The beautiful Breede River Valley, South Africa.
If a group of wine enthusiasts from Planet Zog were to show up in any of our
local supermarkets, they could be forgiven for drawing the conclusion that the
only two white wines on our small world are Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.
Honestly, there seems to be little else on the shelves. How often do you see
wines made from grapes like Riesling, Chenin Blanc, Viognier or Gewrztraminer,
let alone all the other white wine grapes? Not very often, it has to be said.
Sad to say, there is an element of sameness in many
Sauvignons, especially those from the southern hemisphere. The grape probably
gets its name from the French word sauvage (“wild”) yet too many modern
Sauvignons have any wildness knocked out of them and sometimes they’re rather
flat and dull. I must confess that as I was uncorking this bottle of South
African Sauvignon Blanc I was thinking, “Here we go again.” But I was taken
completely by surprise when a lovely fresh and lively aroma wafted out of the
bottle.
“BunduStar” Sauvignon Blanc 2011 (white), South Africa (Wine
Connection, Bt. 499)
African legend has it that the “Bundu Star” was only bestowed
upon a true leader and champion warrior. This wine is a young and zesty warrior,
with its aromas of fresh oranges, melon and pineapple that almost leap out of
the glass. When the bottle has been open for a bit, you might also pick up
smells of grassy lime, with dry herbs somewhere in the background.
After the beguiling gentle aroma, the taste of this
light-gold wine really makes you sit up and take notice. It’s bright and lively,
loaded with fruit flavours. There’s a crisp dash of spritzy acidity that not
only holds the body together, but seems to add another dimension.
The wine seems to squeal, “Wow! Look at me!” It really is a
charmer and the most attractive Sauvignon Blanc I have come across in recent
months. It’s dry as they come, but there’s a tantalizing hint of raisiny
sweetness on the palate and a pleasing fruity dry finish too. This would make a
superb ap้ritif, because it’s young, bright and vivacious and at only 12.5%
alcohol just the thing to kick off a pleasant evening.
“BunduStar” Coffee Pinotage 2010 (red), South Africa (Wine
Connection, Bt. 650)
You may be less familiar with the Pinotage (pee-noh-TAHJ)
grape. It’s a red wine grape that has become South Africa’s signature variety.
First bred in 1925, it’s a cross between the difficult-to-grow Pinot Noir and
the more robust Cinsault grape (known as “Hermitage” in South Africa), hence the
derived name of Pinotage. It didn’t really become popular until the 1960’s but
it’s now also grown in several other countries including Brazil, Canada, Israel,
New Zealand and the United States. Nevertheless, its spiritual home remains
South Africa.
I should mention perhaps that Coffee-Pinotage wine is not
made by simply chucking a bucket of Starbucks into the wine barrel. The coffee
and chocolate aroma and flavour come partly from a combination of grape
ripeness, yeast type, and by “toasting” the oak staves of the barrels in which
the wine will be aged. This BunduStar wine has a delicate, almost ethereal aroma
of coffee - the kind of smell you get when you grind fresh coffee beans that
have been grown high in the mountains. There’s also the aroma of rich dark
fruits and berries, with subtle hints of chocolate and spicy vanilla.
To be honest, I was expecting the wine to deliver the kind of
taste that would bring down a horse, but this rich, ruby-coloured wine is
amazingly soft and sophisticated. It has loads of plummy fruit on the palate and
only the slightest hint of tannin. Actually, the tannin comes through a little
more on the after-taste giving a lovely dry finish to each mouthful. If you love
big, softy, fruity reds, do give this a try. It’s a real winner.
