Hinterhofkabuff means backyard shack in Afrikaans. This wine was inspired by an interviewer who described Pieter Walser's office as that exact phrase - a shack! Not wanting to draw attention to this faux pas Pieter named a wine after it ... The wine itself is made from Riesling and has an incredibly pretty floral nose with a more savoury stone fruit and spiced citrus palate
From grapes sourced in the Kenton Valley, this is just one exampe of what these guys can do with Chardonnay.
A quirky, partial skin contact white from the volcanic soils of Tenerife! Made from local grape varieties, harvested from a mix-planted vineyard (from which the wine takes the name Taganan); some are yet to be identified!
A touch more tightly woven than the '13 at present, but pure class. Great purity of fruit, apple, pear and sweet citrus. There’s a hint of honeysuckle and ripe segments of tangerine The racy acidity lifts the palate beautifully – lightening the many textures and enhancing the freshness of the wine. 65% Chenin Blanc, 13% Chardonnay, 17% Sauvignon Blanc and 5% Viognier
Made by Aussie Erin Pooley this is Hunter Valley Semillon from California that made the Swig team swoon with delight! Lots of green pear, geranium and mandarin on the nose with citrus and an amazingly unctuous body on the palate. Scrummy!
We absolutely adore this wine, which is a good substitute for white burgundy when you want something a bit different an frankly more intriguing for the price. Fabulous concentrated fruit; apples, quince, excellent texture and length. Yum. Oh yes, 2014 was a cracking vintage for Loire Chenin Blanc.
Decanter "Top Five Dry Loire Whites of 2015" - 94 points “A really fascinating nose of lime leaf, polished citrus fruit and white peach that has great elegance infused with greengage and wild flowers. There is plenty of alcohol here but with impressive, pithy substance which is set up very well for the cellar. Drink 2017-2025” High Recommended, 94 points. Reviewed by Jim Budd, Chris Kissack and Ben Llewelyn.
Wonderful Gavi made by a top winemaker!
Often I find that all of the wine I buy is to lay down for 10-20 years which is fabulous but what to drink now? Well this wine is definitely the answer to your problem - even if it is a very nice problem to have! Bright and fruity, Red Claw are Australian producer Yabby Lake's 'drink now' range of delicious wines made entirely from their grapes and with their signature care and attention. Citrus and stone fruit steal the show with the subtlest of oak spice adding complexity. And if that isn't enough to convince you, Victoria Moore marked the 2014 out as a 'benchmark for contemporary Aussie chard' with the 2015 being no exception!
From a family with a history in wine dating back to the fourteenth century this is a vineyard that makes traditional and delicious wine. Meticulous attention is made to all aspects of the winemaking with vineyards handled as organically as possible, grapes hand harvested and 12 to 18 months in oak barrels. The oak is light on the nose and palate allowing for the purity of the fruit and the minerality to shine through.
If the La Rupture (their crazy Sauvignon Blanc) has gone a bit punk, this is writhing on its back and air-guitaring to the Ramones with an oversized safety pin through its nose. This Marsanne is left on its skins for several weeks during and after ferment, giving it a warm gold/bronze hue. The nose is heady, gloriously oxidative with dried peaches, apricots, cloves and cinnamon. Smells a bit like proper bread pudding. The palate is extraordinary – there’s real grip there and beautiful texture – it’s all like proper, waxy honeycomb with the richness of sweetness but totally dry. I think this would beat a fair few Palo Cortado when paired with good Pata Negra. What an amazing and interesting wine. 14% Drink now - 2025
Extraordinary scents of coconut, mango, pineapple, melon, and toasted hazelnuts. This is gorgeous wine with lots of texture.
Another delicious vintage from one of Adi's most reverred wines.
A sumptuous Chardonnay from Langhe with some soft toast, honeydew melon and a fine, textured palate.
From the ever-brilliant husband-wife team of Brendon and Kirstyn Keys at BK Wines, we bring you a new Chardonnay offering. BK do not own any of their own vineyard sites, but instead they rent acreage from local landowners. The name of this wine is inspired by the vineyard proprietor himself, because he only has one... well, we're sure you can figure it out yourselves!
Savagnin, more commonly found in the Jura has made its way in to the BK cellar and here's the product- a slightly skin contact, slightly funky and totally individual white that puts smiles on all our faces.
Ripe and fine- fresh cashews and a hint of toast. Nicely rounded with great length, and a peach tinged finish.
"There is no doubt that Duncan Savage is one of the best white wine winemakers in South Africa." Greg Sherwood, MW
Fantastic vintage of Adi Badenhorst's Family White
SWiG note: The nose has an attractive smokey flint character, with just a hint of tomato leaf and fresh apricot. The palate is precise and pure, finding the right balance of weight and richness. There's bright, zippy minerality which gives the fruit energy and texture. The finish is fragrant and lingering - think of lying in a meadow of freshly cut hay on a summer's afternoon. This is a masterclass in finesse and lightness of touch. Drink over the next 5-8 years.
I made a remarkable discovery today. It seems that Chenin Blanc isn't just made from ancient dryfarmed bush vines on the decomposed granite soils of the Swartland. No. Apparently it's also made in a place called the 'Loire' in France. Damn silly name, that. Can't see it catching on. Leave it to the experts on the African continent, I say. Okay, there may be a light dusting of irony in the above, but it illustrates a point: there's so much excitement about the Chenins being produced by South Africa's 'new wave' (a wave we continue to ride quite happily, thanks), that people seem to have forgotten all about the Loire and its wonderful heritage with Chenin Blanc - aka Pineau de la Loire. We felt it was high time we showed the region some love and went straight for the motherlode: a special cuvée, made only in the best vintages, from one of Anjou's most respected biodynamic producers - a wine which all three judges in the most recent Decanter panel blind tasting judged as the only 'Outstanding' wine in the Loire Dry Chenin Blanc category.
