Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
South Africa's renowned viticulturalist Rosa Kruger selected some of Western Cape's finest Chardonnay plots for this wine – its maiden vintage – where the purity of the orchard fruit is not masked by the toasty new oak which has softened with time. It is creamy and round, with just enough acidity to balance.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The maiden 2013 Capensis Chardonnay has some serious star players behind it: proprietors Barbara Banke (Jackson Family Estate) and Antony Beck (Graham Beck Wines), vineyard manager Rosa Kruger and winemaker Graham Weerts. The philosophy behind it is straightforward (in principal): source fruit from exceptional vineyard sites, which this year comes from the Fijnbosch Vineyard in Stellenbosch, Kaaimansgat in Overberg and E. Bruwer in Robertson. Around 55% of the crop is matured in new French barrels for 12 months. It has an attractive nose with subtle tropical aromas, a touch of white peach and shaved almond that attains more delineation as it opens in the glass (I allowed mine an hour to aerate). The palate displays impressive weight whilst maintaining good balance, notes of Cornice pear, nectarine and a light touch of peach, then erring towards brioche with time. There is just a touch of orange peel enlivening the finish. It marks a decent debut, as it ought to given the price and the names behind it. What I would say is that it does not have the mineralité, the nervosité of a top class Chardonnay, and I opened a couple of my favorite South African examples to compare. That's not to say subsequent vintages will find that. What this is, is a delicious, well crafted Chardonnay that you could cellar for a decade, though I have no qualms in drinking it over the next year or two.
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Wine Spectator
A broad, creamy, languid style, with lots of warm brioche, butter and creamed melon and apple flavors. Lush and hedonistic in feel, but successful overall. For fans of the style. Drink now. 1,000 cases made.
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.
With an important wine renaissance in full swing, impressive red and white bargains abound in South Africa. The country has a particularly long and rich history with winemaking, especially considering its status as part of the “New World.” In the mid-17th century, the lusciously sweet dessert wines of Constantia were highly prized by the European aristocracy. Since then, the South African wine industry has experienced some setbacks due to the phylloxera infestation of the late 1800s and political difficulties throughout the following century.
Today, however, South Africa is increasingly responsible for high-demand, high-quality wines—a blessing to put the country back on the international wine map. Wine production is mainly situated around Cape Town, where the climate is generally warm to hot. But the Benguela Current from Antarctica provides brisk ocean breezes necessary for steady ripening of grapes. Similarly, cooler, high-elevation vineyard sites throughout South Africa offer similar, favorable growing conditions.
South Africa’s wine zones are divided into region, then smaller districts and finally wards, but the country’s wine styles are differentiated more by grape variety than by region. Pinotage, a cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsault, is the country’s “signature” grape, responsible for red-fruit-driven, spicy, earthy reds. When Pinotage is blended with other red varieties, like Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah or Pinot Noir (all commonly vinified alone as well), it is often labeled as a “Cape Blend.” Chenin Blanc (locally known as “Steen”) dominates white wine production, with Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc following close behind.