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  • Q&A WITH WILHELM PIENAAR, NEDERBURG RED WINEMAKER

    What was the moment that decided you on a career in wine?

    During my gap year, back in 1997 I was working in a wine import company in Denmark as an “extra” – helping with anything from warehouse orders to promotions and marketing. It was really just to fill a four-month gap. Wine intrigued me and I was hooked, being among all those wines from across the globe.

     

    What's the best part of your day?

    Anything that involves tasting.

     

    What is your biggest wine achievement?

    Wine for me is a journey and I always try to improve on the last “best thing ever”. It does not always present itself in achievement. It is more about embracing opportunities.

     

    What is your biggest personal achievement?

    Getting married was the best thing I have EVER done!

     

    What matters most to you?

    Being true to myself.

     

    What is your favourite pastime?

    Entertaining friends! Sharing wine experiences or grinding/brewing my own coffee at home.

     

    What is your guiltiest pleasure?

    I can drink 20 cups of coffee a day! ...but I don’t anymore. I'm a recovered coffee-holic!

     

    What's your favourite food and wine combination?

    Being a non-conformist, I find this hard to answer. I always try to push the boundaries and explore new combos. But if you put a gun to my head – probably Bobotie and Pinotage!

     

    What wine will we find in your house right now?

    WHITE: Nederburg's The Anchor Man 2011 for myself and the Nederburg Wine Master's Reserve Riesling 2011 for my wife.

    RED: Nederburg Grenache 2010 for Woolies and the Nederburg Motorcycle Marvel – this we don’t mind sharing!

  • Q&A WITH WIM TRUTER, NEDERBURG WHITE WINEMAKER

    What was the moment that decided you on a career in wine?

    Studying wine seemed a pretty cool thing to do and it was, but my real AHA moment came during my first harvest in McLaren Vale in South Australia. It opened up my eyes to just how many possibilities existed and that was when I knew I wanted to make wine my career.

     

    What's the best part of your day?

    It's when everything you do comes together and you taste that final product in the tank before it goes for bottling.

     

    What is your biggest wine achievement?

    Studying for my Master's degree in Angers, in vintage, vine, wine and terroir management really enriched my outlook. It was a humbling reminder that we don't need to reinvent the wheel but to keep getting better at the basics. I also loved being able to live the culture of wine.

     

    What is your biggest personal achievement?

    It has been the travelling in Europe, Australia, the US and Asia.

     

    What matters most to you?

    Friends and family.

     

    What is your favourite pastime?

    Being with friends and family and enjoying mountain biking and scuba diving. Living in the Western Cape means you have so many beautiful places to experience right here, on your doorstep.

     

    What is your guiltiest pleasure?

    I love to cook. Come Friday night, I like to experiment with new dishes and wine combinations. Right now, my girlfriend and I are very into Asian cooking - Vietnamese and Indian especially. I brought back a lot of spices and we are having a lot of fun with them. We are also trying to master some French dishes from Julia Child's classic cookbook.

     

    What's your favourite food and wine combination?

    It depends where you are and what you are doing. Over the past weekend, it was freshly caught crayfish with our 56HUNDED Chenin Blanc. Sometimes you want a good, quaffing fruity rosé with saucisson, cheese and tapas. Other times, I love a light-style red with Mediterranean food but in winter, give me a hearty stew served with a big Shiraz or a big Cab!

     

    What wine will we find in your house right now?

    I like to keep a good spread because you never know who is going to drop in or how the day is going to turn out - some party wine, some special occasion wines and then the wines of some of my friends who are also winemakers. We swop around and discuss what we produce. I also belong to two tasting groups, so it depends on the type of wines we are exploring at the time.

     

  • Q&A WITH UNATHI MANTHONGO, NEDERBURG VITICULTURIST

    Unathi is a viticulturist who joined the Nederburg team in 2012.

     

    What was the moment that decided you on a career in wine?

