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The just-released De Wetshof Limestone Hill, one of South Africa's most popular unwooded Chardonnays, emphasises the reputation 2021 is garnering for being a top vintage for white wines in the Cape, especially Chardonnay.

According to Johann de Wet, CEO of De Wetshof Estate in Robertson, the fact that this year's harvest was characterised by cool, mild conditions is well reported. But with the wines now bottled and in the market, the magnificent quality of the season's offering is coming to the fore.

"This year's harvest commenced two-to-three weeks later than the average," says de Wet, "the reason being a cool, mild spring, the conditions continuing into summer. This caused the whole vineyard cycle of bud-break, flowering, berry-set and ripening of grapes to slow down. Here in Robertson we could literally count the number of 30°C and warmer days on one hand. And as a result, our Chardonnays are truly showing exceptional quality this year."

De Wet says cooler, slower ripening allows for balanced chemistries in the grapes – should one choose to look at the academic side of things. "What is evident for all is the bright, crunchy freshness we saw in the harvested grapes as they arrived at the cellar, as well as this zesty life-affirming energy now evident in the latest release of our Limestone Hill," he says.

Diemersdal, the Durbanville wine estate which has been under ownership of the Louw family for six generations, has become the first wine farm in the Durbanville wine region to achieve WWF Conservation Champion status.

This unique wine initiative, managed by the World Wide Fund for Nature and unique to the Cape winelands, underscores the local wine industry's commitment to conservation, the close relationship between wine farmers and their natural environment, and the indigenous natural setting where the country's wines are made.

The WWF Conservation Champions, represented by 45 Cape wine farms, showcases the extraordinary measures local winegrowers have gone to protect and conserve the inimitable natural habitat situated in and around their farms.

Diemersdal received its official status as WWF Conservation Champion in July this year after numerous thorough audits by WWF field officers who manage this programme.

Diemersdal's emphatic conservation credentials include its preservation of a 16.8ha conservation area on one of the farms pristine hills on which a number of scarce renosterveld plant species are found. This conservation area spans the Dorsberg, the most northern hill range within the Tygerberg cluster.

Satiate your wanderlust for a Mediterranean adventure at the Terra del Capo Antipasto Bar in Franschhoek, where celebrating the “secret season” has inspired the new winter menu. Quintessentially Italian in all aspects, the focus is on flavour, freshness and generosity - la dolce vita.

This approach is complemented by the finest seasonal produce, produced on the Anthonij Rupert estate and sourced from local artisans, showcased across a feast of tapas-style vegetarian, seafood and meat dishes, and sharing platters. Great food and wine go hand in hand, and the estate’s Protea, L’Ormarins, Cape of Good Hope, Anthonij Rupert and Terra del Capo wines are available to elevate your enjoyment.

As South Africa’s first producer of the Black Perigord truffles, the truffle tagliatelle, truffled Angus beef sausages and truffle salami offer intriguing, earthy umami delight. The freshly-made tagliatelle is tossed in a velvety parmesan cream, while a tangy homemade wholegrain mustard aioli plays with the richness of the sausages. Local beetroot-cured salmon trout, dressed in a lime vinaigrette and matched with the Cape of Good Hope Semillon, is a mouthwateringly memorable pairing. The journey continues with delectable dishes such as the warm duck and pancetta salad, griddled zucchini, and smoked bocconcini pinchos.

All three wines in Diemersdal Estate’s The Journal range achieved Gold medals at this year’s Decanter World Wine Awards, recognised as one of the wine world’s most prestigious wine competitions which was held in London, this year for the 18th time. Decanter Gold medals went to Diemersdal’s The Journal Cabernet Sauvignon 2019, The Journal Pinotage 2019 and The Journal Sauvignon Blanc 2020.

Diemersdal is situated in the Durbanville wine region of South Africa and was one of the area’s first wine farms with a history dating back to 1698. It has been in the hands of the Louw family for the past six generations.

This year’s judging of the Decanter World Wine Awards took place last month at the offices of Decanter magazine at Canary Wharf in London. Over 18 000 wines from 56 were entered for this year’s awards, with 170 expert judges scrutinising the entries.

Diemersdal’s The Journal premium wine range was only released last year, with the award-winning Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinotage and Sauvignon Blanc representing these wines’ second respective vintages.

Thys Louw, Diemersdal’s owner-winemaker, says the achievement at Decanter was the fulfilment of the ambitions he had when conceptualising The Journal wine range.

De Wetshof Estate, South Africa's pioneering Chardonnay producer in the chalk-rich Robertson wine valley, confirmed its reputation for continuously making excellent wines from this variety with two Gold medals at the Decanter World Awards held in London.

The Gold medals went to the De Wetshof Lesca 2020 – labelled 'Finesse' in South Africa – and to the estate's icon Bateleur Chardonnay 2018, made from a single vineyard planted at De Wetshof in 1987.

