Christmas Tasting 2024

Very fresh, precise and tidy this is a great example of a wine on the natural spectrum. Fruit, minerality and subtle oak and nutty character, all in perfect harmony.

Country: France

Region: Arbois, Jura

Grapes: Chardonnay

ABV: 12.5%

Vegan, organic. The wine is fermented and aged in new oak foudres but with minimal toast, with no filtering, no added sulphites and no racking this is essentially left alone for its formative years.

Fresh, clean and summery with a splash of strawberry and raspberry aromas on cloud of
candyfloss. 

Country: South Africa

Region: Voor Paardeberg

Grapes: Grenache Noir

ABV: 10%

A fresh, crisp and fruity Chenin with a dash of Sauvignon Blanc. Complex and weighty beyond its style with flavours of pear, white peach and lychee.

Country: South Africa

Region: Voor Paardeberg

Grapes: Chenin, Sauvignon Blanc

ABV: 13%

Very Rhone -like style of Shiraz/ Grenache. Earthy, with spicy notes and hints of black berries. Very rich and ripe, but  juicy and easy drinking.

Country: South Africa

Region: Voor Paardeberg

Grapes: 75% Shiraz  25%Grenache Noir

ABV: 14%

Concentrated aromas of dried prunes and wild cherries, complemented by subtle notes of clove and cinnamon.

Country: South Africa

Region: Voor Paardeberg

Grapes: Pinotage

ABV: 14%

Deep, dark purple in colour and gorgeously full bodied and unctuous wine. Raspberries, mulberries and aromatic sweet spice jump out of the glass on the nose. Fine grained, grippy, tannins are in perfect balance with lots of concentrated, ripe black fruit character on the finish.

Country: South Africa

Region: Stellenbosch

Grapes: Tinta Barocca

ABV: 14.5%

Dornier is a family owned winery that is situated in the Golden Triangle area of the famous Upper Blaauwklippen Valley in Stellenbosch - their prestigious neighbours are
De Trafford, Keermont and Waterford, so they are in fine company. The property was home to one of the first wineries in Stellenbosch, having been completed in the late 1600s, as well as an historic Sir Herbert Baker home. 

The winemaking philosophy at Dornier is to produce premium quality wines, with minimal intervention in the winery, that are expressive of the unique terroir of the Golden Triangle and showcase the complexity and finesse of the noble grape varietals planted on the farm..

A rich amber colour. Fascinatingly complex with a light Christmas pudding nose of dried fruits, nuts, and a well flambéed crust. The rich concentrated flavours and tangy acidity are softened by a sweetness on the palate which brings it all together in a wonderfully balanced way.

Country: Spain

Region: Jerez

ABV: 15%

Grapes: Palomino Fino 80% and Pedro Ximenez 20%

Food match: Christmas Pud!

Vegan

The classic Cream is produced from an Oloroso that has been aged for 6 years, and then a portion of young PX is blended into the wine. After further ageing in the traditional solera and criadera system the sherry is bottled - with an average of 8 years barrel ageing in total. Serve slightly below room temperature.

Fermentation was in oak barrels using the wild yeasts from the juice. The wine is creamy and textured; full of ripe stone fruit flavours and notes of acacia, nougat and citrus. Mineral finish.

Country: New Zealand

Region: Central Otago

Grapes:  Chardonnay (100%)

Food: serve with scallops and lobster in a beurre blanc sauce or grilled chicken.

ABV: 13.5%

Dark almost black in colour, with an intense dark berry fruit aroma of blackberries. Powerful, concentrated and full bodied. Structured, but smooth and velvety on the palate, combining well the matured fruit and the oak from 3 months ageing in wood. Moreish, elegant and complex, a long finish.

Country: Portugal

Region: Lisbon

Grapes: Alicante Bouschet

ABV: 14.5%

Food: as an aperitif, with tapas, red meat, risotto, paella, spicy food and dry cheeses.

From a warm vintage, this wine displace beautiful aromatics with notes of guava and passion fruit paired with a wonderful freshness, which combined with its inherit intensity and complexity makes this a finely balanced, terroir focused, dry white.

Country: Italy

Region: Soave

Grapes: Garganega 70% and Chardonnay 30%

ABV: 12.5%

Food Match: Blue Cheese like Gorgonzola or Dolcelatte

Kaalvoet Meisie (‘barefoot girl’)  is a richer style of Sauvignon Blanc because it ferments and ages in both new and old oak for 12 months. Elegant aromas of exotic fruit like dragon fruit, passion fruit and pineapple as well as ripe yellow peach and apricot. The concentrated fruit profile is complimented by aromas and flavours of wild herbs. Vibrant acidity and a lingering, minerally finish gives this beauty of a wine at least 7 years of ageing potential.

