What I Drank Last Night

Steve Tanzer of US publication International Wine Cellar recently announced his ratings of the wines to be sold at this year’s Cape Winemakers Guild auction. Tanzer’s top scoring wine on 94 points is the Ernie Els CWG 2009 followed by Waterford Estate 2009 Auction Reserve BB on 93 points. His highest scoring white wines, all [...]

James Molesworth of Wine Spectator recently posted his review of the wines to be sold at this year’s Cape Winemakers Guild auction, again highlighting the difference in the way the 100-point system is applied in the USA compared to here. Essentially, the 100-point system is applied much more narrowly in the US than it is [...]

Publication of my ratings of the wines to be sold on the Cape Winemakers Guild auction (see here) has caused some controversy. Teddy Hall said he was initially “devastated” when his Hendrik Biebouw Auction Reserve Chenin Blanc 2010 received a score of only 85 on the 100-point scale in light of the fact that prominent [...]

Earlier today the Cape Winemakers Guild facilitated a blind tasting of the wines to be sold at this year’s auction by a group of local wine journalist, the venue being Nitida Cellars in Durbanville. Those participating included Tim James of The Mail & Guardian and Grape.co.za, Angela Lloyd of Grape.co.za, Cathy Marston of Food24.com, Neil Pendock [...]

Yesterday a vertical of 2002 through 2009 of Nine Yards Chardonnay from Jordan in Stellenbosch as well as 2004 through 2009 of the cuvée made by cellarmaster Gary Jordan for the Cape Winemakers Guild auction.  Both wines are from the same 2ha vineyard planted in 1988 on granite and shale-derived soils and having an east-south [...]

The Cape Winemakers Guild has announced that it has largely done away with peer review in determining which wines appear on its annual auction. Whereas previously a wine proposed for sale was subject to a blind tasting, Guild members voting to decide if it was up to standard, now all 43 members are entitled to [...]

The Weisser Riesling 1998 is apparently the only white wine (other than bubbly) that Graham Beck cellarmaster and Cape Winemakers Guild  member Pieter Ferreira has ever had on auction (the Guild previously known at the Cape Independent Winemakers Guild and the auction having run from 1985). Tasted blind, there was plenty of developed character but [...]

Read the article I wrote on the Cape Winemakers Guild that appeared in the February issue of Uk magazine here.

Bernhard Veller, cellarmaster at Durbanville winery Nitida is pretty intent on coming up with the ultimate Sauvignon Blanc-Semillon blend and in 2009 bottled three different versions namely Coronata, Coronata Integration and Aureus. Coronata straightaway becomes a rarity because thought it was tasted by both Wine magazine (4½ Stars) and Platter’s 2011 (4½ Stars), it is [...]

After a dry Sunday which followed a blow-out Saturday (old friends, a magnum of Graham Beck Brut 1994, various local examples of Pinot Noir), we thought we’d treat ourselves to something extra special last night: Cederberg Private Cellar Cape Winemakers Guild Semillon 2007. Though plantings of the variety remain small (1 167ha making up 1.2% [...]