Friday, October 11, 2024

Alto celebrates the centenary of their iconic Alto Rouge red blend

We joined the other guests in the Alto cellar

for a candle lit tasting of the last five vintages of Alto Rouge. We began with the 2017 Perfume of roses and violets, depth and very attractive. Smooth as silk on the palate, good fruit, chalky tannins, long flavours with wood support then full berry fruit on the end  The 2019 had dark berry fruit, plums and some licorice. Velvety , soft and chalky,  berry fruit with plums,  savouriness from the Cab Franc, integrated wood, visible on the end 

Winemaker Bertho van der Westhuizen told the story of the wine
He succeeded his father, Schalk (2000-15), in the position
There have only been five winemakers at Alto in the last 100 years
Rugby Springbok Pieter "Hempies" du Toit (1983-2000) and his father Piet (1959-83) preceded the van der Westhuizens 
Manie Malan, who owned the farm with his father, was winemaker between 1919 and 1959
We tasted the 2020 with roses and violet perfume, shy fruit but classy nose. Lovely silky mouth feel, then sweet and sour berry fruit, layered and chalky. Dark berries and dark wood on the long finish, it gets better and better the more you taste. 
The 2021 is shy initially but recognisabley Alto as you swirl the glass.Then perfume of violets from the 
Petite Verdot. Good fruit on the palate, quite delicous, with warmth and layered with all the component varietals in balance. Length and those characteristic chalky tannins. Food calls. Lynne's favourite of the flight.

Neil Ellis spoke of his experiences with Alto
The 2022 Is inky black, classy with perfume and lovely dark berry and plum fruit and Incense wood. Again a lovely silky mouth feel, Cabernet Franc and Petite Verdot are very visible  with good Cabernet support. A superb wine for one so young. Grippy chalky tannins and wood just supporting mean this is one to buy now. THe Shiraz adds spice and flavour.  Ther is a definite linear connection in all these five fine wines, speaks to quality winemaking, determination and history kept going by those who have contributed.

Bennie Howard CWM told more of the story

and was follwed by Johan Malan of Simonsig

The table after the tasting
a moments silence remembering the late Danie van Zyl, Alto viticulturist,
who died suddenly not long before this event. He will be much missed

An on counter display of Alto Shiraz. We got to ttaste some of these with lunch and they were very fine


Three sizes -  Jeroboam, bottle and magnum

Bertho van der Westhuizen with the 5 litre Jeroboam

Traditional canapés on the tables. A selection of artisanal breads served with humus, pesto and butter


Humus, pesto, small meatballs, arancini and a cream herb cheese paté on toast


Alto is exclusively a red wine estate
Chardonnay and MCC from Stellenzicht, also owned by Hans von Staff-Reitzenstein, were there as pre-lunch drinks

Johan Malan and Neil Ellis in discussion with another guest

On the deck, interesting conversations
Louis Strydom, Ernie Els winemaker is in the foreground
Ernie Els Wines is also owned by Herr von Staff-Reizenstein

Adamastor over the Vineyards
Greek Titan Adamastor was said by the Portuguese poet Samoes to be the protector of the route round the Cape
and, lying on his back, is personified in Table Mountain. Devil's Peak is his head

General manager Barend Barnard and Bennie Howard. The Alto red wines we had to taste wer 

The menu

The five winemakers of the last 100 years


Everyone seated for the celebratory lunch

Grilled kingklip in a saffron mussel sauce, with seasonal greens, parsley baby potatoes, a tomato salsa and micro herbs.

The Braised Springbok shank was the most popular dish in the room. and was served with a mustard biltong mash, caramelised baby onions,  small and delicious pumpkin fritters and an Alto Rouge jus

Two large lads with a large bottle
Bertho van der Westhuizen and journalist/publicist Emile Joubert

A winter's end view across the vineyards

Traditional melktert with Rooibos ice cream

Double espresso and a koeksister to end


Magnificent displays of proteas at the cellar door

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The 41st anniversary Blaauwklippen blending competition lunch

The awards ceremony of the annual Blaauwklippen Blending Competition
was held in the main restaurant at Blaauwklippen
Present were the top three wine clubs, the judges, and the media

The floating trophy

A lovely warm spring day was made even better by a glass of the Blaauwklippen Brut Rosé

The friendly staff were in attendance as usual and made the day special

The room is filled with art and objects for sale

We were able to see the winning blend, which is presented in a magnum
We would be able to drink it with lunch. It's always fun to see if any of the top three clubs recognise their own blend

The winning blend, Number 41
Yes, the competition has been going for all those years
The command to the blenders was "Make a Bordeaux blend built to last" and they were supplied with 5 full bottles:
a Cabernet Sauvignon, a Merlot, a Cabernet Franc, a Petit Verdot and a Malbec
All five varietals had to be used to make, in the team's estimation, the best blend

The long table for lunch

Master of Ceremonies Guy McDonald

The menu

Winemaker Narina Cloete

2023 Blaauwklippen Chardonnay, just released 

It is quite crisp with lime, stone fruit and subtle wood

The food was served family style so we could all help ourselves and each other by passing plates

The Caprese Salad

Mediterranean cauliflower and broccoli roasted in olive oil

Arancini rice balls filled with butternut and mozarella

Chicken Limone served on a bed of spaghetti
This was our favourite dish, lots of flavour, a good creamy lemon sauce and tender chicken


Bolognaise stuffed ravioli in a rich tomato sauce

Melanzane, layers of eggplant topped with mozarella with  a tomato sauce

The three finalists spoke about their wine clubs and their history and how they made their blend

Oliver Wright of Team Vat from Gauteng

Christa Grobler of Sophie's Choice in the Western Cape

Raymond van der Westhuizen of Dorstige Dertigs in the Western Cape told us a lot about his wine club.

Nanette De Hart, Brand Home & Destination Manager at Blaauwklippen with the trophy

Guy spoke about  the different components and how many entries there were this year
It is a very popular competition

Dorstige Dertigs representatives Francois van Rooyen and Raymond van der Westhuizen were this year's winners

with Narina Cloete 

Joined by Guy McDonald and two of the judges, Clive Torr and Alastair Rimmer, winemaker at De Morgenzon

Rich coffee and cream liqueur Tiramisu for dessert

It was delicious

As we were leaving, we took a look at the ruin of the lovely historic manor house,
tragically destroyed in a recent fire. It is being rebuilt

We were told that it will be restored to this condition (taken last year)

All our stories can be seen in the Blog Archive near the top of the column on the right

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