Superstars

From the true masters of Cape Cabernet - the benchmark Stellenbosch Cab. 2015 was the winner of platter 5* best Cabernet Sauvignon in South Africa.

This is the only red wine produced by Le Riche that is not 100% Cabernet. This is an exceptionally lovely, classically Bordelaise blend. Restrained but appealing on the nose with typical red fruit aromas of plum, cherries and milled pepper are balanced by an aroma of finely ground graphite. The palate is a masterpiece of blending - hugely appealing with juicy mouth-filling flavours of red berries, plums and smoky hints balanced with a fine, soft tannic structure and rounded finish.

Country: South Africa

Region: Stellenbosch

ABV: 14.5%

Grapes: Cabernet Sauvignon 65% , Cinsault 25% , Cabernet Franc 10%

Vegan. Secondary fermentation proceeded in concrete tanks after which the wines were moved to French oak barrels (older225L oak for 12 months), the components are then blended and further matured in 225L barrels, 5000L oak foudres and concrete tanks for a further 8 months Blended after a year of ageing and matured for a further 8 months before bottling unfined with a light filtration

Le Riche Wine

A vibrant red wine with aromas of tobacco, dark cherry, rich red forest fruits and floral notes of lavender and violet. The palate has hints of white truffle, hazelnut, and warm spices with glimpses of anise and clove, rounded off with herbaceous undertones. The finish is gripping, velvety and lingering.

Country: Lebanon

Region: Mount Lebanon and Bekaa Valley

Grapes: 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, blended with Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Syrah, Grenache & Mourvèdre

ABV: 13.5%

Produced at the historic Monastery of St Jean, whose building dates back to 1696. 75% of the grapes are from the Monastery’s own vineyards in Khenshara & Ajaltoun at 1000m altitude on the Maritime side of Mount Lebanon. The remaining 25% is Cabernet Sauvignon from the Bekaa Valley.

Food match: Moroccan lamb tagine

Velvety smooth, rich, concentrated and supple. Flavours of cassis, bramble and black cherry with a sheen of vanilla from the oak ageing.

Country: France

Region: Bordeaux, Margaux

ABV:13.5%

Grapes: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot

Serve 12 to 14 degrees C

Food Match: Red meat dishes such as beef Wellington or roast lamb.

Deep and concentrated on the nose, it opens up on the palate to reveal crisp cassis fruit with smoky edges and a hint of green pepper all hung on a ripe firm structure. Excellent balance. Excellent wine.

Country: South Africa

Region: Robertson

ABV:14%

Grape Varieties: Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc

Harvested at full seed ripeness. Cold macerated uncrushed in open fermenters for 10 days. Punched through 3 times daily. 3 weeks alcoholic fermentation, only free run used. 100% malolatic fermentation in barrel. 24 months barrel maturation in 1st and 2nd fill Sequin Moreau 300l barriques. 4 years bottle maturation at 14°C. Terroir is very gentle, southerly with chalk soil and calcrete formations. Climate is moderate summer with low night temperatures, cold winter.

Springfield Estate

A beautifully concentrated wine with layers of flavour and character. Classico in every sense of the word.

So many flavours - along side the deep black fruits, plums and floral notes there is a spicy backbone with spices, herbs and chocolate.

Country: Italy

Region: Valpolicella

ABV: 15%

Grapes: Corvina, Rondinella

Wonderfully approachable white Burgundy with lovely tropical, marzipan notes.

Country: France

Region: Côte Chalonnaise, Burgundy

Grapes: Chardonnay

ABV: 13.5%]

Jafellin Wine

Astonishingly good Riesling from an outstanding New Zealand producer. Concentrated, explosive in the mouth! Dry, flavoursome Riesling with honeysuckle notes, aromatic nectarine, baked peach, apricot, lime and preserved lemon. One glass will not be enough!

Country: New Zealand

Region: North Canterbury

ABV: 15.5%

Grapes: Riesling

Read Wine Advocate Erin Larkin’s wonderful review of Pegasus from latest trip to the South Island

'From there, I went to Pegasus Bay, and it was here that I was so impacted. This is an iconic Riesling producer—Rieslings worth crossing the ocean for. They age slowly and gracefully, employ botrytis as a textural aid and are thundering examples of Riesling from New Zealand. I can’t overstate that. These are collectors’ wines. I have seen older examples in Australia over the years, served blind, that have taken the room by storm. My thanks to Winemaker Matt Donaldson for the afternoon; it took us in directions I think neither of us expected.'

Pegasus Bay Riesling Bel Canto 2022 – 94 points.

