Winelands of South Africa
Posted by Eleanor Field on 12 Feb 2020
From the rugged, mountainous coastline to the vibrant, fertile river plains inland, South Africa is one of the world’s most exciting wine producing countries. Offering an impressive range of grapes and styles, from the well-established to the newer, more experimental producer, Chenin Blanc is the hero grape here, but you’ll also find enticing expressions of Shiraz, Chardonnay, and of course Pinotage, among others.
FRAM Wines
Ahoy there! If you’re in search of deliciously exciting wines with a unique story (and who isn’t?!) then you’re in luck: Thinus Krüger might just be your captain. After twelve years of producing wines for Boschendal Winery, in 2013 Krüger decided to create his own with the ethos that wine is ‘arcanum boni tenoris animae’ or rather that wine is the secret to a good mood.
Three hours north of Cape Town in a single block vineyard, Krüger tended to Cinsault before expanding to further vineyards and grape varieties including Chenin Blanc, Pinotage, Chardonnay and Shiraz.
Situated beside the epically beautiful Citrusdal Mountain, FRAM’s Chenin Blanc and Pinotage vines grow in deep, sandy, red soils overlooking Lambertsbay on one side and the Olifantsriver and Bulshoek dam on the other. The racy acidity typical of Chenin Blanc in the area is combined with a ripeness that adds immense complexity.
FRAM’s Chardonnay hails from the Robertson appellation, with the vines growing in a calcareous soil and this calcium adding to the elegance of the wine. Krüger says that it is this fruit and mineral combination that really excites him about this particular wine, and that’s why he chooses to keep it unoaked.
A selection of vineyards around the Swartland are ideal for Shiraz and Krüger combines barrels from the granite sands of the Paardeberg with those from the koffieklip (coffee stone) soils west of Malmesbury to offer wines focusing on freshness and lively fruit, ranging from red cherry to the black savouriness of liquorice.
Boschkloof Wines
Established in 1996 by veteran winemaker Jacques Borman, whose history includes working as Production Director for Rupert and Rothschild, this family run estate produces site-specific wines with a focus on terroir, showcasing the unique elements of the soil in which the vines are grown, with a hands-off approach to vinification. Named after the natural ravine, or ‘kloof,’ on site, the farm is surrounded by rolling hills and picturesque mountains. The original vineyards consisted predominantly of Cape Riesling, but Borman removed these to plant better-suited cultivars such as Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Chardonnay. Today Boschkloof is most renowned for its Syrah, especially the single vineyard bottling called ‘Epilogue,’ which was the first red wine of South Africa to score 98 points from an internationally acclaimed critic.
Not only are the wines bold expressions of the grapes from which they are produced, but the quirky names and labels also make them perfect gifts.
Ken Forrester Wines
One of the oldest wine farms in the Cape, the land was originally acquired in 1689. It was in 1993 that Ken and Teresa Forrester purchased the estate, producing their first vintage in 1994. With some of the vines planted as far back as 1970, the wines were at the forefront of the Chenin Blanc revival and he estate celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2019.
Nicknamed ‘Mr Chenin’, Ken Forrester’s hero wine is produced from this formerly misunderstood grape.
MAN Family Wines
José Conde, owner/winemaker of the award-winning Stark-Condé Wines in Stellenbosch, and brothers Tyrrel and Philip Myburgh started making wine together in 2001, deriving the name ‘MAN’ from the first initial of each of their respective wife’s name. Desiring a quality wine that offered excellent value and intriguing packaging, they began production ‘in a tractor shed’ and following great success now export to 25 countries.
MAN’s hero grapes are Chenin Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon, but they are also well known for Shiraz and Pinotage.
Thelema Wines
Set amongst the lush and breathtakingly beautiful landscape of Stellenbosch, and surrounded by verdant hills crowned with gossamer clouds against a backdrop of hazy blue, it would be hard to picture a more idyllic vineyard than Thelema.
Establishing the estate in 1983, Gyles Webb abandoned his accountancy career to train in winemaking, and by the mid-1990s, Thelema’s wines sold out within a month of release, making it one of the most sought-after wine estates in South Africa. Spurred on by success, the Webb family purchased a farm in the cool Elgin region in 2002, offering ideal grape growing conditions and consequently broadening the styles of wine within their portfolio.
Cabernet Sauvignon is Thelema’s hero, with the estate’s philosophy remaining true to Gyles’s original vision and centred around the principle he calls ‘benign neglect’: minimal fining and filtration, and no use of commercial yeasts in the red wines.