The 2008 vintage of the very popular and affordable Raka Rose was released last year. Fans of this dry, lightly oaked wine can still stock up for the light summer lunches, long, warm summer evenings and beach parties that lie ahead. The new vintage of the equally popular Sauvignon Blanc has also been on the market for some time, and is now joined by two more white wines. The Raka Shannonea is a white blend of 64% Sauvignon Blanc, 18% Chenin Blanc and 18% Chardonnay. The wine's name was inspired by the erica shannonea, one of the many spiecies of wild heather (ericacea) occurring in the fynbos on the farm. It is endemic to the Kleinrivier Mountains where Raka is situated. The 2008 Raka Chenin Blanc was made by Pieter Dreyer, younger of the Dreyers' sons, from grapes bought in from Agter Paarl. It is barrel fermented with honey aromas on the nose and has a core of fruit with hints of nuts and honey on the palate. The Dreyer family is proud of Pieter's first attempt at winemaking. The other wines were made by older brother, Josef Dreyer, winemaker at Raka since 2007. Josef won the The Ferroprint Grand Prix Trophy for best wine on Show at the Michelangelo International Wine Awards in October last year. These summer wines, along with the famous Raka reds, are available from the tasting room at Raka on the R326, 17 km from Stanford (36km from Caledon). Visitors to Raka can look forward to some special offers, while the wines will also be available for tasting at various venues and shows during the coming months. Limpopo Wine Festival, Polokwane: 23 - 26 April Jo'burg Wine Festival, Midrand: 29 - 31 May Waterfront Spar Wine Extravaganza in the Feathermarket Hall, Port Elizabeth in June. Raka will also be at Winex in both Cape Town and Sandton towards the end of the year. Caption: Piet and Elna Dreyer with winemaker sons Pieter and Josef. Photograph by Annalize Mouton, from her book Stanford, Portrait of a Village which is for sale at Raka and various bookshops. Annalize's portraits are currently on exhibition at the Library Centre, Bellville, together with photographs of Gustavo De Luca and Bianca Schoebel in an exhibition titled "Portraits of three villages" untill 25th February, 2009.