A complex wine with elegant structure, depth and finesse. Ripe aromas of pineapple, lemon and peach blend with a herbaceous flavour and a wonderful minerality. A great wine with a long, catchy finals and handsome body.
The Uberblanc Rieslings from Tasmania-based winemaker Nick Glaetzer are named after the 'uber' vintage that he spent in Germany, learning how to get the best from this great variety under the instruction of the best teachers there are. The Goldpunkt cuvee is a selection of grapes from a couple of parcels, and the style is inspired by the Grosses Gewachs of the Mosel-Saar-Ruwer
SWiG Note: Honeysuckle, lemon pith, and clotted cream on the nose, with just a hint of struck match. There's orange flower water there too. This is definitely a "shove your nose in there a bunch of times because it'll be different with every sniff" sort of wine. The palate is a great combination of power and subtle nuance. There are some big flavours there - ripe tropical fruit notes, creamy touches, textured oak, but also lighter floral edges and gentle spice as well. This is quite awesome right now - a stonking mouth full of wine - but with age it will mellow a bit. Delicious now, but worth sticking down if you've got the patience. 13.5% Drink now - 2020
An early goal for this relatively new producer
Winemakers note: Named after Sybrand’s granddaughter, Isliedh best reflects the uniqueness of our Noordhoek Estate: Here a special block of severely windswept vines yield tiny crops of concentrated and well structured Sauvignon Blanc. Isliedh is created in a tight mineral style for enjoyment with great food which will reward for many years to come. The wine displays a complex array of limes, minerality, tropical fruit and spice which will be accompanied by secondary flavours over time. Cape Point Vineyards Isliedh can be best enjoyed over the next 5 years and possibly even 10.
These are stunners - If you love white Burgundy you must try these They have the character and structure of some of the hottest producers in Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet and Chassagne-Montrachet. These are no 'poor man's Montrachet', which is the tag sometimes given to the overachieving producers of the less famous regions (appelations such as Rully, Santenay and Montagny); these are the real deal.
These are stunners - if you love white Burgundy you must try the wines from Thibert.
Antonio Galloni: ‘It is quite conceivable that within a few years the Sandhi Chardonnays and Pinots could become reference point, benchmark wines for Santa Barbara, and California, for that matter’
I don't think we can really shout loudly enough about how much we love this wine. One of the most exciting Australian Chardonnays we have ever tasted.
Another stunning vintage of this stereotype-defying Chardonnay from BK Wines
This is stunning Chardonnay. " Acts a lot like a wine from Ramonet (the great Burgundy producer)" 93pts, Stephen Tanzer. Minuscule quantities.
The devil (or at least the incredible flavour) really is in the detail with this wine. Hand picking, minimal intervention, natural fermentation in oak barrels and naturation on the lees keep the grapefruit and floral citrus nose while giving the wine a bit more to shout about on the beautifully rounded palate. With 96 points from James Halliday this is a go to wine for purity, minerality and most importantly quality!
Quite the most extraordanarily beautiful Italian white wine. The finish goes on for days. Majestic, elegant and unique. The grapes are transported from the steep terraced slopes on cables to get to the winery. This is amazing wine.
Crunchy green apple, salted caramel and a whiff of smoke. Almonds and blossom and a saline core. Delicate, but incredibly nuanced and fresh.
Everything you could want from a Meursault. Incredibly enjoyable now, but has the potential for another 7-10 years of ageing. Textbook nose of buttery vanillins, wet stone after rain, stoned fruits and dried grapefruit. There is exhilarating tension on the palate - traverses the tightrope between roundness and vibrant energy with elegance and poise. Textured, almost fleshy, with grip and pristine salinity on the finish. Opens up to become full and mellow - a touch more restrained. Exciting without overblown showiness.
Incredibly special old vine Chenin Blanc from the wonder that is Alex Starey. "This is very fine." Neal Martin.
Understated oak, expressive fruit, and a combo of delicious, supple generosity (even in youth) and tight mineral structure. Subtle succulent intensity, long finish If you have ever wondered whether the Cape would ever make Grand Cru Chardonnay, the answer is in this bottle
The 2014 Quartz Chenin Blanc has a more focused bouquet compared to the 2014 Granite Chenin Blanc: pressed white flowers mixed with orange blossom, lime and chalk. The palate is fresh on the entry, a different texture to the Granite - stonier, chalkier in texture with freshly shaved ginger and walnut developing towards the finish. It might take a longer time to reach its peak compared to the 2014 Granite, but it is certainly an exceptionally fine Chenin Blanc. 93/100. Neal Martin, The Wine Advocate
Winemaker Taras Ochota explains the name, saying it is taken from 'the back of my 1960s bass amp I used in my misspent youth playing in punk bands. It was such a simple less-is-more image which represents going back to basics, no fancy stuff, just old-school winemaking from an insane Basket Range vineyard.
We had the good fortune to try a bottle of this last week. It is absolutely gorgeous. Sometimes with white Burgundy at this price you wonder if it's worth it. Drinking this is like falling into a bed of the finest goose down pillows. You feel enveloped in luxury.