Cape Town - At Easter, with chocolate eggs and bunnies and slabs and boxes of confectionery everywhere, temptation is hard to resist.
This led to thoughts of the mocha-flavoured wines about which reams have been written since the first chocolate/coffee pinotage, created by Bertus Fourie, hit the headlines several years back.
Being among the press group at Diemersfontein that day, I can remember the varying reactions to this original maverick, which ranged from “a fun wine” to “can’t be taken seriously…” to “how did he get those flavours into the barrel?”
Well, 12 years later not only pinotage, but merlot, tinta barocca and other grapes have been afforded the same heavily toasted oak treatment to produce easy-drinking reds where mocha flavours dominate to a greater or lesser extent.
And many will accompany weekend potjies or braais – although perhaps not if starring seafood. Game birds, ostrich, duck with black cherries are likely to make the best partners.
As if to prove its continued popularity, two new labels hit the market recently: Weltevrede’s Philip Jonker launched the Cherrychoc merlot 2012 (R55) with a video on YouTube. It packs quite a punch at 14.5 percent alcohol level, but slips down easily, evoking images of cherry liqueur-filled chocolates.
From The Funky Wine Company, the 2011 Cuppavino Mocha Merlot is another aromatic and alcoholic wine which, judging by its certification seal number, was made at Clos Malverne. Not tasted, but according to information just received, De Krans has released a 2011 Tinta Mocha, made from tinta barocca, for about R66. Upmarket cellars have also climbed on to the choc-coffee bandwagon, with Anthonij Rupert’s 2011 merlot in the Protea range described as a friendly choc-mint quaffer .
Back to Bertus Fourie, who, after putting Diemersfontein on the wine map with the espresso-flavoured people’s pinotage, refined the techniques at KWV with Café Culture and then developed his Barista label, which he produces in large quantities, selling in screwcapped bottles from most supermarkets, and from Robertson Winery and Val de Vie in Wellington for about R58.
Recently he enthused over the quality of the 2013 pinotage harvest sourced from those two regions, saying the juice was less intense than last year but the fruit just glorious. He is also consultant winemaker for Val du Charron in Wellington, where new vintages will soon be released. While pinotage purists may not relish Fourie’s creations, plenty of consumers do, as was evident when coffee pinotage took first, second and third places in a popularity poll at RMB WineX in Johannesburg. Barista was one of them and Bertus had a hand in both of the others.
* Make sure your wine club takes part in the 2013 annual Blaauwklippen Blending competition.
This is the 30th anniversary of this popular contest, which – while providing plenty of fun – can bring your club fame and glory, while finalists get to win great prizes and attend an exclusive lunch at the Stellenbosch estate where the winner’s name will be announced.
Entrants will receive four barrel-matured wines – merlot 2012, malbec 2011, cab franc 2011 and shiraz 2010 – all of which must be used in the blend, with shiraz limited to 20 percent.
Competitors need to register by April 19. The club’s blend recipes need to reach Blaauwklippen by June 21.
All entries will be made up, and a judging panel will choose four finalists who will head to the estate early in September to find out whose recipe will be bottled under the Blaauwklippen Barouche label.
The registration fee of R180 covers receipt of the four blending wines and a measuring cylinder.
For more information, e-mail Natalie at [email protected] or call her on 021 880 8646.
* Results of the inaugural RE:CM 10 Year Old Wine Awards were announced at a dinner at the Greenhouse restaurant in Constantia recently.
Chairman Christian Eedes, sommelier Jorg Pfützner and wine educator Nkulu Mkhwanazi judged 73 local wines, vintage 2003, assessing their age-worthiness, to find wines that had not just mellowed but had developed tertiary character and acquired extra complexity after a decade in the bottle.
The three 2003 winners were Boekenhoutskloof syrah, Remhoogte estate wine and Rudera syrah, and chef Peter Tempelhoff created a course to pair with each: springbok tataki, beetroot risotto and lamb loin and braised shank respectively. Competition sponsor RE:CM marked the 10th anniversary of their asset management firm with this interesting quest to find winners from an exceptional vintage year. - Weekend Argus