This evening we were treated to a flight of premium wines from South Africa. Our speaker, Lance Berelowitz, provided us with a wealth of information about the growth in South African wineries and in particular about the wines we were enjoying this evening.

Our reception wine was the Mulderbosch Steen Op Hout. Lance let us know that Steen is the Afrikaan's word for the Chenin Blanc grape. "Op Hout" means "on wood". This wine was the first Chenin Blanc to be oaked in South Africa. The wine was light bodied, had a smooth mouthfeel, and some nice acidity. There was some oak and waxiness on the nose.

Our first wine in the evening was the Hamilton Russell Vineyards, Walker Bay Pinot Noir 2001. We were informed by Lance that Hamilton Russell Vineyards are a leader in Pinot Noir in South Africa. They won the best Pinot Noir in South Africa in 2005. This wine was light red in appearance. It had a big bouquet, with coffee, tar, cherries, iodine and slate. The wine had a medium length, with savory, earthy, coffee, and cherry flavours. Our second wine was the Simonsig Frans Malan Reserve Cape Blend 2003. Simonsig means "in sight of Simonsburg Mountain". This is a family owned winery, much like the majority of the wineries in South Africa. The Frans Malan is a "Cape Blend", which means that one of the varietals that make the blend, must be Pinotage, which is the varietal cross born in South Africa. It is the cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsault. This particular wine is a blend of Pinotage, Cabernet Sauvignon and a lesser amount of Merlot. The wine spent 16 months in French oak. This wine had aromas of banana, oak, dark fruit, chocolate, and prunes. The banana aroma is a characteristic of the Pinotage grape. The wine has medium tannins, some spiciness, and flavours of cherries and chocolate. Lance noted that to him this wine is still evolving. Hold onto this wine for the future. Our next wine was the Rosendal 2001. The Rosendal is a Cabernet Sauvignon with Cab Franc and Merlot blend (primarily Merlot). It is a Right Bank Bordeaux blend. This wine was was deep red in the glass. The aroma was a bit closed, but there was some perfuminess, some dustiness, green pepper and oak. There was a subdued fruit flavour. it had a medium length and a bit astringent. Lance noted that the fruit in this wine was starting to fade. So if you have this wine in your cellar, it might be a good idea to drink it soon. This wine went well with the bruchetta.

We now moved on to a few Cabernet Sauvignons. The Saxenburg Private Collection Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 was our next wine in the flight. We were able to have a tasting with the wine maker, Nico van der Merwe, in Nov 2005, and were pleased to try this vintage of the Cab. This wine was aged in small barriques for one year. It had long tears in the glass, indicating a high alcohol level. There were aromas of classic cedar and cassis. As well there was some green pepper and dustiness. Upon tasting, there were rich fruits, and big tannins. This wine has lots of aging potential. For reference, you can read about our 2005 tasting with Nico and the 1999 vintage of the Cab here. The Ruste en Vrede (pronounced Freade) Cabernet Sauvignon was our next wine. Lance indicated that Ruste en Vrede meant "Rest and Peace" or "Peace and Quiet". This wine had a lovely deep red colour in the glass. The aroma was very fruity, with tones of wet leather and oak. It had a sweet entry upon tasting followed through with long length and an acidic finish. There was also spiciness and dark fruit flavours. This wine was quite liked by many in attendance.

Our last grouping was of Shiraz / Syrah. The first of these wines was the Radford Dale Shiraz 2003. This wine is produced by a South African together with an Australian wine maker. The style of this wine, it was noted, is more international. It was deep red with big legs. On the nose there was dark fruit, mint and some sweetness, similar to what you would get with an Australian shiraz. The wine had a sweet entry, but also had some firm tannins and ended a bit astringent. There were coffee and mint flavours to this wine. We then tasted the Glen Carlou Syrah 2004. Last year we enjoyed the 2003 vintage, and looked forward to the 2004 vintage, since it was winner of "Wine of the Year" in South Africa from the Platter Guide. This wine did not disappoint. It had a wonderful purple hue in the glass. The boquet was varied with coffee, chocolate, savory and biscuity. The wine had good length and acidity. There were sweet, savory coffee and dark fruit flavours. Some spiciness came out when the wine was enjoyed with food. Lance noted that this wine has much more potential as it ages in the bottle. Our final red wine of the evening was the Boekenhoutskloof Estate Syrah 2002. This wine, although listed as coming from Franschboek had the grapes sources from a single vineyard in Wellington, which is north of Paarl. This wine was fermented with native yeasts and spent 27 months in old oak barrels to age. It had an extracted reddish purple colour in the glass. The nose was fruity, perfumy and minty. Quite a combination. It had a nice round mouthfeel. The oak was not overpowering. There was some spiciness, dark fruit, chocolate and coffee flavours. This is another wine that Lance felt had aging potential.


Our last wine of the night was a dessert wine. The Klein Constantia Noble Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc 1996 comes from the Klein Constantia region of South Africa. This is part of the first vineyard in South Africa. This wine is not produced yearly. It depends on the grapes being affected by the botrytis cinerea fungus. This only occurs in years when it is cool and damp during the harvest. Our 1996 vintage was a brilliant orangey hue in the glass. It had wonderful apricot, honey and botrytis (honeysuckle) aromas. Being a sauvignon blanc, the wine had good acidity to keep the wine refreshing and not cloyingly sweet. It had flavours of oak, honey, apricot and marmalade. It was truly an enjoyable way to end this premium South Africa tasting. We look forward to many more.

Tasting Selection
Favourite Red: Boekenhoutskloof Estate Syrah 2002
Second Favorite: Glen Carlou Syrah 2004

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