Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
A guide to the best in bubbles
16 There’s a sparkling wine, MCC or champagne to suit every budget, writes Bianca Coleman
THE air will be filled with the sound of corks popping this weekend. Here’s a handy guide to a selection of sparkling wine, Methode Cap Classique and real-deal champagnes to suit every budget.
● The newest addition to the Stellenbosch Hills Polkedraai range is the maiden vintage Sauvignon Blanc Sparkling Brut 2017, which joins the Pinot Noir Sparkling Rosé.
The newcomer is refreshingly drier in style, bouncing with lively fruit flavours and a bracing acidity. It’s best serve chilled, on its own or with fresh oysters; a caprese salad of fresh mozzarella, tomatoes and sweet basil; or an oh-so-creamy Alfredo pasta that’s thick with Parmesan and butter.
Stellenbosch Hills is the patron of the Polka Kids Community Project and a percentage of all Polkadraai wine sales is donated to the neighbouring Vlottenburg Primary School.
The Sauvignon Blanc Sparkling Brut 2017 is only available at the cellar or via the website, and sells for just R60 a bottle. Better yet, when you visit the cellar on a Friday you can buy any five Polkedraai wines and get one free.
The Stellenbosch Hills tasting room is on the corner of the R310 and the Vlottenburg Road, near Stellenbosch. The tasting room is open Mondays to Fridays, 9am till 5pm, and Saturdays, 10am till 3pm.
For more information, call
021 881 3828/9, e-mail info@ stellenbosch-hills.co.za or go to www.stellenbosch-hills.co.za
● Steenberg’s 1682 Brut Chardonnay MCC is crisp on the palate with lemon zest acidity and a toasty, savoury character, while the 1682 Pinot Noir MCC beguiles with its pale pink hue and whiffs of wild strawberry sorbet, raspberry meringue and citrus blossom.
If you prefer something younger and fresher, try the farm’s bottle fermented sparkling Sauvignon Blanc, filled with the fruity aromas of litchi, guava, pineapple, mango and green fig, followed by fizzy pineapple and passion fruit on the palate.
All three are available countrywide. The sparking Sauvignon Blanc sells for R120 at the Steenberg cellar in Constantia, the 1682 Chardonnay MCC sells for R175, and the Pinot Noir MCC 2016 has a cellar door price of R210.
For more information, call 021 713 2222 or go to www. steenbergfarm.com
● A player in this game that cannot be ignored is Prosecco. The short explanation is that it’s Italian bubbly (as opposed to French); it’s made with Glera, or Prosecco, grapes and generally in the tank method where secondary fermentation takes place in there instead of the bottle.
The result is light and refreshing. I’ve had a couple of bottles of Da Luca recently (don’t judge) and found it to be a wonderful afternoon wine.
Lower in alcohol, and kissed with a hint of sweetness, it retails for around R100 a bottle. Da Luca is best served chilled at 8-12ºC, and can be enjoyed alone (by this I think they probably mean by itself, rather than me sitting on my own), in cocktails, as a refreshing aperitif or with meals.
● The award-winning 2014 is the fifth vintage of Plaisir de Merle MCC and is a blend of 65% Pinot Noir and 35% Chardonnay. Left on the lees for about 20 months, it delivers delicate yeasty notes on the nose and its foamy mouth-feel is lively with crisp green apple freshness and a lingering mature finish.
Enjoy it chilled with oysters, scallops and seafood platters, or leave to mature for a further five to seven years. Good luck with that.
It retails for R210 a bottle from selected liquor outlets and www.vinoteque.co.za (free delivery).
● The grapes for the Krone range of MCCs are picked in the cool dark to retain flavour and aroma. Named after the Corona Borealis constellation of stars, the Krone Borealis Vintage Cuvée Brut 2016 is
90% Chardonnay, with the balance being Pinot Noir and a smidgeon of Pinot Blanc.
