Wine of the week: Leeuwenkuil Shiraz 2013
One of the nicest things about my new home is the olive "grove" in the garden. It may be years before my five little trees bear fruit, and I hold out even less hope for a harvest from the gnarled old vine providing shade next to the braai, but my little corner of the Mediterranean magically transports me out of suburbia every time I sit outside with a glass of wine. A bigger Mediterranean corner of the Cape is the Swartland, a wheat-producing area now famous for wines made by some of SA's most passionate winemakers. Olives are also on the map of the Sanlam Swartland Wine & Olive Route.mini_story_image_vleft1Incorporating the towns of Malmesbury, Piketberg and Porterville as well as the twin villages of Riebeek Kasteel and Riebeek West, this is a large and geographically diverse area. Unirrigated and low-yielding bush vines planted on ancient schist, granite and clay soils first attracted visionary Charles Back of Fairview, then his protégé Eben Sadie - widely regarded as SA's first cult winemaker - and other self-described "revolutionaries" including Adi Badenhorst, Marc Kent and Andrea and Chris Mullineux.What many of these winemakers had in common was a supply of grapes from the Dreyer family at Leeuwenkuil Family Vineyards. In 2012, however, the Dreyers decided to launch their own range of wines - and they're walking tall among giants following a 92-point rating in UK wine magazine Decanter for their Leeuwenkuil Shiraz 2013.The Decanter panelists loved its "delicate violet nose . bright red fruit, fine peppered tannins and crunchy acidity". I love its freshness, ripe cherry and raspberry fruit, clove-like spice - and its incredible retail price of around R45 a bottle...
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