I've been a fan of South African wines ever since I discovered them in the late 90's. I still try as many as I can, and the other day while at Vintages I came across this admittedly different wine: an oak aged Chenin Blanc made from bush-vine fruit. Hmmm ... it sounded right up my alley. Today, I read that wine writer David Lawrason gave this wine 89 points, but in all fairness I can't agree with his favourable assessment.
$16.15 at Vintages. Solid, high-quality natural cork closure. 14.5% alc./vol. Deep yellow straw colour. Vague, nondescript, almost non-existent aromatics on the nose. Crisp acidity on the entry, followed by searing alcoholic heat. The heat is so bad that even refrigeration doesn't help tame it. Not much beyond alcoholic burning on the mid-palate, followed by a hot, blowsy finish. Very unpleasant.
This is certainly a very difficult wine at the table and doesn't offer much aromatic or flavour interest even as a stand-alone sipper, either. The 14.5% alcohol level is simply way too much for a white table wine. Frankly, I'd rather it had 13% or less, even if that meant less ripe phenolics! I think that would have made a big difference, because as it is, the heat just does this wine in.
Truth be told, I lament the ever increasing alcohol levels as seen on nearly all the wines that Vintages imports from SA these days. I'm sure they've bought into the idea that New World / big-alcohol / big-ripeness is what's going to sell, and they've thrown all their weight behind that mentality. But for me, it's regression. Give me that old-school minerality and balance that SA wines were known for up to recently. Give me elegance and style coupled with a nice touch of warm-climate fruit as part of a balanced mix.