Round the Robertson Rock (Day 2)

After a good nights rest, Andre & I woke up bright and early, ate some breakfast, and off we went to visit wine farms. We started off at the two nearest farms to us - Roodezandt and Robertson before making our way out of the town.

First stop - Roodezandt. The wines here are all very well-priced and easily affordable. Starting with the Sauv Blanc (R25.50), which is a good example of Robertson's style of Sauv Blanc - minerality, granny smith apples and even dried apples coming through - perfect for that scorching summers day by the pool. The Special Late Harvest made from Chenin and White Muscadel (R18.25) is marketed as a table wine and it suits that role perfectly - with saltanas, peachs, apricots, honey and dried apple - I'd easily open up a bottle of this wine with people who aren't mad about their wine, but like to have some to relax with. In the reds, the Syrah (R27.75)impressed me with it's bovreal, strawberry jam, black pepper and mocha - a wine, as my best friend would put it, costs R20, but tastes like R40, well worth buying in a pinch. The Cab Sauv (R29) was fulled with dry woodland smells - dried leaves, cigar box, cedar, dried bark, and even a rich, dark earthiness. This really wasn't my taste in a Cab, as it had very little fruit or pleasing barrel tastes and it's almost as if the dust of the wood chips (or staves or whatever) integrated with the wine. The Balthazar Classic Cab Sauv (R57) was much more pleasant - while it still had a bit of a dried firewood smell, it had some prunes and plum and an enjoyable hint of spiciness with black pepper and cloves coming through on the taste buds.

From there we moved on to Robertson Winery. With a huge list of around 30 wines, I'll try limit myself to selecting a handful of whites and reds to write about. The Retreat Sauv Blanc (R45) was quite unique in the area with asparagus, a slight citrus note, a strange fungal smell, and a very strong minerality/flinty finish. The Colombard (R19) was quite a typical example of the varietal (or so I am lead to believe), with peach, melons, granadilla, and some floral smells - quite crisp and a wine to be enjoyed while sitting out in the public gardens or anywhere that you would picnic. The Kings River Chardonnay (R45) is a well-balanced chardonnay and one that I would enjoy with a good meal - that mouth-watering smell of butterscotch coupled with some fruit-driven smells (peach and citrus, esp. lemon) make this a very enjoyable wine for any Chardonnay lover. The Viognier (R28)is a bit different from what I've come to expect from this varietal, although it did have its typical floral smells together with stoned fruits and honey, it also had a slight hint of fattiness (almost like raw bacon fat) which was a bit odd.

The Pinot Noir (R28) was an amazing discovery - normally you'd expect to spend near a R100 or more for any Pinot Noir. While this wine was certainly not the quality of a superb Pinot Noir, it certainly tasted two or three times its worth, with light red berries, cedar, cloves and cinnamon coming through. The Ruby Cabernet (R22) was an interesting table wine, with fennel, mocha, dark berries and white pepper coming through on the palate - quite a difficult wine to appreciate, but I can imagine it working alongside a good lamb curry (although it would be quite experimental for me to do so). The Prospect Hill Cabernet Sauvignon (R52) is a very affordable, ready-to-drink red wine, with black currant, mulberries, raspberries, prunes, cedar and chocolate - perfect for a mealtime wine to go alongside some roast lamb or oxtail. The Wolfkloof Shiraz (R52) was another fruitier shiraz, with prunes and dark plums, chocolates, white pepper and red spices coming through - also a wine to be coupled with a meaty curry. The Gewurztraminer SLH (R22) had a very typical set of smells - lime, litchi, rose petal and other floral smells - and well worth the price of a bottle. The Cape Ruby Port (R32) is a very afforable port to go alongside blue cheeses or to contrast with a malva pudding, with walnut, fruit cake and treacle leaping out the glass.

