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Celebrating the wines of the Southern Rhône,
Languedoc-Roussillon and their South African counterparts
WINE CELLAR - 5th
September 2005
PRICE LIST OF ALL WINES
AVAILABLE
Over the last decade some of South Africa’s finest wines have
been modeled on the South of France, but there is much room for the
promotion of this category. Similarly, we would like to make South
Africans more aware of the great value of imported wines from the South
of France.
Both the local wines and imports invariably offer a fine balance of ripe
berry fruit, savoury notes, relatively low acidities and soft tannins.
This makes for some of the most attractive ‘drinking wine’ around which
is especially fitting to the South African palate. Their warmth and
savoury nature also make them generally very good with food.
“We are not trying to imitate the Southern Rhone. Nature will dictate
the personality of these wines. What we do know is that larger, older
oak and simple viniculture compliment the lovely fruit of the older
vineyards” Say the Fourie Brothers of Val de Vie.
“Similarities in climate between the Cape West Coast and the
Mediterranean region of Europe mean that Mediterranean grape varieties
are perfectly at home in the Swartland” says Chris Mullineux of
Mullineux Family Wines, one of the exciting prospects of the Southern
French style. “There is a good source of healthy old vineyards, which
make for great depth and complexity.” He further points out.
The Rhône-style white blend category in SA is certainly one the rise.
Examples such as Adi Badenhorst’s White and Black Rock White use
old-vine Chenin Blanc and other Mediterranean verities to make textured
and exciting wines. On the red side,
Southern-Rhône styles like Signal Hill’s Grenache and Sequillo’s red
offer South Africa’s bright fruit with added French flair.
“We happen to have similar varietals here, the vines happen to be
old, with low yields and no
water and granitic soils
“ reinforces Adi Badenhorst (ex Rustenberg) of this movement towards
terroir-driven blended wines with less oak and less obvious sweetness.
Like in the South of France.
Domaine Grier - Roussillon
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