Top cellars, well-priced pleasure

Published Sep 29, 2014

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Cape Town - Two new ranges from top-rated cellars offer well-priced pleasure.

From Hartenberg estate comes Alchemy, a quartet of screwcapped blends meant for youthful drinking, selling for between R50 and R70.

The 2014 white is a well-integrated meld of chenin, semillon and sauvignon blanc, while the reds consist of 2013 Rhone-style, Bordeaux-style and classic syrah and cab blend. Syrah, mourvedre and grenache feature in the first, while the latter blends merlot, malbec and cab franc in a pleasing combination.

 

From Anthonij Rupert Wines in Franschhoek, comes a range of seven Protea wines featuring eye-catching white prints on the glass bottles, in a series of floral designs.

The range is designed for early drinking, and whites and the rosé which I sampled, are 2014 vintages.

The unwooded chardonnay, light-bodied, with peach on the nose and palate is lively, as is the citrussy sauvignon blanc.

The chenin is light and tangy with shy fruit flavours, while the rosé presents more citrus than berry in a delicate aperitif. Also in the range are three 2013 reds: a cab, merlot and shiraz which sell for R60. The whites and rosé cost R50.

 

Feather in his cap

The results of the annual Amorim Cap Classique challenge were announced during a lunch recently with trophies going to seven producers, some predictable, others not.

One of the judges, Allan Mullins, was presented with the first Frans Malan Legacy Award, a well-deserved tribute for 30 years of promotion of and dedication to Cape Cap Classique. His love for this wine is reflected by the fact that his Cape Wine Master’s thesis researched sparkling wine in South Africa. Mullins responded to the honour by saying that being awarded for a passion felt odd, as he has never regarded his involvement as real work.

Weekend Argus

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