Moving outside the town we moved to Springfield - an estate that I have been told repeatedly to go visit, and it managed to match my grape expectations. The farm is absolutely stunning, from the friendly bok (that thinks it's a dog) out on the lawn, to its picturesque view over a lake, to its beautiful gravel-stone cellar, this is a must-do for anyone visiting Robertson. The wines are also very worthwhile and top-class wines. Starting with the Life from Stone Sauv Blanc (R57), and it is well-named, as the flint and minerality take you by the throat, with that grassy, green apple tastes still wandering around your mouth. The Special Cuvee Sauv Blanc is similar, but balances itself more on the grassy, green pepper flavours thats more typical of a Sauv Blanc. The Wild Yeast Chardonnay is made in a slightly different style and it's quite fruity with only the slightest hint of wood coming through in the form of butterscotch flavours, and subtle peach and pear taste. The Methode Ancienne (a reference to the traditional old way of making wines which they use) used the barrel much more, giving it a more prominent butterscotch nose, as well as opening up some fuzzy peach and guava in the taste. At R129 a bottle, it might be worthwhile to go taste the wine rather than buy it - while it was throughly enjoyable, I've certainly found Chardonnays that are every bit as good for under R100. The Work of TIme (R90)bordeuax blend of Merlot, Cab Sauv and Cab Franc is delicious with intense plum, blackberry, cinnamon, cloves and fynbos. Drink with friends. The Methode Ancienne Cab Sauv (R180) is a well-layered and integrated wine, with black currant, dark berries, cloves, dried pine needles, mocha, chocolate and cedar all competing for your attention - an expensive wine, maybe a little too expensive for some, but I wouldn't expect to pay anything less than R150 a bottle for it's quality, especially since it's already been aged in the bottle for a few years before being sold and it's at a perfect drinking age. Open it for a very special meal with a good steak - and don't dare waste a drop.

Cloverfield was the next farm on the list, and was well worth a visit. This large farm opened up in front of us, with big, large buildings and farmlands that stretched out for miles. But as soon as we got in we found a small tasting room overlooking a small part of a small cellar - and with a small list of wines in front of me, my expectations were s...large. I had heard good things about the Chardonnay, and so I was very hopeful. The Chenin (R23) gave me a pleasant surprise with its medley of fruits, especially sweet melon pulp, golden delicious apples and pears - perfect for warm breezy days. The wooded Chardonnay (R35) did impress me (they have an unwooded as well), with butterscotch and lanolin (from the barrel) as well as citrus like processed lemon, pineapple, granadilla and lime, and leaving with a delicious full-mouth almond nuttiness in the mouth. My only regret is that the wine was still so young, as it will be beautiful in a year or two. The final wine I tasted in this farm was the Shiraz (R42) which had that yummy vanilla smell mixed with spicy bite of black pepper and cloves, with a distinct smell of fresh prunes and processed meat giving the taste some body and intensity.

Following the Breede River, the next stop was Viljoensdrift, a farm with a sizeable eating area, a mini-movie house, and a ferry that takes people on trips along the river. The best part was the sign (which I'm ashamed to say, I don't seem to have a good picture of) - which read something like this:

HIPPOPOTAMUS
CROCODILES
have never been seen by anybody on one of our ferries, but we'll charge you a fortune all the same.

I love commercialism...

Still, we ate an overpriced, but equally delicious lunch there as we waited for the German and American tourists to get on the ferry and open up the tasting room. The Sauv blanc (R32) had overpowering grassy notes with green pepper, asparagus and sweet melon smells (taking something of a Chenin character). The Chenin (R25) took some of the Sauv's character in return by having a strong note of minerality alongside the pear and watermelon notes. The Chardonnay (R40) impressed me right from the start and I think my descriptor will show you why: processed mint, lime, buttered toast, pineapple, and a long lingering taste of brazil nuts - an experience well worth the price of a bottle. Onto the pink wine! The Shiraz off-dry Rose (R22) had a good complex mix of smells and tastes including the ever-present cherry and strawberry, but with an added floral and candy floss smell and a surprisingly crisp mineral finish that helps offset it's slightly sweeter nature - a classic pool wine. The Cape Blend (R30) is amazing value for money and the two varietals used in this wine stand out quite prominently - from the dominant Shiraz, the smell of boerewors and bovreal, with black pepper and cloves came to the front (which describes exactly what the single varietal shiraz had to offer), but the Pinotage added some green bananas and the smell of leather to give it a little something something. The flagship red bordeaux blend - Serenity - goes for nearly R100 a bottle, and it was admittedly something different. You can expect brown spices, treacle, black currant, mocha, dark chocolate and christmas cake - in other words, a dark, intense, overpowering wine that you would only have a glass worth before feeling satisfied. To end it all off, we had a taste of the latest, poorly labeled port - the Cape Vintage Reserve (R55), which was an elegant balance of roasted nuts and dark, dried fruit - which I immediately thought would go well with cranberry-flavoured blue cheese.

