they produce music of the highest quality. It might differ in style a bit from album to album, but you know it will be good.

That’s a bit how I feel about the higher end Sauvignon Blancs from Alexander Fontein. The Chip off the old Block Sauvignon Blanc 2013 is one of these, affirming their status as one of the best Sauvignon Blanc producers with this wine named in the FNB Top Ten Sauvignon Blancs of 2013. The nose is generous with gooseberries, granadilla, and ripe figs the prominent flavours. The fruit continues on the palate and is complimented by a soft minerality, good acidity which is beautifully balanced, and a very long finish. It is a great wine, and when you consider the price (it sells for about R70 per bottle) it gets even better! This is one of the Sauvignon Blancs to stock up on for those really hot days ahead in the summer.

Score: 17

Stellenrust 48 Barrel Fermented Chenin Blanc 2012

Why is it that when someone does something brilliant your first inclination is to laugh? John Mayer was talking in an interview about one of the John Mayer Trio songs a few years back, and he was commenting on their approach to covering a Hendrix song. They just starting jamming it, and suddenly Steve Jordan (the drummer) started playing this insane beat, and all John Mayer and Pino Palladino (the bassist) could do was laugh. Laugher is the awkward reaction to something so brilliant that we don’t know what else to do!

That was my reaction upon tasting the 48 Barrel Fermented Chenin Blanc 2012 by Stellenrust. This wine is fast becoming one of the iconic Chenin’s in South Africa, performing brilliantly year in and out, as portrayed in this specific vintage by winning the IWSC Chenin Trophy. On the nose there are under ripe pineapple, wet hay, wet wool, and hints of pear. On the palate the fruit shines through beautifully with ripe pear and soft pineapple flavours combining perfectly with touches of vanilla, giving it a fatty palate which I just love. The use of oak on this wine, together with a good acidity, ensures that ageing will not be a problem for this wine. It cost R115 per bottle, so go and buy this by the case for one bottle will not be enough! It is much like Hendrix in that if you start listening you want to put the album on repeat and just keep the magic flowing!

Score: 17.5

Alexander Fontein Sauvignon Blanc 2013

There is nothing better than a quaffer of a Sauvignon Blanc to get you through those hot summer days, and for the last couple of years that wine has been the Alexander Fontein Sauvignon Blanc. So I thought I’d give the new vintage (2013) a try. It retails for around R50 a bottle – depending on where you buy it – and to place the cherry on top of an already tasty cake, it won gold at the recent Veritas awards.

On the nose you find gooseberries, green figs, and just a hint of minerality. The palate is in the same vein with the gooseberries shining through, accompanied by notes of passion fruit and subtle asparagus. The acidity on this wine is very high, and normally I love that in a Sauvignon Blanc, but in this one it is so high that it bothered even me a bit. It just threw the balance of the wine completely off. I even struggled to finish my second glass, and that is a pity, because it ruins what otherwise is a good wine. So for the same price I would rather buy the more balanced Diemersdal Sauvignon Blanc to have my back this summer…

Score: 15

Bosman Family Vineyards 2012 Cinsaut

I love it when winemakers take themselves out of their comfort zones and try something new. But is change just for the sake of change a good thing? Take Roger Federer for example: his entire career he has played with 90-square-inch racket frame, but this year (the least successful in more than 10 years) he has changed racket to one with a 98-square-inch frame. It can be a coincidence that this year has gone so badly for him, or it may be that he is toying with something that need not be toyed with.

Bosman Family Vineyards has released a limited edition Cinsaut to their Wine Club members at R120 per bottle, the first Cinsaut released by the estate. I am a massive fan of Corlea’s wines, so I was very excited to taste what she had done with this new addition to the wine list. The wine is very berry-driven on the nose and palate. You are intoxicated by the raspberries, mulberries, and strawberries you find on both the nose and the palate. There are subtle vanilla flavours on the palate from the use of oak. The acidity on this wine is good and carries the wine nicely. Solid mid-palate and finish as well. There is quite a bit of oak on the palate, and possibly just a bit too much I feel. It just takes over that beautiful freshness brought to the palate by the acidity a little bit. That being said, it is still a really good wine, probably even better than just a “good” wine.

With all the Bosman wines being excellent wines, is this Cinsaut then something which is unnecessarily added to an already brilliant wine list? I think not. It adds something else to a great portfolio of wines. It brings a change that keeps them up to date with the current trend of beautiful Cinsuats being produced in South Africa. It keeps them in the game, which is hopefully what Federer’s new racket will do for him…

Score: 16     

Collaboration Cinsaut 2011

Has the King of Cab gone rogue? Yes, it is Cinsaut; no, it is not Swartland; and yes it is Louis Nel. Have I missed something??!! Does the saying not go “Jack of all trades, master of none”? We are so used to seeing Louis Nel’s name on a bottle of Cab, and of course seeing “Wine of Origin Swartland” on a bottle of Cinsaut that the entire combination is just confusing. I remember seeing a Hugh Laurie album after he finished playing the character “House” on the television and thinking that this can not end well for anyone. More or less the same thought came to mind when I saw this wine for the first time.

First things first, the wine is called “Collaboration” for a reason. It is the result of the combined efforts of Nel, Craig Cormack, and Bertus Basson. It is also the first vintage of this wine, although it could possibly be a once-off vintage as well. We’ll have to wait and see.

Initially the nose presents with loads of ripe raspberries and blueberries, but as it opens up those initial sweet berries are pushed into the background to make way for black cherries which lead the way to the palate. On the palate you still get hints of the ripe fruits, but red and black cherries are most prominent, together with the slightest hint of dried peaches. But the beauty of this wine lies in the acidity which gives it a massive freshness and cuts through the soft tannins to carry it immensely well. A couple of years in the bottle will do this wine good, but it isn’t made to age for a massively long time. It goes for R100 a bottle which really is not a lot, so get out there and enjoy it now.

Getting back to Hugh Laurie, I bought the album and was soon eating my words as he is a brilliant musician creating some of the best blues around. It is the same with the Collaboration Cinsaut. Maybe talented people are just that: talented, and will succeed at whatever they do; and hopefully this isn’t the last vintage of a promising wine that we will get to taste.

Score: 16.5  

Beau Joubert Old Vines Chenin Blanc 2012

An increasingly positive focus has been placed on Chenin Blanc in the last 5 years or so. And why not??!! Chenin is as local as biltong, rugby, and braai. It may however be the case that this beautiful grape has brought the name of South African wines in disrepute in the past, but a new generation of winemakers have been trying really hard (and some have been succeeding) in raising the quality-bar with regards to Chenins.

The Old Vine Chenin Blanc from Beau Joubert is one of the wines which is lifting the bar in terms of quality. It has beautiful notes of honeysuckle, pineapple, and green apples on the nose. On the palate there is a good balance between fruit and oak, with just a hint of spice adding to the complexity of the wine. It is not overly oaked, spending only 3 months in barrels of which only 30% was new oak. It has a good acidity giving it the potential to age well.

Score: 15.5