what
This. And many German and Austrian non-Riesling wines. And Spanish wines. And Australian wines. And Etna wines. And
Not to mention Ontario Pinot Noir ….
Raats Original Chenin Blanc is a very nice and versatile wine at ~$15. A 2022 bottle complemented a recent meal of chicken fajitas, salsa and guacamole very well,
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This actually is arguably one of the best $15 and under wine bottles on the planet. Good call, Jim!
I should also note, the Ratts Cab Franc bottling is one of the best new world Cab Francs as well. If you like Loire CF, you will like this. And for $20, the Red Jasper bottling is a crazy value and often just crazy good. It is a Meritage, but predominantly Cabernet Franc.
@Julian_Marshall have you tried the Raats CF?
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I just picked up 6 of the 2020, but have yet to try one. Any suggestions about the best age to enjoy them?
Until I read this thread, I have never even heard of Raats! Yet another wine to look out for!
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Oh, rats!
Mullineux’s Kloof Street Old Vine is another very good value Chenin. Should be under $20.
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I had the opportunity to attend the Cape Cru Festival in Amsterdam 10 days ago, where around forty of the best South African winemakers come every two years to present their wines.
It was a great moment for the curious taster, as it’s always very instructive to be able to taste wines from many estates in one place, to identify the different “schools” present and their members, and to compare the qualities. The event was open to the public, so there were quite a few people, but it wasn’t overcrowded.
Note-taking was quite minimal; present from the beginning (11 am) until the end (5 pm), I couldn’t taste everything I had planned. Some Masterclasses were scheduled for a very friendly price (10€). I missed the vertical tastings of Palladius and Treinspoor by Eben Sadie…disappointed, but I managed to secure a spot for the vertical tasting of Cartology by Chris Alheit.
Overall, these South African winemakers have a very warm and approachable personnalities, they are generous with explanations and it is very pleasant.
Some comments on the wineries:
Sadie Family Wines Eben Sadie only presented 2 wines…gosh, today is not the day I’ll taste Voetpad or Mev Kirsten. He brought all his wines two years ago, and it was a bit too chaotic for his liking… So, Palladius and Columella 2021, both superbly made but need time: Columella needs to settle and harmonize, and 10 years seem to be a minimum. Palladius is more approachable and enjoyable for its texture, but on the aromatic level, it seems to be at only 15% of its potential. These two wines are nonetheless very grand.
Chris Alheit Chris Alheit came with his entire 2022 range. Superb quality white wines, a real signature in this color. 2022 seems quite rich here, with moderate acidities and rich material. This notably changes the profile of Here After and Hemelrand: more width, richness, and less acid/straight than previous vintages. Special mention to Huilkraans 2022, an impressively dense and long Chenin Blanc. The Monument Semillon also impresses, with a magnificent balance between acidity and fat, and an aromatic profile of apricot, almond, and white flowers. Very high-quality Semillons in South Africa…
Storm A producer of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from the Hermanus area. During my trip and since my return, I’ve tasted a few estates from this region, and Storm appeared to me as the most convincing, and rather effortlessly so. No need to look for the wines, they sing loudly, as expressive as they are charming. If the 2023 Ridge Chardonnay worries a bit on the nose with oxidative notes, the palate is superb, multi-layered, lively, and titillating. No complaints about the 3 Pinot Noirs 2022 from the 3 different appellations of the area. All three are superb, charming, complex, deep, and undeniably racy, though I still struggle to find a South African specificity: easy to mistake for Côte de Nuits in a blind tasting. Well above the majority of village-level wines from Marsannay to Nuits.
Lismore
First encounter with this estate, enthusiastically endorsed by Neal Martin on Vinous. Samantha O’Keefe is a Californian who settled in a remote area where no one had previously planted vines. The locals laughed…today, they created an appellation for her, so distinguished are her wines. 100% white, focusing on Chenin, Chardonnay, but also Roussanne, Sauvignon, and Viognier. Like Alheit, from the first sip, you feel like you’re in the Champions League. Intensity and precision of flavors and aromas, consistency of structure from attack to finish, length of the juice… it’s top-notch! The barrel-fermented Sauvignon didn’t quite appeal to me, but everything else is truly noteworthy, especially the Age of Grace Viognier, the Cuvée Blanc with 90% Roussanne, a superb expression of this grape, and the Chardonnay Réserve with the depth of a Grand Cru from Burgundy.