From Prestige to Popular, out next stop was Van Loveren. In the middle of a stunningly beautiful garden, this farm has a very relaxed approach to wine tasting. I started with the Sauv Blanc (R26) - a crisp refreshing white that had notes of granny smith apple, grass, gooseberry and that Robertson minerality. They have a Pinot Grigio (R26) which is a great table wine with fruit salad, lemon, peach and granadilla smells. The semi-sweet Colombar (R20) was an easy-drinking, share a few bottles with friends wine with very floral, fresh orange blossom scent and a peach, pear and sweet melon fruitiness to it. This was also the first time I encountered a Fernao Pires (which is a Portuguese white wine varietal), and at R22 a bottle, it was worth tasting a wine with lime, peach, granadilla and floral smells - almost like a blend between Gewurz and an unwooded Chardonnay. Talking about Gewurztraminer, the special late harvest (R26) did have that litchi, lime smell so strongly associated with this variety of grape, but it also had a hint of dried pears and apricots. All of these whites are very accessible, and easy to enjoy with company when you're not concentrating to hard on the wine you're drinking.

From the whites, we moved onto the Limited Release wines (Wolverine Creek), which are more complex and full-bodied wines. The Chardonnay (R45) was deliciously nutty, with butterscotch, buttered toast and peach notes in it as well. The Cab Sauv (R69) had stewed fruits (yuk!), cloves, prunes, and a slight dark jammy smell to it - maybe a blackberry jam. The Shiraz (R69) was also very fruity with heavy black currant smells as well as treacle, with a playful black pepper spiciness on the tongue. The Noble Late Harvest (R45), made from Rhine Reisling, is very good value-for-money, as it still manages to be quite complex with marzipan, saltanas, honey, peach and apricot all making a play for your attention. All-in-all Van Loveran is a great place to shop for table wines, or student party wines as they glide down easily and are often very playful, fun loving wines that will ease the social tension in a room, leaving people to talk about life (also known as wine), love (for wine), and everything else (like what kind of temperature to serve your wine at).

We passed along some very scenic roads on our way to the next farm - Zandvliet, which is well-known for its shiraz and its horses. The Sauv Blanc (R36) was quite herbaceous, but also still kept that minerality of the land. The unwooded Chardonnay (R39) had a slightly floral nose to it, but otherwise it was unremarkable. The wooded Chardonnay (R46) had a slight bit of mustiness to it, with honey, lanolin, gooseberry and granadilla smells, but a gorgeous bit of butterscotch and lemon in its taste. The Cab Sauv (R54) was superb value-for-money, with some very woody smells to it, as well as black currant and prunes and a slight gamey smell to it (maybe truffles). The Zandvliet Shiraz (R69) was also great value for money and a perfect companion for a hearty meal, with roasted meat, cloves, black pepper, mocha, raisons, and liqorice. The two more famous Shirazs (R112 each) is the Kalkveld Shiraz, one which uses french barrels and the other which uses american barrels. The French version has an unbelievable spiciness to it, with black pepper, cloves, black berry and liqorice smells. The American version has picked up a lot from the barrel with vanilla, cocunut, coffee and a delcious roasted nuttiness to its taste. This is a farm to take someone to, if you want to show how much of a difference the barrel can make on a wine.

Our last stop of the day was the clean, green Rietvallei. The Classic Estate Sauv Blanc (R35) had a strong smell of fresh cut grass and asparagus, but also had a clean crisp finish with its minerality and flintiness to its taste. The Juanita Cab Sauv Rose (R56) had the smell of fresh strawberries (to the point of its rather pungent earthiness) and candy floss. The John B Cab Sauv/Tinta Barocca Red Blend would go very well with a meaty pasta, like a spaghetti bolognese, as it has an unmistakable smell of fresh meat and mushrooms. From there we tasted the special select wines. First was the Cab Sauv (R110) which was a textbook example of an excellent cab sauv, with black currant and black berries making the fruit component, a strong smell of ceder and dry pine forest smells, and a follow through of the barrel in the form of mocha and cocoa. The second was the shiraz (R110) which had vanilla and ripe red berries dominating the sense, but an underlying cocoa and mocha as well. The final wine we tasted for the day was the 1908 Muscadel, which I called the "3 S" wine - strawberries, saltanas and spices.

On that note, I'll say my goodbyes. Hopefully I'll get the chance to write another email sooner rather than later. Until then, open up a fresh bottle, and enjoy a glass on my behalf.

Val.