    I didn't even know a career in wine existed till I was accepted for a bursary in Viticulture and Oenology at Stellenbosch University and had to start researching what both those words actually meant. It was only in my third year of BSc studies, after I made my first batch of wines that I realised that I belonged not in the cellar but in the vineyards. We were given grapes that all tasted and looked so different from each other in terms of berry size, skin thickness and colour content. There were even differences occurring in the same cultivars. I wanted to find out why. Where were they grown? How were they grown? To have the same name (cultivar) and yet be so different, I loved the mystery of it.

     

    What's the best part of your day?

    During harvest, early in the morning when I walk into vineyard block and start tasting grapes for ripeness and by the time I get to the end of the block, I am not only full but I also know the block is ready for harvest. “Air-punch moment!”

     

    What is your biggest wine achievement?

    Growing grapes used to make award-winning wines.

     

    What is your biggest personal achievement?

    Being an active member of the generation that is fiercely trying to break the vicious cycle of poverty. Not giving up.

     

    What matters most to you?

    Family and living my best life!

     

    What is your favourite pastime?

    Hiking

     

    What is your guiltiest pleasure?

    Orange intense dark chocolate

     

    What's your favourite food and wine combination?

    Chicken curry and Riesling, grilled fish and Sauvignon blanc, dark chocolate and Cabernet Sauvignon, braaied meat and unwooded Chenin blanc or Chardonnay. My motto is: Where there is food, there must be wine!!!

     

    What wine will we find in your house right now?

    Maybe it would be easier to ask what wine I do not have in my house! I have a chilled bottle of MCC (because you never know when you feel like celebrating). Most white and red wines, blends, dessert, fortified and even brandy!

  • Q&A WITH RAZVAN MACICI,  NEDERBURG CELLAR MASTER

    What does it mean to be named Diner’s Club 2012 Winemaker of the Year?

    It is an extraordinary honour. By winning in the dessert wine category, I am able to pay tribute to two great winemakers who have influenced me profoundly. The one is my father, the late Mihai Macici, who was a doyen of dessert wines in Romania, where I was born. The other is Gunter Brozel, a previous Nederburg winemaster, who made South Africa's first noble late harvest wine in 1969 and over the years created a worldwide following for his many dessert wines. He also won the Diners Club Award in 1983 and 1985, so now, after an interval of nearly 30 years, Nederburg has won it again!

     

    How would you describe your winning wine?

    The 2007 Nederburg Eminence is a gorgeous gold, wonderfully perfumed and shows purity of floral flavours so typical of the Muscat grape variety. It has a very fine balance between sweetness and acidity. It's delightfully fresh in the mouth with a long aftertaste.

     

    With what types of food do I enjoy this wine?

    A few years ago, we did a very interesting pairing exercise, featuring some of our sweet wines. We paired each course from the starter all the way through to the dessert with a sweet wine. The idea was to demonstrate how versatile these wines can be when paired imaginatively. For me, this is a wine to be enjoyed with liver patés and terrines and also, delicate, fruit-based desserts.

     

    What do you look for in a great dessert wine? Is dessert wine sexy?

    Very sexy, yes! The goal is always to achieve complexity and a fine balance between sweetness and acidity. Without the acidity, such wines could be overwhelming, cloying and fatiguing. It's the acidity that keeps them lively and refreshing.

     

    You have won a lot of local and international awards than most people in your industry. What, in your opinion, makes you different?

    I don't think it is me but the way we work at Nederburg. We invest extensively in vineyard and cellar research, we have access to the studies of some of the world's top wine producers and give a great deal of focus to viticulture. We even have our own vineyard nursery where we propagate superior plant material for our vineyards. By spending so much of our attention on the siting of vineyards, the choice of vines and how they are treated, we are able to work with the very best quality grapes. Our cellars are also very well equipped. Right the way through from the soil to the glass, we are very detail-oriented because sometimes it is the small things that can have the biggest impact. Finally, everyone involved in making Nederburg wines functions as a close-knit team.

