This is a remarkable wine. I tasted it when Tim Atkin brought it along to the International Wine Challenge one morning: he’d opened it the previous evening, and as it…
Some lovely South African whites: Crystallum, Gabrielskloof, Momento, Thorne and Daughters
My first night in South Africa began well. I’m staying here 11 days, working vintage in the cellar at Gabrielskloof, a space shared by four of South Africa’s most interesting…
Tyrrell’s HVD Semillon 2010 Hunter Valley
Hunter Semillon. One of the wine world’s most distinctive wine styles. This is a good one: the single vineyard HVD from Tyrrell’s with six years’ bottle age. Just beginning to…
Black Elephant Vintners Semillon 2015 Franschhoek
This is an important wine, because of the vineyard that it is made from (pictured above). It’s a very old (1905) Semillon vineyard in Franschhoek owned by Basil Landau. Basil…
A beautiful South African white: Cape Point Vineyards Isliedh 2013
This is a brilliant oak aged Sauvignon/Semillon from Duncan Savage at Cape Point. The blend in 2013 is 82% Sauvignon, 18% Semillon and the grapes were all hand-harvested, whole bunch…
Mount Pleasant Elizabeth Semillon, comparing 2007 and 2013
Nice to be able to try these two Mount Pleasant Elizabeth Semillons side by side. As many of you know, Semillon is the speciality of Australia’s Hunter Valley wine region….
In South Africa, day 1, two exciting new wines – Patatsfontein and Haarlem to Hope
I’ve been in South Africa for one afternoon and a sleep, and already I have much that I want to report on, but for starters I will talk about two…
Lunch with two great South African wines, and a good northern Rhône
Had a lovely long lunch yesterday. It was at Bread Street Kitchen, part of the Gordon Ramsay empire, located next to St Paul’s Cathedral. The dining room is huge. Really…
The Mullineux Semillon Gris
Now this is an interesting wine. It’s a Semillon Gris from Swartland (South Africa) stars Mullineux. This is what Andrea Mullineux says about it: Sémillon Gris is historically significant in…