New CWG selection criteria have already taken hold
Thursday, 8 September, 2011
Norman McFarlane
When in April this year, the Cape Winemakers Guild announced the new
selection criteria for inclusion in its annual auction, it was fully
anticipated that the effects would only probably be felt in a year or
two, the protracted nature of winemaking being what it is.
Guild chairperson Louis Strydom explained the new rules. All submissions will in future be accompanied by a detailed technical and microbiological analysis of the wine. If the wine ticks all the technical boxes, the tasting panel – all of the Guild members – will still taste it and deliver a Yes or No judgement as to its suitability, but the final decision is now up to the winemaker as to whether or not it will be sold on the annual auction. The can, to coin a phrase, is now firmly tied to the winemaker’s ass.
The reason for this sea-change in selection criteria has its roots in the original philosophy of the CWG, which is to encourage its members to push the edge of the winemaking envelope: in effect to experiment. But, it seems, that is just not happening.
As Louis Strydom pointed out when opening the Guild tutored tasting of this year’s wines at the CTICC last month, the previous system led to constricting criteria which did not encourage members to experiment. Even the introduction of a second tier tasting panel, established to relook at those wines the main panel had labelled as marginal, did not have the desired effect.
Everything that was out of the ordinary it seems, was routinely excluded and not because there was necessarily anything technically wrong with the wine. In what amounts to a sort of group think, the tasting panel was not prepared to let a maverick through. As Louis noted when introducing the new selection criteria, the old system encouraged members to create wines that would please the panel in a blind tasting, thereby ensuring admission, discouraging experimentation and leading inevitably to a narrowing down of stylistic differences.
One must also not forget that the Guild is a peer recognition body, so having ones wine shot down in a blind tasting - not necessarily because of a fault - couldn’t be a very comforting experience. So, in many respects the Guild is getting back to its roots, and creative experimentation will hopefully flourish amongst the members, leading to higher standards and more distinctive wine styles in the future.
If what emerged at the tutored tasting last month is anything to go by, the new criteria has already begun to take effect, which means that some of the Guild members at least, have already been experimenting, and are now encouraged to submit for auction. All of the 39 wines presented were exceptional, as one would expect of some of the finest winemakers in the country, but a few stood out as being distinctly different.
Dewald Heyns’ 2010 Die Erf Grenache, a blend of 87% Grenache and 13% Shiraz, is what he calls “the poor man’s Pinot Noir”. Other than the unusual varietal – plantings of Grenache in South Africa are miniscule – the wine is very young, has concentrated ripe fruit, spent time in second fill oak only and isn’t designed to last a decade. By Dewald’s own admission, it will drink best next year.
Phillip Constandius presented The Guildsman 2009, a Mediterranean-style blend of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Shiraz, 2% Mourvedre, 2% Malbec, 1% Cabernet franc and 1% Petit Verdot. While the tannins are hefty, the fruit is remarkably juicy and bright. As he notes, it is an eclectic blend in the original tradition of the Guild.
But the unusual star of the show was David Trafford’s 2009 De Trafford Sijnn Touriga Nacional. Made from bush vines that grow 70 metres above banks of the Breede River in the vicinity of Malgas, 15 km from the sea, it is distinctive, different. By David’s own admission, he did not want to copy the Old World, rather he wanted to be different, hence the planting of what is traditionally a warm climate variety in a relatively cool climate. The nose speaks of deep red fruit with a mocha note, and on the palate it is rich, red and slightly spicy. Gently complex tannins and a long, slightly dry finish round of an intriguing package.
But the proof of the pudding as they say, is in the eating. Whether these exciting, edgy new styles find favour with Auction buyers remains to be seen, but as Louis Strydom pointed out, the pre-auction tasting the night before the big event on October 1 takes on a whole new meaning, and the bidding will be closely watched when these lots come onto the auctioneers block.