     

    As a winemaker, what’s your wine making secret?

    Never overlook the detail and give the same respect to every wine you make from the specialty, collector's item to the wine intended for simple, everyday enjoyment.

     

    How would you compare South Africa to other countries, especially France, Italy and Spain, as the three leading wine producing countries world-wide?

    South Africa is positioned as offering the best of the Old and New Worlds. Our wines in this country combine classical structure and the ability to age with more modern, purity of fruit flavour.

     

    How would you describe SA’s wine drinking culture from your native country, Romania?

    It is tremendously exciting to see how the interest in and appreciation for wine is growing in this country. I have been living here continuously since 1997 and every year I am aware of more wine festivals, exhibitions, wine tasting events and other ways in which South Africans are immersing themselves in the culture, traditions and experience of wine.

     

    Do you consider yourself a South African now after so many years living here?

    You have obviously never heard me at a Springbok rugby match! Totally. I have been living here since 1997. I am married to a South African and we have three beautiful South African-born children.

     

    Strengths of SA wine industry?

    We are innovative and early adopters of new ideas and technology, we are not constrained by legislation in terms of siting vineyards in new wine-growing areas, as some European countries are, for example. We are very progressive when it comes to caring for the environment and to promoting conservation.

     

    Biggest changes in the SA wine industry over the past ten years?

    We are making wines that are more finessed and graceful. We are experimenting with lesser-known varietals and more of our winemakers are working abroad to gain international exposure to wine-growing and winemaking.

     

    Favourite things to do?

    You mean apart from making wine? Spending time with the family, Saturdays at Newlands with my friends, reading, cooking, painting and travelling.

     

    Best wine moment?

    It has to be receiving the trophy for the Diners Club Winemaker of the Year 2012.

     

    Guilty pleasures in life?

    Good food...it has started to show!

     

    Which wine would I find now in your house?

    Ingenuity White 2011, Ingenuity Red 2009, The Motorcycle Marvel 2009, The Brew Master 2009, The Winemaster’s Reserve Riesling and Nederburg Eminence 2007.

     

    What does the future holds for you?

    I hope it gives me the opportunity to make more Nederburg wines and to enjoy good times with my family and friends.

  • NEDERBURG HAS ITS OWN RESTAURANT FOR THE SUMMER

    Nederburg has opened its first restaurant in the more than 200-year history of the farm. While the tasting centre of the popular Paarl winery has long offered a range of themed food and wine pairings, the stylish new bistro-style restaurant, called The Red Table, is the first à la carte offering. It opens on Wednesday, November 28, 2012.

     

    Dishes will change regularly to reflect the availability of fresh ingredients and to showcase Nederburg wines in the news, such as the Private Bin 2007 Eminence, which earned Nederburg's cellar master Razvan Macici, the coveted Diners Club Winemaker of the Year Award, earlier this month (November). The Red Table will also be running flash sales on selected wines.

     

    Located in the lovely old Cape Dutch manor house, it will run from midday until late afternoon for the 2012/3 summer season right up to the end of April 2013. It has taken over most of the house, spilling over onto the verandah and also the surrounding gardens, when the weather permits.

     

    For many, this will be their first experience of the historic manor house, built in 1800 by Nederburg’s founder, Philippus Wolvaart. Until now, entry into this national monument has been exclusively by appointment.

     

    The restaurant has been created with well-known Cape Town foodie, Andrea Foulkes, who has worked closely with the winery and knows its extensive wine range extremely well. “Nederburg has the great advantage of an exciting and very varied range of food-friendly wines. To create dishes to showcase these is a wonderful opportunity.

     

    "Our emphasis is on great ingredients; we are establishing relationships with growers and producers in the vicinity to make the link between diner and the food source as close as possible. Expect fresh-flavoured and light dishes in a happy, relaxed and gesellige atmosphere as people break bread together.”

