2019 Hoe Steen Chenin Blanc

The 2019 Hoë-Steen Chenin Blanc has a fragrant nose, more resinous than floral, with melted wax and hints of dried honey, plus just a very faint apple blossom note in the background. It revs up with aeration, unfolding to offer linseed and grilled walnut aromas. The palate is very well balanced, demonstrating more weight and concentration compared to the Skaliekop, a beautifully well-judged line of acidity and a slightly creamy texture toward the finish. Very persistent in the mouth. This is a gorgeous South African Chenin Blanc.

Retasted because the previous sample may have been damaged by heat (though it still tasted pretty good!). For background see my earlier tasting note . Greenish pale copper colour. Very noble and this definitely benefits from air. I would decant it if serving it before 2023. Really rather beautifully structured with great nobility. Slightly more restrained and stand-offish than the Skaliekop but with a real peacock's tail of flavour on the end. Lots of high tones and satin texture with a very firm spine of acidity. A sort of amalgam of linden/lime flavours and the most luxurious honey – though no obvious sweetness. Very very long. Extremely discreet oak and wonderfully pure acidity. (JR)

From 50-year-old vines planted west of Malmesbury towards Darling in deep, red iron- and clay-rich soils, the deepest soils the Sadies work with in the Swartland. This particular block is on a south-facing slope so ripens late. This vineyard was planted with a mass selection and grafted in the vineyard onto rootstocks. A few Cape Riesling (Crouchen Blanc), False Pedro, Palomino, Sémillon and Clairette Blanche vines have been discovered since. The Sadies say, 'the vineyard remains predominantly Steen [Chenin] for us and we see it as part of the Cape’s old vineyard history which we are privileged to be working with'. Harvested in the second half of February with a yield of just 1.6 tonnes per ha. Hand-sorted, whole-bunch pressed, aged for one year in old French oak barrels. Hoë-Steen qualifies for the Old Vine Project (OVP) seal. TA 5.4 g/l, pH 3.58, RS 2.5 g/l, total SO2 90 mg/l. Total production 2,000 bottles. Nervy, focused nose. Rather smooth texture. Dense and nervy, even steely with a green-fruited streak. Long and vibrant. Lots to chew on and real texture and extract. During extended transit from Cape Town to France the cork of this bottle was forced slightly out of the bottleneck but I can see no ill-effects – amazingly. (JR)