The 2022 Bel Canto Dry Riesling leads with loquat, kumquat and orange rind. In the mouth, the wine is floral, detailed and full—it is actually quite wide, spreading to all corners of the mouth, leaving a trail of fine chalky texture in its wake. Really good. Textural. 14% alcohol, sealed under screw cap. Erin Larkin Wine Advocate

Lusciously rich and decadent red made from selected grapes from three top class vineyards. 

Aromatic with ripe dark berried fruit alongside sweet spice, a ripe, rich style. The texture is rich and round with abundant, ripe, dark berried fruit supported by fine oak.

Country: Italy

Region: Valpolicella

ABV: 15%

Grapes: 80% Corvina & Corvinone, 10% Rondinella and 10% Molinara

The grapes come from the 5 hectare, steep, rocky, terraced hillside vineyard of Calcarole as well as the gently sloping clay vineyards of Rovereti and Pojega in the heart of Negrar, the most celebrated of the communes in Valpolicella. 

Aromatic, medium to full bodied and powerful, with good extraction of the sweet flavours of black ripe fruits. Elegant with good texture and firm tannins, giving wine great ageing potential. A touch of mint, with lavender notes. Firm, well balanced oak and long finish with fresh, spicy, integrated mouthfeel.

Country: South Africa

Region: Wellington

ABV: 14%

Grape: Shiraz

Andreas Wine

Andreas only produce this wine - and they are good at it. The wine is aged for 18 months in French and American oak and bottle matured for another year. Winemaker Shaun Meyeridricks' first first vintage was in 2018, since joining Andreas from Boekenhoutskloof where he was previously making exemplary Shiraz.

This expressive, barrel-fermented Viognier seduces you with the beautiful perfume of honeysuckle and orange blossom and a textured palate of apricot, kiwi and pineapple.

Country: South Africa

Region: Western Cape

Grapes: Viognier

ABV: 13.5%

Lismore Wine

A very attractive honeyed nose, with lifted yellow fruits and more golden tropical elements such as mango, guava and pineapple. It has a particularly tropical character and a very fresh feel on the palate, with steely minerality and a zippy background acidity giving invigorating tartness to keep the wine luscious and buoyant. The rounded, approachable finish has good length.

Country: France

Region: Loire Valley

Grapes: Chenin Blanc

ABV: 12%

VEGAN

Food Match: Rich starters like foie gras or sweetbreads and will see you through to dessert or cheese.

Now this is something very special! Dried apricot and fresh ginger with hints of honeysuckle through to a concentrated palate with fresh, clean acidity which supports the extravagance of the palate. Astonishingly good. The 2023 vintage was a challenging one, particularly late in the season, which was cool and wet, as a result, the production is significantly down, however the quality is truly exceptional.

Country: South Africa

Region: Greyton, Western Cape

Grapes: Viognier

ABV: 14%

Lismore Wine

Californian wine pioneer, Samantha O'Keefe has found paradise and the perfect terroir in Greyton, Western Cape, South Africa. Tucked into the foothills of a dramatic mountain range in Southern Africa, Lismore Estate Vineyards was born alongside her family. A passionate vision, combined with vines planted at 300 metres, which are chilled by cold winters and nourished by the African sun, produces classic, cool climate wines which are rich, complex and hand crafted with care.

Concentrated cassis and plum with a hint of liquorice. Some evolved secondary and tertiary characteristics of forest floor leaves and tobacco.  A classic, elegant Bordeaux red drinking very well now.

Country: France

Region: Bordeaux, Haut Medoc

Grapes: 50% Merlot and 50% Cabernet Sauvignon

ABV: 13.5%

Food match: fillet steak and frites or boeuf bourguignon

Concentrated, complex and rich, oak matured Douro red, made from a blend of selected parcels from the best vineyards on the estate.

Country: Portugal

Region: Douro Valley

Grapes: 74% Touriga Nacional, 13% Sousão, 12% Touriga Franca, 1% Fernão Pires

ABV: 13.5%

Elegant and complex nose with a good concentration of black fruit, thyme and rosemary with secondary aromas of leather and tobacco leaves. Hints of black fruit jam and liquorice warm, with a long, delicious and persistent finish.

Country: Spain

Region: Rioja

Grapes: Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon

ABV: 14.5%

Wonderfully rich and fleshy  from hand harvested bushvine grown grapes in Franschhoek. Wild Yeast fermented. Beautifully poised and elegant. Excellent food wine.

Country: South Africa

Region: Franschhoek

Grapes: 100% Semillon

ABV: 13%

Ideal with white fish dishes, fresh oysters and prawns.

https://www.wildeberg.co.za/

Certified Heritage Vineyards planted in 1905.

Meursault lies between the villages of Volnay and Puligny-Montrachet and produces some of the world's greatest white wines. This has a wonderful creaminess on the nose and the palate is well rounded, poised and elegant with a classic balance between richness and acidity and complex savoury character. This flavoursome wine is already delicious but will benefit from some more time in bottle.