Mullineux
Mainly the 2021 range: the entry-level wines are beautiful, easy to read and understand, but do not exactly match the depth of some neighbors. In the high-end range, the Schist Syrah is presented and greatly convinces with its profound, nuanced, and precious character. “My” wine of the day, however, will be their 2021 straw wine based on Chenin, which is simply magnificent…a wow effect.
Duncan Savage
Based in Cape Town, Duncan vinifies grapes from different parts of the Western Cape. He vinifies Syrah, Cinsault, Grenache, Touriga Nacional, Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Chenin Blanc. The wines offered here are of masterful finesse. Imagine walking through the Southern Rhône and all the wines are fresh, with heightened fruity and floral notes and alcohol levels at 13.5%. The 2021 Grenache Thief in the Night (supplemented with a bit of Cinsault and Syrah) was incredible. It is a notch lower in 2022 but remains a top choice for enthusiasts, offering pleasure comparable to a beautiful Domaine des Tours, without volatility and more moderate alcohol. The Syrah/Touriga blend is splendid and seems to have 20 years ahead to improve.
Thorne & Daughters
An estate producing mainly white wines with a great reputation. We start with a “little thirst-quenching Pinot.” Well, although this Pinot Noir is not very deep or complex, it is very noble in its aromatic profile and quite irresistible. All the whites are of a very high level, like at Lismore, but perhaps with a touch less sophistication. Complexity, balance, and depth are always present, whether in the Chenins, white or grey Semillons, or the blends. The Rocking Horse cuvée is probably the most convincing, but Paper Kite and Cats Cradle are not far behind.
Damascene
Jean Smit mainly produces Syrah and Chenin Blanc, but also some Semillon, Cabernet Franc, and Cabernet Sauvignon. This estate offers a “Burgundian” experience since there are two Chenins from very different terroirs (Stellenbosch and Swartland) and four Syrahs (Stellenbosch, Swartland, Cederberg, and Ceres Plateau). The Chenins are the most Loire-style I have encountered from this country. They don’t have that honey/tobacco/slightly peaty side often found in these southern Chenins. The wood is quite present, somewhat like Guiberteau, but the juice can respond to it. The Syrahs are superb, at the level of Côte Rôtie or very fine Saint Joseph, with very interesting differences depending on the location. All are of very high level and refined, my preference goes to the one from Cederberg, very straight, with great freshness, depth, nobility, and a sanguine finish of the highest order. Superb Semillon as well! The Cabernets are interesting and well-made, but they are not the wines to prioritize from this winemaker, in my opinion.
Ali Badenhorst
A winemaker as charismatic as approachable (and let’s remember that insults can bring people closer: as soon as he called me a “Bordeaux f*^/$er,” we started laughing), one of the pioneers of Swartland. I was not absolutely charmed by the whites, as I found they lack life and acidity as a backbone. However, a very fine array of fresh, tangy, fine reds, vinified with great precision. Cinsault, Grenache, and the oldest Tinta Barocca plot in the country, all of this was delicious and refined.
David & Nadia
I was able to taste the 4 Chenin Blancs from specific sites. All 4 are of a very high level, with a clear preference for Rondevlei. But I must also say here that since my first encounter with an absolutely grandiose 2017 Hoe Steen, my experiences here have been rather average, and the prices are among the steepest in the country…
Among other producers met, many motivated young winemakers: noteworthy is the very fine red talent of Lourens Family, in a style close to Savage, with a Grenache/Cinsault/Syrah blend that is a rare treat and an ideal 100% Grenache. The young Paul Angus also stands out with carefully crafted and distinctive thirst-quenching wines, particularly a very surprising extended Pinotage. Beautiful altitude whites at Patatsfontein, fresh and sleek. An impressive lineup of high-end wines at Van Loggerenberg with his Breton (Cabernet Franc) and Geronimo (Cinsault). Finally, the Isliedh cuvée from Cape Point, 70% Sauvignon and 30% Semillon, is very convincing: volume, a beautiful gastronomic balance, little varietal character, length: an all-around very complete white wine.
