capeofgoodwine, Lothian Vineyards, Rockview Dam Rd, Elgin (2026)

23/09/2026

Sedgwick’s Old Brown

If you wondered where all this sherry energy stems from: one last wintery games night with friends…with a customary tot or two of Old Brown’s aka OBS (aka antifreeze coz that’s exactly why we drink it in winter). Also, I can’t believe I’ve never posted about SA’s first brown sherry…that isn’t sherry.

Translucent medium orangey red/terracotta clay/ dark rooibos tea in colour…take your pick…some might call it tawny. Pronounced raisins, dates, prunes, dried apricots, hazelnuts, ripe oranges and candied orange peel, caramel, a waft of lemony zest, a suggestion of cardamom, a muted sense of kelp fermenting in the sun…dried mushroomy malty brewery summin’ summin’.

Sweet (150-160g/L RS), fuller bodied from the sugar and alcohol…but there’s also a thinness that points to the fortified nature, good acidity that lends some freshness, and a medium finish. The palate pretty much echoes the nose to greater (dried fruit, citrus & caramel) and lesser (nuttiness, umami) extents…but ends in citrus tinged molasses (the summin summin I couldn’t put my finger on).

Not gonna lie…it’s a one or two tot ritual on a chilly evening in the spirit of winter boardgames night…consumed well before the screaming, cursing and threats of leaving begin (coz Monopoly is dumb, you can’t stack plus 4’s in uno, and how on earth would I know your mom’s favourite rugby player in 30 seconds 🤬). It’s unbalanced, headache inducing, and an SA staple that amuses us!

Tomorrow is Heritage Day, and many booze drinking South African will recognise the combo of malva pudding and OBS (and cut glass sherry glasses from your grannies display cupboard). A winter braai really isn’t complete without a bottle floating near the fire. It may be Spring, but I reckon there’ll be a few of these bottles cracked open tomorrow. Happy Heritage Day mense!

16/09/2026

Saldanha Wine & Spirit Co Pale Dry No. 17

Number 17…that’s how long it’s taken me to finally save a bottle for a pic. I remember tasting this many years ago before it was released…a wine event geared at more unusual wines. SA dry ‘sherry’ was definitely unusual despite our long history of making these wines. It’s become a holiday festive fave…that sells out super fast…no surprise, given that it’s a Badenhorst product.

Pale gold with quintessential acetaldehyde that smacks you in the face…followed by zesty lemon peel and bitter chamomile/feverfew and grapefruit pith (when you can smell that pith 🤣), bruised apple flesh and and squeaky Grannysmith skins, tart dried apricots, almond skins, and varnish.

Dry, mediumish bodied, soooo concentrated it’s hard to concentrate 🤣, higher acidity, and a decent finish. Those first few sips are not shy…I want to say wild horses, but a more relatable analogy is a Ridgeback bowling you over as the front door opens for a walkies: powerful, singleminded determination, and a bit oblivious to its chaotic energy.

But give it a moment and the biting austerity calms down…allowing you to appreciate the gentler fennel bulb, notice the tendrils of wood lacquer and woodsy brandy fumes swirling behind the citrus and apricot, and enjoy the saline seam that helps smooth the pithy texture. Longer pauses between sips (to do some homework…see rant in comments), sees the fennel convert to a medicinal wormwood.

So yeah, we are so not in Spain. The apricots and screaming acidity are undoubtedly Chenin Blanc. Google says there’s also Palomino…but I was thinking Sauv Blanc because it leaves you with mineral salivation. AA Badenhorst uses sherry yeasts imported from Spain, Swartland grapes, and ages under flor in Saldanha Bay and Kalmoesfontein Farm? One liner: buy what you can as soon as you can…if you like sherry.

09/09/2026

Lustau Manzanilla Papirosa

Speaking of wines that instantly transport you to the sea. Tell me this Manzanilla isn’t a sunset walk along the coast, crunching on an apple to tide you over ‘til dinner…inspecting every rock pool while sea mist starts to roll in and envelop you…until a sudden crash and spray reminds you that the tide is turning…and you reluctantly, despite the goosebumps, head back…the soft, warm glow through the windows a beacon guiding you to the thatched cottage that your high school friend calls home.

Romantic? Insert shrieking kids, belly laughs when you step in a pool of stagnant seawater, and the kids voting for takeaway pizza instead of the fish tacos you’d planned. The kids were right…pizza is easier.

Hay and chamomile, kelp and sea fog, lemon zest flecks in a green apple granita.

Dry, lower acidity, light bodied, near imperceptible alcohol for me...and a longish finish. Almonds, fennel bulb and bread dough insist on joining the watery bruised apple flesh. The kids pull faces when they sniff my drink…delish!

