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S africa trio

"So how would one remark on the differences between a South African Chenin Blanc and a Loire Chenin Blanc during a blind tasting," one participant wanted to know.

The venue was the ultra cool Tribeca Rooftop, an elegant space with wide windows and a terrace in Tribeca where many wine events are held, and the question was raised during a tutored tasting seminar of six different Chenin Blancs. As you may known, both in S. Africa and the Loire, this grape can take on many different guises, from very dry and mineral to very sweet and luscious. And curiously both in the Loire and in S. Africa the wine is an incredible value, especially given that it improves with bottle age and even though often the oldest wine is  the best wine, it is usually the affordable value on any wine list.

The three men who delivered the seminar included Ken Forrester of Ken Forrester Wines, Andrew Shearer of Cape Classics, and Sean Griffiths of Kanu. The question with regard to blind tasting was that the Chenin Blanc from S. Africa would have more minerals, and given that the S. African soil is the oldest in the world, this may indeed be true. What I did notice from the lecture and the tasting was that the S. Africans spend an incredible amount of energy and time perfecting wine that is sold at what appears to be a very low price for all that effort. Each of the six wines represented was a handcrafted product. Producers would blend wines from grapes grown on different soils, tank ferment a portion and barrel ferment the rest, and then spend time creating the perfect blend for what, in New York at least, would be an inexpensive wine.

Malolactic fermentation is not the done thing in S. Africa for the most part, because they like to keep the freshness of flavor. Another trend here is a focus on natural fermentations and natural yeast.

I certainly hope  the trade takes notice of these wines and brings more to New York as they really are great values.

The Pinotage seminar and tutored tasting that followed featured Albrie Beeslaar from Kanonkop, whom I contacted several months ago with a question about Pinotage. He was joined by colleagues Robin Back of Fairview/Goats do Roam/Spice Route and Morne Van Rooyen.

All in all, a really fabulous show and I hope the S. Africans come again soon.
 

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