KWV, The Mentors Cabernet Franc, Stellenbosch 2019 (14.5%)

£20 North South Wines

Those seeking out reds based on Cabernet Franc beyond their French home are, often enough, seeking a red that combines the structure and command of Cabernet Sauvignon but with more lift, grace and aromatic refinement. This Best in Show winner fills that role admirably. It’s dark in colour, with subtle, refined, complex, raspberry and root-spice aromas. Look out for bright, pure raspberry fruit on the palate with a further twist of liquorice and gentian. The structure comes more from the wine’s quiet, limpid acidity than from any notable tannin presence, further underscoring that accessibility.

A serious knee injury curtailed the US tennis scholarship and dream career of Izele van Blerk, senior winemaker at KWV. Returning to South Africa where her father was a viticulturist, her next step was perhaps inevitable: ‘I grew up in a house where wine culture was part of our tapestry, so it was a familiar path to choose,’ she recounts.

‘KWV’s cellars, at 24ha, are the largest in the southern hemisphere,’ she explains. ‘Yet, hidden away, you will find the home of The Mentors, a special corner made up of tiny tanks and hand-labelled barrels where the magic happens.

‘I enjoy working with characterful varieties that keep me on my toes. In South Africa, Cabernet Franc is mainly reserved for blends, adding that extra luminosity. I was encouraged to experiment with The Mentors, and 2019 had such a profound depth that it claimed its validation as a standalone variety.

‘It was made from a vineyard that we divided into two blocks and treated differently. The first was made in a Loire style, focusing on red fruit purity and a refined tannin structure, while the second followed a Bordeaux approach: a harder cap to maximise extraction, ushering in concentrated fruit and bold tannin.’

The wine is an equal marriage of both plots, aged for a year in 70% new French oak before the best wines were aged for a further six months.