Wines of the week | Spring in a bottle

Did you know that South Africa has more Chenin Blanc vines than France? Having become the emblematic white grape variety of the country, it is available in several styles of wine. Here is one focused on fruit and freshness, ideal for learning about South African Chenin. Then two more expensive wines, but which offer excellent value for money.

Veronique Rivest
Sommelier, guest collaborator

Fruity freshness

Bot River is a South African appellation that is part of the wine region called Cape South Coast. Located in the extreme south of the country, therefore strongly influenced by the nearby ocean, it is a very cool region. The Beaumont family produces, among other things, delicious Chenin Blanc wines. Its entry-level cuvée is entirely produced in concrete and stainless steel vats to preserve all its freshness and fruity character. The delicate nose opens with notes of citrus, green apple and pineapple. Very dry, this wine offers similar aromas on the palate, with a lot of freshness, enhanced by a good amount of carbon dioxide — a passage in a carafe will do it the greatest good. To be enjoyed with salads (with citrus!), grilled green vegetables, fried fish, sushi.

Beaumont Wines Chenin Blanc Bot River 2021, $20.25 (13225840), 12.5%

Aging: 1 to 3 years

A true gastronomic wine

Expensive for a crémant, you say? Not at all ! I would even say that this Domaine André and Mireille Tissot Brut Crémant du Jura is excellent value for money, better than many much more expensive champagnes! The estate, masterfully led by Stéphane Tissot, is a reference: not only one of the best in the Jura, but in the whole country. Their crémants are always safe bets. This new arrival, disgorged in November 2021, is made with 50% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot Noir, 5% Poulsard and 5% Trousseau, aged partly in barrels. It gives a very dry wine, full of vitality, but also vinous, complex and deep. The bubbles, very fine, carry the flavors on a long finish imbued with minerality. You can drink it as an aperitif, but it tastes even better with fish in sauce, poultry with cream, mushroom risotto.

Domaine André and Mireille Tissot Brut Crémant du Jura, $35.50 (11456492), 12.5%, organic

Aging: 6 to 8 years

The same fruity radiance and the same delicacy

It’s a return of the same vintage, for this cuvée, the Gulfi Cerasuolo Di Vittoria 2019, already recommended in May 2021. And it has lost none of its fruity radiance and its gluttony! At Gulfi, we produce true terroir wines, undeniably Sicilian, in their fruit and maturity, but with an exemplary balance, without excess or heaviness. This blend is made of 50% Nero d’Avola and 50% Frappato, full of juicy fruit, very cherry, but with lots of earthy, garrigue, spice and floral nuances. The palate is very fresh, but with substance, a certain fullness and present, ripe and very fine tannins. Very harmonious and very delicious, the savory character of this wine calls the table: fish with tomatoes and black olives, pasta with puttanesca, lamb chops with herbs.

Gulfi Cerasuolo Di Vittoria 2019, $34.50 (14044848), 13%, organic

Aging: 4 to 6 years