Country: South Africa

Region: Sondagskloof, Walker Bay

Grapes: Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon

ABV: 12.5%

Food Matching: Asparagus and and goat's cheese salad

You’ve probably heard of the quaint beach town of Hermanus, situated on South Africa’s famous Whale Coast. Between 1855 and 1902, it was called Hermanuspietersfontein. In 1902, the local postmaster decided to shorten the name of the town to make addressing letters to the locals easier.

150 years later, the wine farm Hermanuspietersfontein, or HPF for short, craft outstanding wines with a serious sense of place. Their grapes come from Sondagskloof (they produce 90% of WO Sondagskloof wine), which competes with Elgin and the Ceres Plateau for South Africa’s coolest wine growing region. This area is perfectly suited to Bordeaux varietals and, with the exception of Shiraz, is exclusively planted with them.

The Afrikaans wine names might look like a bit of a mouthful, but they are good fun; Bloos (‘blush’), Kaalvoet Meisie (‘barefoot girl’), Kat Met Die Houtbeen (‘cat with the wooden leg’), Posmeester (‘postmaster’), Kleinboet (‘little brother’) and Swartskaap (‘black sheep’).

Kleinboet (‘little brother’) is a Cellar Door all time favourite.  Bright red and purple fruit such as raspberries and blueberries on the nose, savoury notes of dried herbs too. A delicious, rich, bold, earthy, but fruity Bordeaux blend.

Country: South Africa

Region: Sondagskloof, Hemel en Aarde

Grapes: Bordeaux Blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc and Malbec

ABV: 12.5%

You might have heard of the quaint beach town of Hermanus, situated on South Africa’s
famous Whale Coast. Between 1855 and 1902, it was called Hermanuspietersfontein. In
1902, the local postmaster decided to shorten the name of the town to make addressing
letters to the locals easier.

150 years later, the wine farm Hermanuspietersfontein, or HPF for short, craft outstanding wines with a serious sense of place. Their grapes come from Sondagskloof (they produce 90% of WO Sondagskloof wine), which competes with Elgin and the Ceres Plateau for South Africa’s coolest wine growing region. This area is perfectly suited to Bordeaux varietals and, with the exception of Shiraz, is exclusively planted with them.
The Afrikaans wine names might look like a bit of a mouthful, but they are good fun;
Bloos (‘blush’), Kaalvoet Meisie (‘barefoot girl’), Kat Met Die Houtbeen (‘cat with the
wooden leg’), Posmeester (‘postmaster’), Kleinboet (‘little brother’) and Swartskaap
(‘black sheep’).

Ruby coloured with soft crimson nuances. Intense nose with ripe blackcurrants, plums and cherries. The palate is smooth and harmonious with soft long finish.

Country: Bulgaria

Region: Thracian Valley

Grapes: 40% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Rubin

ABV: 13%

Food Match: Red meat dishes, charcuterie and hard cheeses.

From the Yamantiev's Winery

A delicious traditional method sparkling with ageing sur lie (on the lees) in bottle for 36 months. Bisser Blanc de Blancs is a classic style brut sparkling made from 100% Chardonnay grapes from The Kolonist vineyards in the Odesa region. 

Grapes: Chardonnay

Country: Ukraine

Region: Odesa, Bessarabia sub region

ABV: 11.5%

The estate winery "Kolonist" was founded by the Plachkov family in 2005 in Bessarabia, Ukraine. Named in honour of Bulgarian colonists who came to these lands over 200 years ago. 

Elegant and complex with touches of spice on the nose, full of flavour  palate with dried fruits, oak and honey balanced with an attractive freshness.

Country: Portugal

Region: Douro Valley

Grapes: Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriz

ABV: 20%

A vintage brandy matured in oak barrels for 10 years. With its deep amber colour, KWV 10 Year Old contains complex, dried-fruit and port-wine aroma, enhanced by subtle spicy and nutty flavours. A full-bodied brandy, with a lingering, fruity and slightly sweet finish.
KWV 10 Year Old Brandy is produced by pure copper pot still distillation from carefully selected wines derived from the recognized brandy grape cultivars grown in the best suited areas of the Cape Winelands in terms of soil, climate and location.

Country: South Africa

Potstill content 10 years

ABV: 38%

Grape Spirit: 50% Colombard, 50% Chenin Blanc

KWV The Mentors

KWV is one of South Africa's leading wine and spirit producers, with an impressive international reputation and history. Its new owners brought in a winemaking team led by Wim Truter. With its 72 growers in every region of the Western Cape, it has unrivalled access to all of South Africa's wine regions, and they champion both South African classics and off-beat varieties as well as employ innovative methods such as producing sulphur-free wines using honey bush and Rooibos tea bark. KWV is amongst the Top 50 World's Most admired wine brands as per the Drinks International 2019 report.