The annual Veritas wine and brandy awards is one of the largest and oldest of its kind for South African producers, and a valuable consumer guide to quality as a result.
Taking its place among this year’s top performers, Boplaas Family Vineyards received two Double Golds and four Golds in the categories for red wine, fortified wines and Cape Port.
Double Gold went to the Cape Vintage Reserve Port 2019 and the Cape Tawny NV Port. Both have been consistent achievers, with the Cape Vintage Reserve having most recently received five stars in the authoritative Platter’s South African wine guide. It was also the only port wine to receive Gold at the Europe-based Concours Mondial de Bruxelles. The Cape Tawny NV scored 94 points by Tim Atkin, MW, in his South Africa Wine Report.
Boplaas’s four Golds at Veritas Awards this year were awarded to its Stoepsit Merlot 2023, Cape Tawny Colheita Port 2007 (Port of the Year for Tim Atkin), Cape Vintage Reserve 2021 and the Hanepoot 2024. The latter also recently won the trophy as overall champion at the South African Young Wine Show.
The Boplaas Stoepsit Merlot is named in memory of matriarch Ouma Roline Nel who loved Sauvignon Blanc and entertaining friends on her stoep in the Klein Karoo. Some of her friends often preferred red wine and she served them Boplaas Merlot. The wine is plush-fruited, smooth, very versatile and consistent, with hints of bright red cherries, subtle spice and mocha.
Where the port wines are concerned, the Veritas results once again confirmed the Boplaas name as being synonymous with the production of world-class wines from Portuguese varieties.
The varieties thrive in the Klein Karoo climate but arrived at the Calitzdorp farm quite by accident. The story goes that Oupa Danie Nel ordered Shiraz vines from a nursery in the Cape. What he received was Tinta Barocca. The error was realised only years later, identified while his son, Carel, was studying viticulture at Stellenbosch University. This set the course for Boplaas to specialise in Portuguese varietal wines and Cape Port.
On the road to the establishment of Boplaas as a true specialist, winemaker Margaux Nel subsequently completed her MSc on the Portuguese varietal Touriga Nacional as red table wine.
This range of wines and ports is available from the Boplaas cellar door in Calitzdorp, its online shop and tasting rooms at the Redberry Farm in George and Hart & Bosch Village in Hartenbos, as well as discerning fine wine retailers nationwide.