02/09/2026

Arniston Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2026

I’ve seen this brand around for ages…but finally stopped to say hello at the Meridian Wine Trade Tasting in August. Tasting events are overwhelming - my strategy is always to explore everything I don’t know. And when the winery’s representative is this friendly and kind, how could I not stop and learn and taste: Penguin conservation through SANCCOB, Fairtrade contributions to farmworker community projects, and financial support for tertiary education for youths from Arniston. And tasty wines:

Water white…as pale as it gets…which reminds me of ‘catching waves’ as a kid and insisting on bringing the waves home in a bucket.

Mineraaaaaal! Pronounced minerality bordering on petrol 😋, lime, sweet peaches, a breath of fresh green mange tout, and orange sherbert.

Mineraaaal! Dry, friendly but still SB acidity, lighter bodied, lime zest tang, a teensy pithy grapefruit texture, and a pleasant shorter finish. Oystershell, orange sherbert, green nettle herbals, salinity, and lime.

It’s a simple wine, but it embodies seaside holidays: wild hair that your mother gives up on trying to tame, a permanent dusting of salt on your tanned skin, torn between a hunger that only the ocean can produce…or playing in the waves for longer. Obviously our parents had to march down to the water’s edge to eventually fish us out of the sea.

At first I thought ‘it’s nice, it’s fine…I don’t know if I have room for this level of wine in my life’. But it made me write the paragraph above…also, penguins! So I can see myself repurchasing this specifically for a beach holiday. Wild frizzy hair, coated in sea salt, reading a book while waiting for the rest of the holiday household to wake up from their nap so that we can find oysters.

26/08/2026

Hirsch Ried Lamm Kamptal Grüner Veltliner 2019

We’re days away from meteorological Spring. Tangent: I always wondered why people thought Spring Day was 1 September…yet I always remembered it as 21 September (astronomical spring is on the 22/23rd). It’s one of those funny primary school teachings/artefacts that stuck with me. But the sunrise, trees and birdies are clearly working with meteorological Spring.

Back on track: who am I to argue with the chirping birds…they are an accurate alarm clock/calendar reminder that it is Sauv Blanc season! But before I OD on SB, let’s ease into the Spring with a Grüner.

An elegant nose of white peaches, apples and limes. Vegetal celery juice but also a herbal green something. Cream soda minerality and a flint-like smokiness.

Dry but so juicy, fine zesty acidity, lighter bodied but with depth of flavour, smooth but with some textural pithy grip, and a decent length to the finish. Juicy juicy juicy ripe peaches and apples, distinctive minerality… and an intriguing subtle salty ye**ty leesy note.

It’s another wonderful gift from Grzesiek who is having the most glorious summer - so worthwhile checking out his annual wine adventures/pilgramages! Tangent: primary school also taught us that summer starts when the 6 week December holiday started. 6 weeks of holiday - oh, to be a kid again!

19/08/2026

Mount Abora Saffraan Cinsaut 2022

Sticking with the theme of agreeing with your younger self. This wine was a major turning point for me back in 2013/14. A sit up straight and whisper ‘woah…what is this’ moment. It became my introduction to boutique wineries, less common grape varieties, and switching to purchasing from boutique wine stores.

I don’t have any tasting notes for the first few vintages because I hadn’t yet adopted that habit. Wine was for pure enjoyment…and getting sauced with friends 🤣. A beverage to look forward to as soon as the sun had set - now a beverage that sneaks in after midday on weekends…and is often spittooned before then!

Things have changed: the grapes are no longer from Swartland (think it’s Breedekloof); the wines are no longer made by Stompie Meyer (love his own brand); and there’s something less ‘woah’ about this (less concentration and erm conviction?).

As much as I now diligently write tasting notes (even if it’s just ‘yum’ 😉), I’ve tasted this so many times I chose to sit back and reminisce about a time when wine smelled and tasted like wine and spittoons were where you dumped the yuck oaked Chards at tastings. Fun drunk times!

But I still agree with myself 😈 : Cinsault is fu***ng delish + it is still floral, fragrant, light bodied, fresh, a little savoury, a little orange, with all the red berry brightness + it is still brilliant when chilled, and amazing with juicy burgers topped with melting Brie.

All credit to Kwispedoor on wine for reminding me that I had this bottle. He recently opened the ‘13 and ‘14 coz he has far more patience than I could dream of. He also has excellent taste - if you ever want to know what to buy, follow him!

12/08/2026

Elemental Bob Stonefields Moon 2021

I was perusing an old Platter’s Wine Guide and landed on a different vintage of the Stonefields Moon. And realised I’d never shouted about this wine (consumed 2 years ago 🤦🏾‍♀️). It’s funny reading through an old diary…but kinda cool being able to date the origins of a thought or idea.

