This case contains one each of the following wines.
South Africa is reaching Stellar heights in their winemaking and genuinely represents some of the best value to be found anywhere, let alone with their top wine makers and here we have 4 wines made by Peter Alan Finlayson of Gabrielskloof and Crystallum, in addition to two stunning wines from two of the best producers from the highly rated region of Swartland - Mullineux and Thorn & Daughers.
2018 Gabrielskloof Syrah on Sandstone Bot River £43.99 13%
This used to be a single vineyard wine but now hails from four blocks on the same slope, all on sandstone. Picked a week before the shale Syrah because of the heat of the soils, it's a grippy, intense, savoury wine with blackberry and raspberry fruit, some lavender, white pepper and pine, lovely minerality and subtle, nuanced oak. 2023-30 95/100 Tim Atkin MW
2023 Crystallum `Peter Max` Pinot Noir £41.99 14%
Peter Max is Crystallum's entry-point Pinot Noir, although it still retails for R345. Sourced from seven vineyards in Elandskloof, the Hemel-en-Aarde Ridge and the Overberg, it's a forward, supple, scented red with subtle wood, goji berry and summer pudding flavours, svelte tannins and a bright, tapering finish. 2024-29 92/100 Tim Atkin MW
2022 Gabrielskloof Amphora Sauvignon Blanc £31.99 13.5%
This is the first vintage of Gabriëlskloof's Sauvignon Blanc to include grapes from the Skurfberg as well as the winery's home base in Bot River. Naturally fermented in clay amphoras, it's an intense, slightly creamy white with grapefruit and lime flavours and some phenolic grip. 2023-26
92/100 Tim Atkin MW
2022 Gabrielskloof Elodie Chenin Blanc £38.99 13%
Elodie is a textbook Swartland Chenin Blanc that uses components from three vineyards on two different soil types. Naturally fermented in older barrels, it's a textured, stony, intensely focused style with top notes of hay and fennel and a chiselled, pithy, stony palate. 2024-30 95/100
Tim Atkin MW 95/100
2022 Thorne & Daughters Rocking Horse Cape White Blend £29.99 13%
Rocking Horse affords John Seccombe the chance to show his skills as a blender. Based on Semillon, with the remaining 65% made up of Roussanne, Chenin Blanc, Chardonnay and Clairette Blanche, this seven vineyard cuvée uses grapes from five different regions. Pithy, tangy and very lightly wooded, it has wet stone, quince and green apple flavours and a twist of orange zest. 2024-28 95/100 Tim Atkin MW
2021 Mullineux - Signature Syrah - Swartland £39.99 14%
"Our coolest vintage ever" is how Chris Mullineux describes the 2021 growing season, which has produced a suitably intense, well-balanced Swartland Syrah. Sourced from six sites on schist, granite and iron soils, it's a youthful, focused, intensely concentrated red that needs another year or two in bottle, showing grippy tannins and layers of fig, blackberry and black pepper. 2024-30 94/100 Tim Atkin MW
