He and his mother Kathy Raath have a very successful business
He invited us to something different, the LAPD trade tasting of many different French wines,
well known and respected French brands who want to enter the South African market
It was quite a tasting and extremely well attended by the trade
so there was a very good buzz on the Norval Foundation terrace as we all compared notes and recommendations
We began with Laurent Perrier Champagnes and tasted and enjoyed the range
The aged Millesime is so good, especially if you have a taste for Champagnes with some age
is a wine that was much talked about at the tasting, and much enjoyed
It did take one back to enjoying a wine like this when visiting the South of France
Brand Ambassador Anaëlle Hautier of Château Desclans
with a Jeroboam of their Rock Angel barrel aged Rosé, another success
learning about wine in London Wine Bars over 27 years, where much 'sampling' went on
She especially liked this J. Moreau & Fil Chablis from Domaine Billaud-Simon
Their Bourgogne Aligoté was delicious, reasonable and the most talked about wine at the tasting in the trade
We hope to see this available soon so that we can buy some
and a pair of Sancerre Pinots with Metis Sauvignon Blanc made at Klein Constantia,
inspired by Pascal Jolivet and his holistic approach to winemaking in Sancerre
Much richer in flavour with more fruit than in the French Sancerres thanks to the Cape sun
Pascal Jolivet with his wife
We tasted so many of these at Vin Expo in Bordeaux a few years ago; they have a huge range
The Pinot Blanc Reserve was complex, layered and crisp
The Pinot Gris Reserve was excellent, a really good wine for food
The Brut, which is a Crémant, also really impressed with crisp fruity layers
Dane Raath introduced us to this producer at Vinexpo in Bordeaux in 2007
We had an extended tasting of his wines at the end of the show, all varietals, many vintages
They produce organic and biodynamic wines from appellations across the Rhône region
Most well known and lauded are their Hermitage wines, both red and white
We found their Côtes du Rhône Belleruche Rouge juicy and enjoyable
Their Gigondas Rouge shows its warm country wine character and is delicious and satisfying
We travelled through the Rhône in 2002 and photographed some of the incredibly steep Chapoutier Condrieu (Viognier) vineyards
Harvesting must be hell
Is global worming really affecting the vineyards with higher sugar levels?
The Chateauneuf-du-Pape Blanc was complex with a good nose, full with some sweetness
As was the enjoyable Les Cassagnes from Viognier, very typical of wines grown in the area
A crisp Chateau Cheval Bordeaux Blanc, a pretty nose on the Cheval Noir Bordeaux Rouge, dark and dense
The Chateau Cheval Noir Cuvée la Fer, St Émilion is in another league,
very good with lots of cassis and wood on the nose and palate
Famille J M Cazes were showing some iconic wines from Bordeaux, a treat to taste them
Chateau Lynch Bage, Pauillac is the wine to put into your cellar to age, really excellent,
a bit steep in price, as it is in four figures, but worth it
The Chateau Haut-Batailly from Pauillac has richness on the nose, and needs time
We really enjoyed the more affordable Verso which is much more approachable now
Three good white wines,
two from Billaud-Simon from the Chablis area and one Chardonnay from Faiveley in Burgundy. Sadly not tasted
Four reds from Joseph Faiveley
A Bourgogne Pinot Noir, Le Framboise(raspberry) from Mercurey, situated just below Burgundy,
and two Pinot Noirs from very well known Bordeaux vineyards,
Nuit St Georges "Les Lavières" and Gevrey Chambertin Vielle Vignes Much to our regret, not tasted. It was a very busy stand
Southern wines from Gerard Bertrand in Languedoc
The Cigalus Blanc, a blend of Southern Rhône varietals,
has good roundness on the palate from Viognier, crispness from Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay
Two good local Stellenbosch red wines from The High Road were included in the tasting
Four more Bordeaux wines from Mahler-Besse from different areas
Château Picard from Sainte Estèphe, Château Haute Reys from Graves
There were two more wines in the collection which impressed us
The Château Larrieu Terrefort from Margaux was as Lynne put it "Tres Bien!"
Intense flavours on the nose and palate with fine wooding
The Domaine de Cartujac, Haut-Medoc has beautiful notes of violets from the Cabernet Franc
and good breadth, depth, flavour and character
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