A brilliant line-up of smart wines were entered from the who’s-who of SA’s value producers. All wines had to retail for under R100 pb. But the quality was such that it became difficult for the judges to keep the price point in mind. That says something very positive about vintages 2016/17!
To professionally assess the flights of quality of wines entered, a first class set of judges were allocated to the chaired panels. And rise to the challenge they did!
Two long and rigorous days saw the judging finally come to an end, after which the Auditors stepped in to review and then affirm the final set of results. From there, all winning wines went through a price-recognition algorithm adjustment. This final step ensures that consumers can buy SA’s ultra value wines, offering RAND for RAND great quality at a very affordable price.
Fair and square, SA’s Ultra Value wines have come to the fore yet again.
Robin von Holdt comments further:
“We are privileged with strong industry support and we are now working towards launching the final results to participants and industry on Friday 6th October. It has been a manically busy yet very positive event again this year. Great wines, great vineyards and smart people promise a great set of results! The support has been tremendous and we remain hugely optimistic and confident about this key sector. The SA wine scene is bustling, full of energy and enthusiasm. We offer a big thank you to all entrants and massive round of applause for all of the brilliant wines entered. Stay tuned: On Friday 6th the winners will be de frocked!”
Feedback and commentary from the judges follow:
Spencer Fondaumiere shared:
The quality across the board of the Sauvignon Blancs on show was very consistent, and of an exceptionally good standard. Happily, the trend in most of the wines was steeped towards the tropical fruit spectrum, as opposed to the often less popular green pyrazine style. A joy to taste!
Fiona Macdonald (pictured above) comments on rosé:
It’s something of a guilty secret... like quiche, “real men” are not supposed to enjoy pink drinks! Which is a load of nonsense because the Rosé category in the South African wine landscape is one which is going through a major renaissance right now.
A decade ago Rosé was invariably a deep, reddish pink – somewhat reminiscent of Janie Vergara koeldrank or raspberry Kool-Aid – and it was more often than not sweet rather than dry.
Those days are gone. Retail shelves in South Africa now groan with pink wines, most of them taking their cue from the French Provençal model of a subtle, copper pink blush which is as seductive to the eye as its dry, refreshing flavour is to the palate.
So it was a genuine pleasure to see a really solid lineup of Rosé on the tasting bench at the Ultra Value challenge. Most were charming in their subtlety and dryness – and the colours were just beautiful to look at. So much so that more than one camera phone was pulled out to photograph the array...
It was also obvious to see that winemakers are putting a bit of thought into what goes into the bottle. It’s no longer a class or category where it’s useful to mop up something else or to bleed juice off the skins to concentrate colour on another red wine. These are thoughtful wines, wines that serve a purpose. And that purpose is refreshment and uncomplicated enjoyment in the hot south African summer sunshine. Good gentle berry and plum flavours were on display, some had a gentle fynbos or herb brush indicating the use of either Cabernet Franc or Cabernet Sauvignon but overall it was a real pleasure to see the strides being made locally.
Dr. Winnie Bowman contributed:
Pinotage was a delightful category with many wines that really displayed the Pinotage grape in its generosity and fruity style that will please many winelovers. It was a great example of how much value there is to be had in this category. There were a few standout wine here, but mainly very drinkable, juicy and balanced, well made wines for the price.
Tasting Cape Blends is always a pleasure - because there is something for every palate! The versatility of Pinotage blended with different other varieties make tasting and exploring new blends very interesting. The inherent juiciness of Pinotage gives great drinking pleasure and volume to blends, bring some lovely fruity elements to the party. In this price bracket, there are loads of rewarding wines to try… and to make them your favourites!
Jolette Steyn added:
This year’s Syrah/Shiraz wines were delightfully well-made. Two styles were distinctive, namely dark, big, bold and smoky; and lighter, more fruit-driven medium bodied wines. I still believe South African Syrah/Shiraz to be one of our strongest categories. Many world class examples of creative and classical Syrah’s (often priced above R100), where viticulturists and winemakers run the gamut of what is possible with Syrah on our home soil. They play around with destemmed whole berry/whole bunch fermentations and vessels made from concrete, stainless steel, and oak . It is my opinion, that all tiers of Syrah will continue to improve in both quality and creativity. Bravo, the flights were great!
The Chardonnay flight delivered beautifully balanced and high quality wines for the price point with superbly oaky Chardonnays bending the knee to lighter, fresher style Chardonnays with judicious use of oak, if any. I believe that Chardonnay are one of our strongest white categories. This trend continues throughout the different pricing tiers. Many terroir pockets with unique microclimates as well as different interpretations by passionate winemakers account for the variety of styles that we have seen during this competition.
In general the pursuit of excellence/quality of the wine was exceptional. It is heart-warming to see the larger producers trying new things in both the vineyard and the cellar in order to increase the value offering to the consumer. Some of the wines were mind-blowing considering the price point and I’ll definitely go buy some cases of Pinot Noir, Pinotage, Cape Blends and bubbly when the results are revealed!
Gareth Robertson (pictured above) postured thoughts:
Over the past three years there has been a definite general improvement of quality and precision winemaking of the Cabernet, Merlot and Bordeaux blend categories. Personally Merlot being the big surprise this year with a number of great wines entered. I definitely feel that the winemakers seemed to be more focussed on producing better wines with good, clean and bright fruit characters, better wood and tannin management, which ultimately ends up as a great wine at an extremely affordable price. Well done to all involved with helping to raise the bar for wines at this price point.
This year’s Cabernets seemed to be much more elegant and balanced when compared to previous years’ which often were extremely ripe, and could be a difficult drink.
Bordeaux were more refined and had more finesse than previous years. The majority were smart wines, which had good, clean and classic aromas, back by some generous fruit and balance.
Maggie Mostert exchanged views:
Chenin Blanc has shown that the grape can make the transition from a distilling wine to a delicious white wine. This is the definition of “sunshine in the glass”. There is a range of styles and flavour profiles out there – not only will you find a Chenin Blanc to suit your taste; you can find a decent wine at a very good price. There literally is a Chenin Blanc out there for everyone.
Rhone Red Blends were so giving, so generous – such a brilliant tasting. South Africa does excel in this category – on all price points. Interesting to note the increasing use of Cinsaut and Grenache as blending partners for (mostly) Shiraz. This category will only increase in stature as awareness and plantings increase. These blends are incredibly versatile, ranging from lighter styles to dark and broody. Just keep tasting them all.
Ginette de Fleuriott, Judging Chair:
Judging wines with quality and value in mind is a very rewarding task as it provides an excellent overview of where our industry is at. It also reminds one that there are some real gems out there which will bring great drinking pleasure but won’t break the bank. This is the third year that I have been involved with the Ultra Value Challenge and the wines entered were once again confirmation of the wealth of good wines available to wine lovers at a cost of less than R100. We certainly are spoiled for choice! Our experienced tasters worked in two panels over two days with quality in mind and with panel discussions to ensure that the results were absolutely fair and that individual style preferences did not interfere with the final objective score. Without knowing the specifics and identity of the winners, we concluded the Challenge tasting with real optimism. We look forward to the results so that we, too, can make some smart choices when next shopping for superlative wines at an affordable price.
Kindly note that the winning results will be published on Friday 6th October.