Grabbed these three interesting whites from the rack for a bit of comparative tasting. The Luis Pato is amazingly fresh at 8 years of age, and will be good for another decade on this showing. The Cape Point is brilliant, and is testament to the skill of winemaker Duncan Savage, who is now concentrating on his own project. And the De Wetshof is lovely, too: these guys are specialists in Chardonnay, and have limestone soils which help counter the warmth of the Robertson climate.

Luis Pato Vinhas Velhas Branco 2009 Beiras, Portugal
Bical on chalk; Cerceal and Serceralinho on sandy soil. 12% alcohol. Lovely lemon, mandarin and herb notes. Very fresh and direct with bright fruit. Tastes much younger than it is with direct fruit, but also very good acidity. Really linear and fresh with some crystalline fruit character and a hint of toast the only indicators that it’s not a young wine. Shows a bit of wax and mushroom on the finish. Demonstrates the potential of these terroirs for making fine white wines. 91/100

Cape Point Vineyards Isliedh 2013 Cape Peninsula, South Africa
14% alcohol. This is just beautiful. Complex grapefruit, smoky lemons and crystalline fruits on the nose. The palate is complex and detailed with a spicy, citrus character and green tea and fennel notes. There’s some richness here, but it’s just so multidimensional. A perfect fusion of Semillon and Sauvignon that will age well. 93/100

De Wetshof Bon Vallon Chardonnay 2012 Robertson, South Africa
13% alcohol. Unoaked Chardonnay from calcareous soils. Fresh and lemony but with some pear richness and a hint of honey. There’s harmony here, with subtlety and nice, well integrated acidity providing a core to the wine. This isn’t a big, obvious wine, but it has a subtle beauty to it, and will develop really nicely for a few years yet. Lovely acid on the finish. 91/100

Find these wines with wine-searcher.com