After our tasting at Springfield, it was time to rush off to our lunch date with Newald Marais at Kranskop
Newald has been so hospitable to us in the past and nothing has changed; we are very fond of him
The first vines were planted on Kranskop circa 1792
The craggy, rocky ledge above Kranskop was inspiration for the hill’s name, which means wreath head
The winery and tasting room with the new improved deck above
Good spacing of tables, a new roof, floor and a bar
A good place for small celebrations, should we ever be safe enough to hold them
And, if the weather deteriorates, they can wind down blinds to insulate the area
The views across the valley are great
Tasting through his 15 wines and enjoying his company, with a lot of industry chat, was not only fun but a great experience. The farm is definitely worth a visit if you are in the area. The wines are of such good quality; Newald would have nothing else, and they are made with years of experience. He studied viticulture and pomology at Elsenburg Agricultural College near Stellenbosch and then at Weinbauschule Weinsberg in Germany. He achieved great success as wine maker at prominent wine estates, and succeeded the legendary Günter Brözel as cellarmaster at Nederburg. After retiring from that position, Newald returned to his valley of origin in 2002 to become a sought-after wine making consultant to a variety of cellars and then to own his own farm
We only had a short time and tasting through 15 plus wines was going to be a challenge, so it was a rather speedy tasting. The new Kranskop 2021 Sauvignon Blanc was crisp and crunchy, with more tropical flavours
He provided a very good local cheese and charcuterie platter with great chutneys, pickles, green figs and dried fruit for our lunch, which we could munch while we chatted, catching up with lots of Robertson news
The drier style 2021 Viognier has quality, 20% wood fermentation and has crisp flavours and good fruit,
with almond, peach and apricots; very enjoyable
The 2021 Chenin Blanc is nice and yeasty on the classic nose; it has had partial wood fermentation
Lovely fruit with quince and yellow stone fruits and good acidity. It is from a 33 year old vineyard; a lovely wine
The 2021 unwooded Chardonnay was initially shy,
with brioche on the nose, then crisp limes and buttery lees on the long palate
The 2021 Kranskop Rosé is a 50/50 blend of Petit Syrah and Viognier, matured on the lees
Candy floss, raspberry and strawberries with a soupcon of sweetness
The 2020 Pinot Noir has rose petals on the nose with raspberry fruit
On the palate, it has intense cherries and berries, with some ripeness and warmth
12 months maturation in French oak, 20% in new barrels, the remaining 80% in third fill
The label for the 2019 Beekeepers Block is lovely and should jump off the shelves
From a single vineyard, nearly surrounded by fynbos which attracts the bees, this Shiraz has lots of fruit initially,
then herbal & spicy notes with incense wood. On the palate, cherries, mulberries and rhubarb
The wine is nicely made, hand crafted and is a barrel selection. It has had exposure to new and old oak
Newald is known as Mr Tannat and his two wines made with the grape are excellent. Tannat is a red wine grape, historically from the Madiran AOC in South West France, and is now the most prominent grape in Uruguay, where it is considered the "national grape". It seems to have better fruit if grown in warmer terroirs. The 2015 Kranskop Tannat has dark berries and spice in layers on the attractive nose, with licorice, rhubarb, white pepper, cherry and smoke. Juicy on the palate with maraschino, black and Morello cherries; delicious. Supporting tannins and wood
The MCT is a blend of 55% Merlot, 35% Cabernet and 10% Tannat. It is quite intriguing and unfamiliar on the nose. On the palate, there are strong flavours of blueberries, cherries, licorice and wood and almost biting tannins. It is juicy and definitely a great food wine for red meats and game. It spends 18 months in French oak barrels, 25% new, the rest in 2nd and 3rd fill
The 2017 Kranskop Cabernet Sauvignon has a lovely classic Cabernet nose with lots of cassis
and is followed up with even more on the palate, with deep cassis flavours and deliciousness
It has soft chalky tannins and the wood is there, but just supporting. It is very Bordeaux in style
Before we left, we managed a small tasting of the 2020 Viognier Noble Late Harvest
Pure honey on the nose and palate, with apricot, nuts and limes on the end. Yum
It was a really great tasting, if a bit speedy. and we are sorry we had to rush away to our next appointment
Thank you again, Newald, for your generosity, your time and your friendship
and, to end the trip, more bubbles at Weltevrede (coming soon)
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