Vilafonte in Paarl. The series M and series C are both very good contenders in my opinion. The M being more right bank/merlot heavy and the C more Cabernet in a Bordeaux sense.
Many good wines. But it’s very hard to find the best stuff here in the States.
I’d love to go visit and spend a couple of days tasting. I would concur that its likely hard to find some of the better wines from there here in the US.
The key is the importers. Take a look on Blue Crane Imports website and hopefully they work in your state. They do a great job bringing in really good stuff
Oh thanks for the tip about Blue Crane! I had not head of them. They carry Cape Point, which are making really great whites. I had heard about Kershaw but have not tried his wines yet,
Another option – though a bit trickier – is to buy directly from SA and have the wines shipped here. I have done that through both wineries and a retail store that I used to frequent. The trick is to have it delivered to your local airport and have you go there and get it through customs. A bit of a pain, but that option is about half cheaper than having it delivered directly to your door. It only makes sense for wines that are hard or impossible to find here, as the markup with shipping tends to remove the advantage of local pricing.
Whats the reason behind not starting wines from S. Africa with Pinotage?
Start there, and you might not get any farther. More than half the Pinotage I’ve tasted was undrinkable, and the rest I would never buy. Usually in discussions on Pinotage, someone will point out good ones they have tried. In general, sentiment is overwhelmingly negative.
A number of the Cabs I’ve had are good to excellent, but as yet not great. It is had to pick unknown wines off a shelf with names like Boekenhoutskloof, Mr Mvemve Raats, or Rust En Vrede. Even harder to tell your friends about them. Ernie Els is a well known guy, so probably easier.
The best bargains from South Africa are Chenin Blanc, and to a lesser extent Sauvignon Blanc.
I think Pinotage is an interesting grape, but it can vary enormously in quality – and it is a different taste profile. It would be like someone trying Petite Sirah to see if they like California wine (or even Zinfandel, which I generally don’t like). Or if you tried Jura wines to see if you liked French wines.
But by all means try Pinotage. It is an interesting and challenging grape, with a bit of an acquired taste. You may like it, or come across some of the good ones. But if you don’t like it, don’t conclude that you don’t like SA wines. And since your OP was on Cabs, I would definitely try some of the Cabs I and others have recommended above.
+1 on Vergelegen, V is not cheap but a fantastic wine. Also, Thelema, the Rabelais, is fantastic and $50 if you can find it. De Trafford 393 also good, De Toren Fusion V (last vintage was a little oaky, others haven’t been as bad).
I have had the syrahs and they are good but I still think I like Rhone better and some of the syrahs are expensive. Sadie for example.
I feel like there is a lot of value in the Bordeaux varietal wines, they can be difficult to locate though. Haven’t ordered from Cape Ardor, but they look to have a good portfolio.
So many great suggestions and informations thrown out here. I wont start with pinotage as people suggested. Maybe a cab or chenin blanc?
Agree, cab blend or chenin.
Klein Constantia Vin de Constance is a very good sweet wine.
Where are you located Ylee – if near Seattle, I am happy to open some older SA Cab blends…
That’s very nice of you unfortunately I’m in New York. Raincheck? ![[thumbs-up.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/f/f84c5acc11486ee4baba6dee6cf61dbd133abb18.gif "[thumbs-up.gif]"){kind=small}
Lol – sure! I grew up in NY – miss it. Though Seattle is pretty amazing too!
Raats Cabernet Franc is an underappreciated wine. Lives in the old world, classic style.
Sssssssssshhhhhhhhhhhhh 
For me personally, they are absolutely worth it and their QPR is FAR better.
Personally, I think paying for Napa/Washington cab and in many cases BDX is not worth it. Forking over $100+ boggles my mind when there’s such strong values elsewhere.
As others have mentioned, your dollar goes a long way. Paying $30 gets you a quality wine that’d go for $60-$100 in Napa. Pay $60 and you get a $100+ cab equivalent in Napa. I’ve had the best luck in the moderate price point, but I just don’t spend top dollar on cabernet in the first place.
I’ve had very good ones and also many that had a little too much extra brett or other nastiness in them to be pleasant. Even had a tiff with Neal Martin over this.
My go to Bdx Cab blends at good prices still come from Margaret River (AU) as it is hard to pay more than $40 for even the best bottles. While fruity when young they have nowhere the richness of CA wines as they generally have medium bodied palates even in their youth. That said, I should not bring them in to any discussion for fear that people might buy them!
As a retailer, few people seek or consider SA wines here in Napa. If you mention the name of well known winemaker being involved you might get some interest. We bought some Cabs, Pinotage and red blends that were great. They languished in the store for years, purchased occasionally by those who were familiar with the wine and/or we enjoyed the rest of them. A couple of the Cabs were purchased by regulars for blind tastings. Apparently they didn’t score well enough to entice the attendees to purchase any here at the store. There was a day when people asked if WA Cabs were contenders. They were outstanding QPRs for the most part and a few became hard to get. SA has wines that are contenders. They just aren’t receiving the accolades that are due or not distributed properly.
Spot on! I think for those that have tasted the wines, we know what is there. But, the problem always lies in attempting to sell the wines.
Tbh, your experience isn’t all that too far from mine and we are in quite different markets. I would imagine that it can be tougher than selling non-Napa wines for you, but the overall experience isn’t too different.
To end my ramble, for this forum, give the country a proper chance. I think people would be quite happy with the end result given similar price points.