The Decanter World Wine Awards was judged by over 170 expert international judges who scrutinised the 18 000 wines entered from 56 countries. Judging took place last month at Canary Wharf in London at the offices of Decanter magazine, with the awards announced earlier this week.

The Decanter Gold medal is the third major accolade bestowed on De Wetshof's Lesca (Finesse) Chardonnay from the 2020 vintage. Earlier this year, the same wine took a Gold medal at the Chardonnay du Monde, the world's leading competition devoted to Chardonnay, and was also named in the Top 10 wines at this year's Du Monde. This was followed with another Gold at the Mundus Vini Competition in Germany, also regarded as one of the wine world's major wine shows renowned for selecting wines of revered excellence through a thorough judging process.

The South African wine industry is at a tipping point, with many wine businesses, especially smaller companies and those under black ownership, facing potential closures in the next three to twelve months due to the recurring and now fifth domestic wine sales restrictions. This according to a survey by Vinpro in the past week.

According to the Impact of Covid-19 on the Wine Value-Chain Survey that Vinpro conducted early in July 2021 among wine grape producers, wineries and other wine-related businesses, 58% of the 549 respondents indicated that their businesses would have to make drastic changes over the next year to be able to overcome the current challenges related to Covid-19, and 22% will in all probability not be able to survive at all. Even more alarming is the fact that 46% of black-owned brands and farms believe that their businesses won’t be able to survive the next year.

Around two thirds of all respondents’ revenue is generated from domestic wine sales, which reiterates the importance of domestic trade for the survival of the industry. The local market is of particular importance to smaller wineries and black-owned brands which are heavily reliant on sales channels such as their tasting rooms, hospitality offering and ecommerce.

Tokara, a proud Stellenbosch Cabernet producer, excelled at the 2021 Decanter World Wine Awards with two Gold medals and all five wines entered in the competition breaking the venerable 90 point barrier.

Tokara’s two gold medallists are the Reserve Collection Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 with a score of 96/100 and the Director’s Reserve White 2018 notching up 95 points.

Tokara Reserve Collection Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 is a consummate wine showing great consistency vintage after vintage. This acknowledgement from the world’s largest and most influential wine competition now it its 18th year, attests to the Ferreira family’s single minded vision of producing world class Stellenbosch Cabernet Sauvignon from this focus variety at Tokara.

This full-bodied, richly textured wine is a true expression of the prized vineyard blocks on the slopes of the Simonsberg. Vibrant and bright, the wine shows classic graphite notes and briary fruits interwoven with five spice and the faintest hint of dried porcini. Expect a mouthful of dark cherry, red currant and fynbos scrub from this classic expression of Stellenbosch Cabernet.

The soon to be released Tokara Director’s Reserve White 2018 is an accomplished Bordeaux-style blend of Sauvignon Blanc (63%) and Semillon (37%) grown on the highest slopes of Tokara’s Stellenbosch property.

In its best showing at any South African wine competition to date, Diemersdal Estate in Durbanville was named Best Producer at this year's Old Mutual Trophy Wine Show, which this year celebrates its 20th year as one of the countries leading wine awards ceremonies.

Diemersdal came out at the top of the heap of the entries representing the finest the Cape has to offer, winning the Trophy for Best Pinotage with its Pinotage Reserve 2019 and Gold Medals for the Private Collection Bordeaux Blend 2017 and The Journal Cabernet Sauvignon 2018

The results of the 2021 Old Mutual Trophy Wine Show were announced on a special edition of Dan Really Likes Wine at midday on 30th June. Broadcast from The Houghton in Johannesburg, the live online event included the on-screen participation of the leading category winners as well as several of the judges.

Some 32 Gold Medals and 11 Trophies were awarded at this year's Old Mutual Trophy Wine Show, which is recognised for its strict and meticulous judging.

Thys Louw, sixth-generation owner-winemaker at Diemersdal, says this achievement will go down as one of the farm's major achievements in its 323-year history.

Ever wondered why the waiter pours you a taster when opening a bottle of wine? This is not so you can decide whether you like it or not, but rather to determine any wine faults. We take a closer look at the 5 most common wine faults, what causes it and how to identify it.

Cork Taint (also known as corked wines or Trichloroanisole)

Ever opened a bottle of wine and it smelled like a wet dog, pungent mould, or wet cardboard? Chances are big that your bottle of preciousness has been affected by the fungi present in the cork. The fancy name for those fungi is Trichloroanisole, but colloquially it is referred to as cork taint or a corked wine (which is not a description for a wine closed with a natural cork, that is). The fungi find its way into your wine through several avenues, but the predominant cause is a faulty cork that is already contaminated with TCA. Regrettably, there is nothing you can do to eliminate TCA from a wine, and the best solution is to take it back to the supplier so that they can (hopefully) trace a spoiled batch. Alternatively, buy wines that are closed with screwcaps rather than natural cork. Not only will you get to the romance part of enjoying the wine quicker, but chances are slim that you will open a spoiled wine (and there is no chance of TCA).