Dane Raath's Trade show was held again this year at The Winchester hotel on Sea Point's Beach Road
As always, some very good wines to taste; it was very well attended and there was a good trade buzz,
we try to taste as many as we can, but it's a big tasting and quite social too
Candice Reid showed the Dawn Patrol wines, made by the well-respected Agulhas area winemaker Trizanne Barnard
The wines are a very drinkable, reasonably-priced alternative to the Trizanne Signature range
It was good to see Edo Heyns, Chief Executive Officer at Allée Bleue Estate in Franschhoek with their wines
We really enjoyed tasting their Brut Rosé Cap Classique, a new blend of Pinot noir and Pinotage
In 2016, we were visiting the night market in Hanoi, Vietnam
As we reached the end of the road there, we bumped into Edo and his new wife on honeymoon
Life brings strange coincidences
Black Oystercatcher wines from Elim in the Southern Cape
Their Sauvignon Blanc is always a poster child for Classic Elim crispness, minerality, pyrazines and quality;
The 2025 is excellent. Their Cap Classique Brut Rosé 2018 has perfume, red berry fruit and good length
Matthew Krone and his Coot Club Rosé Cap Classique and Van Hunks wines
made for the eponymous restaurant in Upper Union St, Gardens
The Coot Club Rosé is very Southern French in style, so fresh and lots of summer in the wine
We loved the humorous way he has bottled the wines:
for Monday the 750ml, for Tuesday the 1.5ml and for Friday the 3 Litre! Celebrate!
Matthew comes from a family who who have made Cap Classiques for many years,
and the
Brut NV, made from Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, lives up to what he has made
before -
a good prickle on the palate and layers of refreshing flavours
a good prickle on the palate and layers of refreshing flavours
Baleia wines were shown by winemaker Gunter Schultz,
the younger brother of Thelema winemaker Rudi and former Hartenberg cellarmaster Carl - an illustrious wine family
Their Casa de Baleia 2024 Sauvignon Bland has smoke and good minerality, so may be classed as a Blanc Fumé
The 2023 Chardonnay is (thankfully) lightly wooded after a short stay in older barrels and has layers of fruit and elegance
The Limitados 2022 wooded Chardonnay has great fruit, elegance and weight
Their Casa de Baleia 2024 Sauvignon Bland has smoke and good minerality, so may be classed as a Blanc Fumé
The 2023 Chardonnay is (thankfully) lightly wooded after a short stay in older barrels and has layers of fruit and elegance
The Limitados 2022 wooded Chardonnay has great fruit, elegance and weight
The Bouchard Finlayson range always impresses and their stand was always busy
Lynne tasted the 2024 Kaaimansgat, Crocodile's Lair Chardonnay
Wow, at its best - crisp, layered and a classically good South African Chardonnay, so good with food
as is their Blanc de Mer Blend, which is perfect for fresh seafood and fish
The Galpin Peak and Tête de Cuvée Pinots were among the first to set the reputation of the Hemel en Aarde
as the cool climate Pinot noir capital in South Africa
Hannibal is a beautiful homage to Italian wines - a blend of Sangiovese, Nebbiolo and Shiraz
with small amounts of Barbera, Mourvèdre and Pinot
The wines are made by Chris Albrecht, seen here with sommelier extraordinaire Jean Vincent Ridon,
who has trained some of our best sommeliers
Oak Lane wines are the easy-drinking second label of American-owned Beau Joubert estate in Stellenbosch
which are more serious in nature, made by the owner, Andrew Hilliard
Some good canapés from the Winchester Mansions hotel kitchen
Crisp chips sprinkled with Parmesan are good way to counter hunger!
Crisp chips sprinkled with Parmesan are good way to counter hunger!
Nicely sauced chicken brochette on flat bread
Clever! Warm toasted cheese and ham sandwiches
Lovely to chat to Jayne Beaumont about her range of wines
The 2008 Pinot Noir has the beautiful nose and palate of a classic Pinot Noir
Her Light from Dark, an unusual white Pinot Noir, has the same nose as the red and is crisp, fruity and deep
Jen Warren showing the Beaumont range of wines, a very popular and busy stand
One word for the Beaumont Far Side Mourvedre, WOW! It shows just how to showcase this interesting grape
Of course, we tasted the 2025 Hope Marguerite, long been one of the best iterations of SA Chenin Blancs
and nothing has changed, it has superb fruit in layers and such clarity on the palate
Retired Springbok forward Stephen Kitshoff with admirers
He was promoting his Bomb Squad range of beers
Raath Promotions salesperson Benny Zinyakea with the Idun wines
The Clergerie Blend 2024 has quality fruit, in layers, is juicy and a good blend with grippy tannins showing it might last
The Carismatic Cinsault 2022 blend has those Pinot notes with perfume, layers of berry fruit and good acid balance
The Confessions Grenache 2022 perfume has layers of dark berry fruit and structure
One to watch and taste
Le Petite Ferme in Franschhoek always produces some remarkable wines, many of which pair very well with food
As they have restaurant as well, it's a given
The La Petite Ferme 2023 Barrel Fermented Chardonnay spends just 10 months in old oak
and has caramel notes, fresh limes and citrus on the attractive palate
The La Petite Ferme Grenache Noir Rosé 2025 impressed,
as did the 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon; such classic fruit and quality and very delicious
The 2025 Baboon Rock Unwooded Chardonnay
has ripe pears, herbal notes and elegance and is crisp with good long layers of fruit
The Baboon Rock Grenache Noir has wearable perfume,
cherries on nose and palate with lovely fruit, good light wood support
All the stories we have produced since 2012
can be opened from the archive list near the top of the column on the right of this page
