South Africa
South African Wine
The Cape has been making wine for over 350 years, but the wines worth arguing about now are mostly younger than 25 — the result of a generation of producers moving into cooler, higher and more coastal sites.
The regions
Stellenbosch is the heartland for Cabernet Sauvignon and Bordeaux blends. Hemel-en-Aarde, inland from Hermanus on the south coast, is the cool-climate address for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Swartland to the north works with old-vine Chenin Blanc and Rhône varieties — Syrah, Grenache, Cinsault — in a deliberately unpolished style. Elgin and Constantia supply Sauvignon Blanc and cool-site whites.
What to expect
Two things make the Cape worth attention. The first is Chenin Blanc: South Africa has more of it, and older vines of it, than the Loire, and it is the country's best value white by a distance. The second is that alcohol levels and oak use have come down sharply — modern Cape Pinot Noir and Syrah sit closer to Burgundy and the northern Rhône in weight than to Australia. Prices remain below the equivalent from France, which is the reason to look.
Serving
Cabernet and Bordeaux blends 16–18°C; Pinot Noir and Cinsault 14–16°C; Chenin Blanc and Chardonnay 10–12°C.
Filters
Glenelly Glass Collection Merlot 2020 (1x75cl)
Alheit Vineyards Nautical Dawn Stellenbosch Chenin Blanc 2020 (1x75cl)
VILLIERA WINES - Sauvignon Blanc 2021 (1x75cl)
Glenelly Lady May 2010 (1x75cl)
BEESLAAR Pinotage 2023 (1x75cl)
THORNE & DAUGHTERS Tin Soldier Skin Contact Semillon Gris 2024 (1x75cl)
KANONKOP ESTATE Kadette Pinotage 2024 (1x75cl)
Fairview Darling Chenin Blanc (SC) 2023 (1x75cl)
Mannenberg Shiraz 2024 (1x75cl)
Hamilton Russell Chardonnay 2022 (1x75cl)
Origin Wines, No Monkey Business Moskato Sparkling White 2016 (1x50cl)
BELLINGHAM FREDA (Chenin Blanc/Grenache Blanc/Sauvignon Blanc) 2022 (1x75cl)
HARTENBERG ESTATE Shiraz 2021 (1x75cl)
MEERLUST ESTATE - Merlot 2022 (1x75cl)
KANONKOP ESTATE Pinotage 2023 (1x75cl)
MEERLUST ESTATE - Rubicon (Cabernet/Merlot/Cabernet Franc) 2023 (1x75cl)
Mullineux Swartland Syrah 2022 (1x75cl)
BELLINGHAM - Bernard Series Old Vine Chenin Blanc 2024 (1x75cl)
VILLIERA WINES Merlot 2022 (1x75cl)
Vilafonte Series C 2022 (1x75cl)
THORNE & DAUGHTERS Snakes & Ladders Sauvignon Blanc 2020 (1x75cl)
Rupert & Rothschild Baroness Nadine 2024 (1x75cl)
Mullineux Swartland Old Vines White Blend 2022 (1x75cl)
KANONKOP ESTATE Kadette Cape Blend 2023 (1x75cl)
Alheit Vineyards Cartology Western Cape Chenin Blanc & Semillon 2021 (1x75cl)
Alheit Vineyards Fire by Night Swartland Chenin Blanc 2021 (1x75cl)
Alheit Vineyards Hemelrand Vine Garden Hemel & Aarde Ridge 2020 (1x75cl)
Alheit Vineyards Hemelrand Vine Garden Hemel & Aarde Ridge 2021 (1x75cl)
Boschendal Estate Appellation Series Elgin Chardonnay 2020 (1x75cl)
Boschendal Estate Appellation Series Elgin Pinot Noir 2017 (1x75cl)
Goats do Roam Goat Roti Syrah/Viognier South Africa 2013 (1x75cl)
Rall Cinsault Méthode Ancestrale Swartland 2020 (1x75cl)
Unjani Chenin Blanc 2022 (1x75cl)
Fairview Paarl Chardonnay (SC) 2019 (1x75cl)
Fairview Shiraz 2012 (1x75cl)
De Krans Cape Ruby Port (1x75cl)
Glenelly Glass Collection Unoaked Char 2021 (1x75cl)
Glenelly Glass Collection Cabernet Sauvignon 2020 (1x75cl)
Rupert & Rothschild Classique 2021 (1x75cl)
TWO OCEANS Cabernet Merlot 2024 (1x75cl)
Bonnievale Cabernet Sauvignon / Merlot 2021 (Screw Cap) (1x75cl)
Bonnievale The River Collection Chardonnay 2022 (Screw Cap) (1x75cl)
Journey's End Chardonnay Blue Label 2023 (Screw Cap) (1x75cl)
Journey's End Destination Chardonnay 2023 (1x75cl)
Journey's End Haystack Chardonnay 2024 (Screw Cap) (1x75cl)
Journey's End Pastors Blend 2020 (Screw Cap) (1x75cl)
Journey's End Pastors Blend 2022 (Screw Cap) (1x75cl)
Journey's End V1 Chardonnay 2022 (Screw Cap) (1x75cl)
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