Drink it with naked oysters, ricotta and roasted tomato bruschetta with pancetta, lime-dressed angelfish ceviche, creamy porcini risotto, or fire-roasted lemon-and-black pepper chicken kebabs.
Other wines in the Krone range include Vintage Rosé Cuvée Brut 2016, Night Nectar Demi-Sec, and Night Nectar Demi-Sec Rosé 2016. All retail for around R120 a bottle.
The tasting room at Twee Jonge Gezellen in Tulbagh, where the wines are made, is open Mondays to Fridays from 10am till 4pm, and on Saturdays from 10am till 2pm. For more information, go to www.tweejongegezellen.co.za
● Groote Post Brut Rosé is an elegant salmon-hued Cap Classique with a fine creamy mousse, gorgeous notes of crushed strawberries and raspberries and a silky smoothness on the palate.
It retails in bottle stores for around R135, but if you feel like a road trip, the farm is in the Darling hills about an hour from Cape Town.
With lunch at Hilda’s Kitchen or a 4x4 tour of the vineyards, complete with amazing views of the Atlantic coast and Table Mountain, it’s well worth a visit.
For more information, call 022 492 2825, e-mail wine@ grootepost.co.za or go to www. grootepost.com
● One of my resolutions for 2018 is to have a wine named after me. It’s more difficult than you’d think, although there are dogs out there with their namesake wines. Just saying.
At Muratie, the Melck family names its wines after extraordinary characters from the farm’s colourful past, each with its own story described on the back label.
The Cap Classique honours Lady Alice Sarah Stanford, who was married to a senator, and as custodians of Muratie after they bought the farm in 1909, they lived the life of the landed gentry at the time.
The 100% Pinot Noir Brut Rosé has aromas of lemons, limes, almond blossom and toasted cereals which are echoed on the palate with citrus, toasted buttered brioche and a distinctively salty edge. It retails between R180 and R200.
For more information, call 021 865 2330, e-mail info@ muratie.co.za or go to www. muratie.co.za
● L’Ormarins Brut Classique Rosé NV is predominantly Pinot Noir, which contributes to its delicate salmon-pink colour, with the expected aromas of raspberry and strawberries.
Enjoy it chilled, on its own, or as the ideal partner to a fresh summer salad of goat’s cheese with a raspberry vinaigrette, or a strawberry tart.
It’s available from the tasting room for R120 a bottle, or select specialist wine stores nationwide.
The tasting room at Anthonij Rupert Wines is open Mondays to Saturdays, 10am till 5pm. Go to www. rupertwines.com/home.php for more information.
● To this day, I still meet people who do not know the gorgeous Desiderius Pongrácz – and the rest of the Pongrácz range – is made by Elunda Basson at The House Of JC Le Roux.
It is not a bubble to be burst; this divine MCC won five Diners Club South Africa Platter Guide stars earlier this year for its 2009 vintage.
A blend of 70% Chardonnay and 30% Pinot Noir left on the lees for seven years, Desiderius Pongrácz is indisputably one of the most elegant MCCs, not only for its exceptional quality but also for the graceful packaging that makes it a timeless addition to any dinner party, celebration or as a gift, says Basson.
It retails for around R450 a bottle, and its website (https:// pongracz.co.za) is frustratingly short on information.
However, you can taste and buy at The House Of JC Le Roux in Stellenbosch. Call 021 865 8200 for more information. ● Nicolas Feuillatte Champagne has released five limited edition champagnes this festive season. The range Includes Brut Réserve (R540), Brut
Rosé (R675), and Graphic Ice Blanc and Rosé (R470 and
R580 respectively). Prices are approximate.
Bollinger Rosé 2006 is the first limited edition vintage dedicated to a rosé (72% Pinot Noir), inspired by the excellent 2006 vintage.
Coming in at around R1 500 from selected specialist wine stores in Cape Town and Johannesburg, this is the ultimate celebration drink.
Cheers and here’s to a fablulous 2018. Just remember… don’t drink and drive.