South African Syrah: 30 top buys Matt Walls

A blind tasting of 78 top South African examples of this well-loved, spicy variety proved both rewarding and revealing for Matt Walls, who found that styles fell into two distinct camps. Here he narrows it down to his top 30 picks from the savoury, Syrah-styled school

Consider how frustrating it must be as a winemaker to have the terroir to produce light, fresh, fragrant Syrah but being forced to call it Shiraz on the label. Sure, it’s the same grape, but the stylistic difference it implies is immense. Andre Van Rensburg was the first South African winemaker to apply to use this synonym for his iconic Stellenzicht, Syrah 1994; prior to that, calling it Shiraz was the only option. Since then, more and more South African winemakers have been producing wines in a classic, Rhône-like Syrah style, as opposed to a traditional Australian Shiraz style. Today, the quality is so convincing that you’d be mad to ignore them.

Of the 78 premium South African Syrah and Shiraz wines I tasted, the most exciting wines were almost all labelled Syrah. They tended to have a fresher, more drinkable, more savoury expression, and ultimately it was this stylistic difference that directed my final choice of just 30 wines.

Richard Kelley MW of UK importer Dreyfus Ashby has 25 years’ experience of working with South African wineries, and says that among Cape winemakers ‘no one really looks at Australia as a Shiraz benchmark anymore’. The new generation of winemakers have a lighter touch in the cellar that gives these wines more precise aromatic detail and a stronger sense of place.

‘There’s something of a stylistic split between the new wave of producers and the old guard,’ says Christian Eedes, editor of Winemag.co.za. ‘The former favour early picking, whole-bunch fermentation and minimal intervention, and the latter opt more for fruit power, heavier extraction and more obvious oak. Both camps have their followers.’

Rather than a diversification in style, I suspect that what we’re witnessing here is an important evolution: it’s hard to imagine any producers of contemporary South African Syrah going back to making traditional Shiraz.

Finesse and complexity

Of course, not all the Shirazes I tasted were disappointing or unpleasant; far from it. Exceptional examples included Dewaldt

Heyns’ flamboyant Weathered Hands Shiraz, the powerful, velvety Eagle’s Nest and fine, fluid Cederberg. The 30 wines I’ve selected here, however, will appeal to those who tend to buy St-Joseph more frequently than Barossa.

Just as there is no single style of Shiraz, within those wines identifying as Syrah there was an enjoyable variety: whispering finesse from Lukas van Loggerenberg, Burgundian sophistication from Richard Kershaw and savoury complexity from Boekenhoutskloof.

It’s worth mentioning that the use of the term Syrah or Shiraz on the label has no official or legal basis, it’s simply the decision of the producer – and it doesn’t always align with what’s in the bottle. I tasted a lot of wines labelled Syrah that shouted Shiraz in the glass.

When it comes to regionality, cooler climates such as Elgin, Elim, Sutherland-Karoo and in particular Bot River are all producing very fine examples. Nearly half the wines I tasted came from warmer Stellenbosch, where style and quality vary wildly – the best were from cooler corners, such as the Upper Blaauwklippen Valley and Polkadraai Hills. Despite its hotter climate, Swartland had a higher hit-rate than Stellenbosch, delivering memorable wines of strong character.

This was a thrilling tasting which confirmed my belief that, after France, South Africa is the go-to country for Syrah. Though California also has many enticing examples, South Africa offers better value for money, with plenty to choose from around the £20 mark. Some of these wines are still clearly underpriced, so now is the time to explore.

‘After France, South Africa is the go-to country for Syrah’