Puzzled by wine with legs or can't tell your retsina from your raka? Send any tipple-related questions to Neil Pendock at travelmag@sundaytimes.co.za

Q: My uncle George, who lives in Jersey and fancies himself as something of an oenophile, is paying us a flying visit next month. What typically South African wines can you recommend to tickle his temperamental palate? - Holly Germans in Sandton

AReds are appropriate, as confirmed by a quick look at the thermometer, and the quintessential SA red has got to be Pinotage because we invented it (by crossing Pinot Noir with Cinsault). Moreover, for some unexplained reason, South Africa remains just about the only country that grows it.

A sneak preview of the Absa Top 20 Pinotages to be announced later this month will include wines from Altydgedacht, Beyerskloof, Diemersdal, Fairview, Kanonkop, KWV, Laibach, L'Avenir, Rijk's, Schalk Burger & Sons, Simonsig, Spier, Wellington Wines and Windmeul.

With 2009 looking like the comet vintage, prices will vary from budget (around R50 for Schalk Burger's Meerkat) to premium (around R200 for Kanonkop).