Country: France

Region: Burgundy

Grapes: Chardonnay

ABV: 13%

Vegan/ Vegetarian

This is a traditional Châteauneuf-du-Pape serious and brooding and benefits from a little time to breath and open up. The palate is complex with herby, tapenade flavours and ripe textured tannins balancing the significant 15% alcohol which is expertly managed and integrated.

Country: France

Region: Châteauneuf - du-Pape

ABV: 15%

Grapes: Grenache 65%, Syrah 20%, Mourvedre 10%

Rich, ripe, but savoury Pinot from Canterbury. We love this wine!

Country: New Zealand

Region: North Canterbury

ABV: 13.5%

Grapes: Pinot Noir

Ruby red velvet with earthy colour notes. Elegant and complex nose with a good concentration of black fruit, thyme and rosemary with secondary aromas of leather and tobacco leaves. Absolutely scrumptious!

Polished and rounded, pleasant and easy to drink. Fleshy with both elegance and power. Touches of black fruit jam and liquorice warm, with a long, delicious and persistent finish.

Country: Spain

Region: Rioja

Grapes: 95% Tempranillo 5% Graciano

ABV:14.5%

Food Match: slow cooked lamb shanks, lamb chops, chorizo and potato stew, or any meat dish.

A dash of Semillon into this Sauvignon Blanc gives additional layers of complexity. 

This traditional French blend has aromas and flavours of citrus fruit, passion-fruit and greengages, cut grass with a hint of dried herbs.  The low crop levels have particularly emphasised the Semillon component in the wine, filling out the palate and giving good concentration as well as structure.  It has a crisp, dry finish and a lingering after-taste on the palate.  

Country: New Zealand

Region: North Canterbury

ABV: 13.8%

Grapes: Sauvignon Blanc and a small portion of barrel fermented Semillon

Food Match: We love this wine for its complexity of aromatics and concentration of flavours on the palate. White fish with fresh asparagus or Samphire is a great pairing.

The Donaldson Family have been seriously involved in viticulture and winemaking for over 40 years. Founder Ivan Donaldson planted one of Canterbury’s first vineyards in 1976 and went on to establish Pegasus Bay in 1986 with his wife Christine. It is a true family business, with all four of their sons involved.

A Cellar Door Wines team favourite. Powerful and aromatic nose of ripe citrus and stone fruits. The palate has concentrated lychee, honeysuckle, nectarines and pineapple.

Country: USA

Region: Oregon

ABV: 13.5%

Grapes: Pinot Gris

Succulent black cherry aroma, bright but delicate and hints of forest floor, with underlying floral and spicy notes. On the palate, the wine is powerful, with silk-textured length.

Country: South Africa

Region: Elgin

ABV: 13%

Grapes: Pinot Noir

Food match:

Beef bourguignon with mushroom or braised lamb shanks.

In early 1997, Andrew Gunn, an engineer by training was contemplating his next career move. Having always loved the outdoors, the prospect of farming appealed to him and feeling young and energetic enough to start a new career, left the hustle and bustle of Johannesburg to begin the search for the ‘perfect’ farm.

After months of searching and 40 farm visits later, Andrew and a very tired estate agent stumbled upon a solitary run down apple farm on a mountain top overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. The prospect of a suitable farm in Elgin intrigued Andrew and on driving through the valley, he became excited by the beauty of the area. Surrounded by the Kogelberg Biosphere and Forestry the property had no agricultural neighbours. The rolling hills and the drive up the mountain to where the farm was situated, 420 meters above sea level, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, was unlike anything he had ever seen. It was love at first sight.

As he drove in and stopped in front of a rather run down Herbert Baker homestead, he felt, “this is where I would like to live”, and the view from the front of the house overlooking the Elgin Valley below, made up his mind.

Ruby red with violet reflections. Fragrant with black berries, cherries and plum. Very fresh, silky and easy drinking with a rich, balanced finish.

Country: Italy

Region: Sicily

Grapes: Nero D'Avola

ABV: 13.5%

Food match: Great with pizza, tomato based pasta and antipasto.

Black cherries, earthy tones and hints of tanned leather. Soft, supple in texture with a ripe berries and savoury notes, juicy acidity, silky tannins. Dry, minerally, structured and very long finish . Gorgeous. Drinking window: 2023-2033.

Country: Italy

Region: Tuscany

ABV: 13.5%

Grapes: Sangiovese

As seen in the movie 'Letters to Juliet' starring Amanda Seyfried, Gael García Bernal and Vanessa Redgrave. The Carpazo vineyard is the real deal!