Clear, pale yellow. Medium-intensity nose with gooseberry, grapefruit, elderflower and honey. The palate provides flavours of green apple, citrus and more gooseberry. Drink up.
Lively aromatic Sauvignon profile with generous green gooseberry and passion fruit flavours, grassy herbal and mineral notes with lively, appetizing acidity. Excellent value.
A beautifully made Cabernet. Dense purple-ruby in colour; on the nose, cedar, blackcurrant, vanilla oak with a leafy note; very elegant, claret-style; richly extracted, dark chocolate notes. Well-balanced and firmly structured.
Hemel-en-Aarde (Heaven on Earth) is a cool-climate enclave in the Western Cape region. The combination of cool influence and 9 months of oak aging has helped to produce an elegant Chard with a deep yellow colour and a bouquet of pineapple, spice, buttered popcorn, spice and peach compote. Full malolactic was done, so the palate is creamy, with added nuances of apple and citrus. Drink over the next 3 years. As a side note, while rating this wine, I received news that Tim Hamilton Russell, the man who pioneered the first plantings and winery (namesake) in Hemel-en-Aarde, had passed away. He was a true visionary and a staunch advocate of South Africa’s transformation from a quantity-based industry to quality. RIP.
Medium gold colour. Likeable aromas of melon, gooseberry, orange and flowers from the Chenin Blanc grapes. Medium-bodied, quite dry; melon flavours with lemon-lime overtones.
The raspberry candy, smoke, plum and spice are woven together on the nose and palate. There is medium length and a soft finish.
“Coffee” Pinotage is the latest vinification rage to have taken hold in South Africa, vis-à-vis the country’s signature red grape. The process, which involves placing the juice in stainless tanks, adding new wood staves and fermenting with select strains of yeast, produces dark-coloured wines with a distinct coffee aroma and less sauvage/harsh qualities. Other aromas include cassis, smoke, raspberry and cocoa. Drink now.