Cheeky pick up during our 40 degree heat wave in Perth. I honestly don’t drink enough of SA wine in general and especially Chenin. A little spoiled with local talent.
Nose is gorgeous with grilled pineapple, poached pear, and dried apricots.
Palate has great fruit weight, lemongrass and pears with quince, slight buttery/waxy note from some lees time, marmalade and guava action going on. Quite tropical.
Excellent entry level offering. Drop me some recommendations for more SA Chenin!
by AustraliaWineDude
8 Comments
The whole world sleeps on South African wine. Much to their own detriment. Murray is a hell of a winemaker. Their Chardonnay is also top tier. And they are famous for it.
If you’re looking for more. Check out Stellenrust. Tertius has just won winemaker of the year and his approach to Chenin is different to everyone else’s. He also manages to make pinotage delicious.
I think many people avoid drinking South African wines because the vineyards reflect the violent colonial history and are often remnants of the brutal system of apartheid. One of my distro’s has a list of non-settler owned SA wines and it’s like 4 compared to 23 settler owned.
Not a chenin blanc rec but Rustenberg Chardonnay is delicious!
Brookdale chenin has an amazing QPR, one of my favourites chenins, old and new world
The QPR for most SA Chenin Blancs are unreal. I don’t think I’ve had a bad one yet and I’ve paid anywhere from 12-60CAD. The best one I’ve had yet was Ken Forrester The FMC. That was the 60 dollar bottle but I couldn’t believe how good it was. Their Old Vine Reserve is ridiculously good for 17 dollars as well. I’m always scanning for Chenin when I’m stocking up on wine!
Mullineux! Alheit!
I really enjoy SA wines but I don’t find myself reaching for them often because I find that there is too little consistency in style in SA wines which makes exploring new wines difficult.
Like you, I also love Chenin, and in Loire I have a very good idea of what to expect when I try a new bottle. In SA even narrowing it down to Stellenbosh Chenin I don’t know the stylistic ripeness, lees treatment, stainless or oak, RS level, density, etc. To me this is like knowing I’m buying a bottle of white wine but that’s all I know.
I think it is very exciting that even given a long history of wine making in SA, the region is still experimenting with a wide range of styles without being encumbered by tradition or rules. This is particularly unique considering most New World regions with varietal reputations have by now put themselves into stylistic boxes. But the notable lack of stylistic consistency makes it difficult for the consumer to shop.
I mostly drink Vouvray/Loire but I just picked up a couple of bottles of Ken Forrester’s The FMC. Haven’t opened yet but I’m stoked!