Celestina
2012 is produced in Cape Agulhas, retails for R95 and comprises of 60%
Sauvignon Blanc and 40% Semillon. This blend is fermented and matured for 11
months in a combination of 300-litre and 500-litre French oak barrels, none of
which are new. Its tasting notes are subtle and complex offering lime and white
peach flavours before a peppery bite on the finish. It has a good concentration
and texture offset by bright acidity. It should be drunk from now until 2017.
Steenberg
Magna Carta 2011 from Constantia is due for release in March 2014 and will
retail for R495. This blend also comprises 60% Sauvignon Blanc and 40%
Semillon. The Semillon is fermented and matured for two months in 500-litre and
600-litre French oak barrels, 45% of which are new. After blending, the wine
goes back into barrel for a further seven months, 41% of which are new barrels.
It has grabbing aromatics and tasting notes of citrus blossom, peach and
tangerine plus a hint of vanilla on the nose. It is a powerful flavour with a
dense core of fruit and a great line of acidity that is really persistent to
the finish. It will be best for drinking to 2019.
Lastly, Tokara
Director’s Reserve White 2011 from Stellenbosch retails at R185. It
comprises 71% Sauvignon Blanc and 29% Semillon. It is fermented and matured for
nine months, with Sauvignon Blanc in 400-litre barrels, and Semillon in
225-litre barrels, 26% of which are new barrels altogether. Its tasting notes
include peach, blackcurrant and attractive oak spice on both the nose and
palate. It is a sumptuous wine with great flavour intensity and tangy acidity.
Drink it now until 2019.
The
competition was open to all producers in the country, conditions of
participation being that wines submitted had to be current release or soon to
be released and were specifically labelled as blends (no wines labelled as
“Sauvignon Blanc” but containing a fraction of Semillon were permitted).
The judging
panel was chaired by well-known wine connoisseur Christian Eedes, Roland Peens
of Wine Cellar (a Cape Town firm that brokers and cellars fine wines) and James
Pietersen, beverage manager for local restaurants Balducci’s and Belthazar. Judging
was done blind using the 20-point/Five Star system and PKF were the tasting
auditors.
“Sauvignon
Blanc-Semillon blends are fairly new in South Africa and we were very pleased
with the quantity and quality of submissions,” says Albrecht Gantz of RisCura.
“While those in the know may already love these blends, arguably they have not
attracted the popular following they deserve. The RisCura White Hot wine
awards, which will be held annually, aims to remedy that.”
About RisCura:
RisCura is a global, independent
financial analytics provider and investment consultant. RisCura services
institutional investors with over $200billion in assets under management, as
well as a significant number of asset management, hedge fund and private equity
firms.