25 Mar 2008

Waterford Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 Stellenbosch

Here's another, quite different South African wine this week – mainly because the country offers wine lovers such great value. To paraphrase A A Milne, when the reds are good they are very good even if when they are bad they are horrid. This one is very good, relatively inexpensive for the quality, and widely available around the world as you will see from the number of currencies I have been able to cite.

I tasted nearly 70 of South Africa’s top wines the other day and will be publishing my full tasting notes along with UK prices and stockists later in the week. What was clear from the tasting was that South Africa can offer some extremely well made Cabernets and Bordeaux blends that are, unusually, ready to drink. The 2003 vintage was an exceptionally good one for Cape reds and here is impressive proof.

The team at Waterford directed by Kevin Arnold is already much lauded and I was also very taken by his winemaker colleague François Haasbroek when I visited South Africa last May. This blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc, 5% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot is obviously made from fully ripe fruit (not always the case in South African reds) but it is also genuinely interesting, with an intriguing and confident bouquet already – no rough edges or awkward obvious additions of acid or tannin. And nor is it too obviously sweet but rather truly lively and digestible. There is no shortage of Cabernet cassis fruit but layers of spice and lovely mellow texture too. And it’s no sledgehammer – just 13.5% alcohol on the label.

I would decant this wine to let it stretch itself a little (although it was delicious straight from the bottle) and possibly serve it blind to your most bordeaux-loving friends any time over the next two or three years.

You can buy it in the UK for £13.49 from AG Wines (www.agwines.com) and £14.50 from Berry Bros (www.bbr.com).

Find this wine