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South African Horizons
©
Michael Vaughan 2001
National Post Weekly Wine & Spirits
Columnist
Saturday,
September 15, 2001
This
article was to focus on the upcoming world tour by 33 South African
winemakers who were to make their debut in Toronto next Thursday.
Unfortunately, the scheduled kickoff in NYC could not take place and it
has now been rescheduled for
the end of October.
Better
news for Aussi wine fans. The sold out tasting taking place this Wednesday
at Roy Thompson Hall is still on meaning that the one thousand attendees
will not be disappointed. While Australia certainly produces great wine,
South Africa is still somewhat of an undiscovered gem. Their wines tend to
be more food friendly without the sweet jaminess and excessive oak that is
found in some of the more popular Aussi efforts.
Historically,
South Africa has been a major supplier of fortified and white wines.
Inexpensive and user friendly, they were a huge component of LCBO imports,
at least up until 1980 when the embargo was placed on imports.
By
the time they got back into the Canadian wine market and had to start from
scratch, it had changed significantly. First of all, Port and Sherry
consumption had collapsed meaning that the window to claw back sales was
tiny. Second, as most of South African plantings were white grapes (they
still constitute 68% of
105,500 hectares national vineyards) they were ill-prepared to
tackle the surging red wine market. Third, and most devastating, was the
all the new low-cost competition – everywhere from Chile to Australia.
Moreover,
South African wines seem to be somewhat more idiosyncratic and perhaps
less vintage consistent than what you find on the crowded Australian
shelves. And while they still
represent a fraction of Aussi sales, they are on the move - up from 15%
last year alone to a projected 20% this year. Add to this, the current
surge in red grape plantings and you have some good reasons to be
optimistic.
Rather
than focus on the previewed South African wines which were to be presented
at the Fair, I did a blind comparative tasting of all the wines on the
General List. Well almost. Much to my chagrin and despite going to several
stores, a few key items were out of stock (even though LCBO computers said
they were there) meaning that only 30 wines were tasted.
There’s
no question that frequent LCBO out-of-stock situations does not help the
South African cause. Kicking off the first of a series of blind tastings
was the Hippo
Creek 2000 Sauvignon Blanc a very decent buy at only $8.00.
Don’t expect huge, herbaceous notes at this price point. What you’ve
got are well balanced, dry, tangy, fresh melon-lemon flavours that show
good accessibility. A real crowd pleaser.
For
those looking for something more adventuresome, the delicious, fresh green
pear flavoured Cathedral
Cellars 2000 Sauvignon Blanc (previewed for the upcoming Fair)
had one of my highest scores. It can be ordered from Maxxium at
approximately $14.95. Call
416-535-7899. www.kwv-international.com
Moving
on to Chardonnay, there is still nothing to compare to KWV
2000 Chardonnay at
the unbeatable $8.95. Bright and gently toasty, this was judged to be the
best value white at the 2001 Toronto Wine & Cheese Show.
Reds
are hot, especially the two blends of 2000 Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot - Two
Oceans $8.95 and Robert’s
Rock $8.45. Both are rather commercial crowd-pleasing quaffers,
the latter having a tad more sweetness with some tropical notes. http://www.twooceanswines.co.za
The
indigenous Pinotage which is one of my favourite grapes comes in a great
variety of styles. That’s great but it also has its pitfalls - buy the
wrong one you may be turned off forever! Of the five tasted, two scored
fairly well. The red pepper purée driven Zonnenbloem
1998 Pinotage ($11.95) is very pleasant and accessible.
Slightly better was the gently cedary, spicy, plum flavoured Libertas
1998 Pinotage – a definite best buy at only $7.95.
Ironically,
it was the stand-by Pinotage blend KWV 1999 Roodeberg at $11.95 which
outperformed both of the above in terms of body and length. A definite
recommendation here.
Cabernet
Sauvignon seems to be what’s currently happening in South Africa and
clearly the best of five tasted was the newly listed (and hard to find) Kleine
Draken 1999 Cabernet Sauvignon - an excellent buy at only
$14.85. It’s fairly rich and well structured with chocolaty, ripe plum
flavours that linger on the palate. Keep in mind that it is also Kosher.
Meanwhile for Merlot fans, the well balanced, dried cherry flavoured KWV
1998 Merlot came out on top
at $11.95.
The
biggest surprise and highest scoring were two Shiraz. This grape has taken
off in South Africa – it was the number one variety planted for the past
two years accounting for 30% of all reds.
The
delicious Bellingham
2000 Shiraz is faintly sweetish, earthy and somewhat cedary
with tangy red pepper and licorice flavours. A terrific buy at $12.95.
Slightly more complex and smoky is the mature Fleur
du Cap 1997 Shiraz at $14.25. Both are excellent food friendly
wines which are bound make many fans. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised
to see Shiraz become South Africa’s hottest red.
Copyright Food & Beverage Testing Institute of Canada
2004
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Contact Michael Vaughan at
mbv@total.net