There was also a French winemaker, Philippe Colin from Chassagne Montrachet, who has owned a domain near Franschhoek for several years, Topiary. He cultivates Chardonnay, but also Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon! It’s not every day that a Burgundian of pure blood goes to the other side of the world to cultivate Cabernet Sauvignon! Always interesting to discuss the differences in culture (both human and viticultural) between Burgundy and Franschhoek. He confided that he has not yet found luminous terroirs for Pinot Noir in this country. His Innocence cuvée, a Syrah/Cabernet Sauvignon blend, was interesting, but the style of the wines is quite similar to that of the great estates of Stellenbosch and Franschhoek, with more extraction and more structured wines than those infused, contrary to what is happening in Swartland.
Vertical Tasting of Cartology by Chris Alheit
Cartology is a cuvée of about 94% Chenin and 6% Semillon. It comes from 8 different vineyards across the Cape province, with the ambition of providing a “global” image of the vintage in the province. Only bush vines, non-irrigated, at least 35 years old.
- Alheit Vineyards, Cartology 2021 Beautiful rich and complex nose, apricot, blond tobacco, a musky note, well-ripened yellow fruits. The acidity is hinted at on the nose. A rather sharp attack on the palate, beautiful minerality that develops in the mid-palate, it’s fine, elongated, and it crackles/tickles/electrifies the taste buds. 92
- Alheit Vineyards, Cartology 2020 Tight, frowning nose, yet you sense a broader, sunnier profile than the 2021 behind it. The palate confirms this, broader, more settled, less crackling. Gourmand finale with honeyed and slightly peaty notes. 91
- Alheit Vineyards, Cartology 2019 Lots of ripe yellow fruits on the nose, a bit of tobacco. Pastry notes, orange peel. A kind of synthesis of 2020 and 2021, elongated yet rich. 91+
- Alheit Vineyards, Cartology 2018 Butter notes (not a fan) and a more melted ensemble. Orange peel, clementine peel, a bit of candied lemon, a somewhat soft ensemble if you nitpick, it lacks a bit of nerve in the finish. 90
- Alheit Vineyards, Cartology 2017 Melted, between honeyed notes and very ripe lemon, a bit of tobacco. Less rich than 2018 and 2019. A bit of beeswax…very fresh ensemble, with a very classy honey/lemon finish. 92+
- Alheit Vineyards, Cartology 2016 Slight oxidative notes, lots of lemon, lemon curd, it’s melted, harmonious and charming. The acidity, rather underlying, carries the wine throughout the tasting. The aromas become a bit less precise and form a whole rather than a sum of parts. My favorite. 93
Overall, it’s a very beautiful cuvée showing consistency. I found the vintage effect very nuanced and rather limited, playing a bit on texture and balance, but not really on aromatics.
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We were very pleasantly surprised when, while dining there at De Juwelier, the sommelier recommended the Lismore Viognier. Completely enjoyable and nuanced. I immediately ordered 6 bottles online.
This leads into my main question; where to find these intriguing wines? In the USA, distribution seems spotty. Can anyone recommend specific retailers?
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Fantastic sharing there. I’m going to dig around and see what I can find in the USA.
I’m not sure from a cachet standpoint, but it feels like SA has more upside than probably anywhere when you combine price, quality, room to grow, and style.
I would say Santa Cruz Mountains too except I’m not sure there is room there to expand that much, or at least without high cost.
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Southern Hemisphere Wine in Huntington Beach is a good resource.
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I’ll happily give a plug for my friend Peter Andrews in the Bay Area. He runs Culture Wine Company and imports some really cool stuff from South Africa. He also sells direct to close to every state, so you can hopefully get your hands on some of these
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Recently had the remhoogte honeybunch chenin and thought it was nice–good texture and layering. I’ve previously had the starke-conde cab sauv and thought it was phenomenal value with classic styling.
Have heard great things about SA chard but haven’t appreciably found much.
Thank you for the terrific reviews, great post.
But you forgot to apply the secret handshake filter - we really don’t want the news getting out. 
This wine is crazy-good for $20. Possibly my #1 QPR white.
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Can’t remember how I found it, but Natte Valleij Axle Chenin is a really nicely made wine. Consistently solid across the few years I’ve tried it.
It looks like you thumb typed Napa Valley
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It’s being poured by the glass at a new wine bar by my house. Definitely a great QPR
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Nice!!
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