That thought was the importance of lekker/drinkability/yum. I have a few weeks of analytical tastings where scores don’t always align with my enjoyability, and ‘yum’ means nothing to a stranger. Wondering whether my yum is someone else’s yuck, and if my yuck is someone else’s yum? Wondering whether a stranger will appreciate this Sauv Blanc Gewurz blend?

Golden hued with intriguing struck match…that blows off quickly to reveal pretty honeysuckle & orange blossom billowing around limes & unripe oranges…chasing hints of chamomile, subtle sweet spices and walnut skin. The flint settles into seaweed that sort of stands apart…a solo figure watching from the sidelines. Lekker.

Dry with the usual Gewurz sweetness confusion, lovely acidity, weighty and mouthcoating, with a very decent finish. Bitter buchu, lemon peel, juicy sweet ripe lemons and honey. Cold, hollow burnt sugar/dark toffee finds its way into the crevices of your mouth. It reminds me of sucking too hard on a honeysuckle flower as a kid and hitting the bitter pollen. Yum.

Other than the seaweed…I found this so unified that it was hard to untangle the individual components or grapes. All I want is another sip. Drinkability.

Plot twist: I’d found a second bottle and my OG notes said this could be more even better in a few years. So after a few weeks of trad reds, tasting analytically and writing for the broader public I opened it and compared it to my first set of notes. Possibly the funniest (and unusual) thing about diary entries and wine journeys is when you still agree with your older self. Your personal lekker/drinkability/yum are important…coz it transcends BLIC and scores and what strangers might think.

05/08/2026

What a treat to attend the Caroline’s Red Wine Review last Thursday. With so many excellent SA reds, I needed a game plan. You’ll be happy to know that my tannin training worked…and found a personal chaperone with excellent tasting skills - aka darling friend - who guided me through most of the Bordeaux grapes.

Standouts for me were the Kershaw GPS H&A, Oak Valley Tabula Rasa and Saurwein Om Pinot Noirs + Vilafonté Series C, + Holden Manz Reserve Cab Franc + Lanzerac Pinotage.

Best new finds were the Bellevue Reserve Pinotage and the Winshaw Charles Winshaw BDX blend. I cannot wait to pick these up and spend more time with them.

Wine of night was the Keermont Topside Syrah - always soooo good with its lavender vibes.

Aside from sipping wine in the empty stadium seats with lovely friends, my favourite moment was seeing Noni who is now at Hartenberg! Love this lady…such a talent!

29/07/2026

Elena Walch Lagrein 2019

If you could only see beyond the confines of this square right now. Scribbled notes, reference print outs, tech sheets, multiple pens coz I keep losing them…multiple corkscrews coz I keep losing them…multiple glasses coz I’m deep into a tasting!

Speaking of deep…the depth of colour to Lagrein! Profound aromas of savoury oriental spices, soy sauce and dried shiitake mushrooms, tomato leaf, blackberries, black cherries, sweet star anise...this wine is decidedly savoury/sweet spice forward.

Full bodied with moreish high acidity, medium smooth ripe tannins, medium alcohol, and a long finish. Slinky salinity, blueberries, black plums, some meaty iron notes, and bitter cacao on the finish. One liner: big and rich dark plums poached in star anise laced with soy sauce...but also blueberry and earthy...and the acid goes a long way towards refreshing this. The bitter cacao is the only thing that takes you away from the wine initially...but you don’t notice it by the 3rd sip.

Tasting the Pinot Nero a few years ago is still one of my proudest blind tasting moments. Calling Pinot Noir at an Italian tasting in Cape Town…what were the chances!

Also…you may have noticed I’m on a red roll…very unusual for me. Why? Because I’ll be at the Caroline’s Red Wine Review on Thursday thanks to my beautiful friend My Boozy Kitchen . And I really need to build up my tannin tolerance 🤣. But seriously, if you’re in Cape Town, I hope I’ll see you there.

22/07/2026

Neil Ellis The Left Bank 2021 [gifted]

49% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot, and a dash of Cabernet Franc and Malbec exude the most beautifully dense colour, enticingly rich with aromas of blackberries and cassis, damson plums, pencil shavings and dry cedar, star anise, and a touch of menthol eucalyptus.

Fuller bodied with moreish acidity and big ripe velvety tannins. Spiced red plums, raspberries and earthy pomegranate accompany the concentration of damson plums and spices; lingering for a generous lengthy finish.

Many thanks to the team for this well timed quintessentially Bordeaux style red blend that was much appreciated on a chilly evening. And huge congratulations on your brilliant 97 point score at the 2026 Investec Trophy Wine Show!

capeofgoodwine

23/09/2026

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