     

    The Red Table is open daily from Wednesdays to Sundays. While Sundays are devoted to a bounteous table buffet, every other day there is an à la carte menu with daily specials. Pre-bookings and payments for the Sunday table buffet will secure a special price of R195 per person.

     

    Vegetarians and those with special dietary needs will also be accommodated.

     

    Says Nederburg cellar master Razvan Macici: “We are the home of MasterChef SA for the second season. We have such a close association with delicious dining that it makes sense for us to have a restaurant where winelovers can enjoy their favourites paired with great tasting food.

     

    “The approach is one of simplicity where food and wine flavours meet on equal terms. We are offering appetising and generous portions of superbly made items such as gazpacho, salads made with flavourful baby leaves and hot-smoked fish or duck confit, brie and caramelised onion tart, cheese soufflé, top-grade steaks, venison burgers, artisanal cheeses, lemon tart, panacotta, various brûlées and more.”

     

    A kids’ menu offers pies, steak rolls, chicken skewers and pizzas.

     

    Prices start at R45 with most mains priced at around R65. The Sunday table that includes a fantasy sundae bar is priced at R195. For children, a picnic pack is offered at R75.

     

    Visitors will still be able to enjoy the wine and food pairings offered in the tasting centre.

     

    For bookings or queries, please call 021 862 3104, send an e-mail to theredtable@nederburg.co.za, go to www.nederburg.com/theredtable or follow Nederburg on twitter.com/nederburge(hashtag #Redtable) or www.facebook.com/Nederburg.

  • NEDERBURG BRINGS OUT ITS BEST PRIVATE BINS FOR 2012 AUCTION

    Nederburg’s suite of Private Bin wines selected for this year’s Nederburg Auction includes a noble late harvest judged one of the world’s top ten dessert wines; wines well over 30 years’ old; lively, supple reds now in their teens and some vintage whites, six and seven years’ old and in their prime, says cellar master Razvan Macici.

     

    The accent on this year’s line-up, he says, is on Nederburg’s ageworthy dessert wines, ranging from the 1977 Edelkeur that was awarded Top Ten status at the 2007 International Botrytis Type Wine and Sweet Competition in Budapest, to Edelkeurs from 1979, 1998, 2004 and 2007.  The winery’s other high-profile sweet wine, Eminence is also well represented with three vintages: the 1991, 1998 and 2001. There are also several single-cultivar noble late harvest wines on offer, two Weisser Rieslings (2001 and 2004), two Semillons (2000 and 2002), as well as a Gewürztraminer (2010).

     

    Macici is very excited about the whites on offer.  “We are particularly proud of the whites selected. They are ageing extremely well and are really in absolutely top shape.  We have the 2006 and 2010 vintages of the single-vineyard D234 Sauvignon Blanc made from a dryland block in the Groenekloof near Darling, showing powerful grassy and herbaceous notes but beautifully balanced and generous on the palate. The D253 Sauvignon Blanc/Chardonnay is a 2005 wine and is still bright and youthful with cool-climate Sauvignon blanc characters that combine with Chardonnay from Durbanville, fermented in new French oak.”

     

    He also highlights the D266, an unwooded Semillon from the 2009 vintage, which he describes as the ideal wine list offering as it complements so many different styles of cuisine from Asian to Mediterranean, and the 2009 D270 Chardonnay, displaying both freshness and length.

    Amongst the reds are four fine-drinking wines from 2001, his maiden year with Nederburg - a Cabernet Sauvignon, a Shiraz, a Merlot and a Petit Verdot, as well as more recent iterations. There are also two red blends from 2000, a Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot and a Shiraz/Cabernet Sauvignon. “All show a lovely vivacity coupled with excellent integration between fruit and wood.”

     

  • NEDERBURG CITY GIRL

    It’s not often you find someone working under the wide skies of the vineyards, who chooses to live in a City Bowl apartment. Nederburg’s new viticulturist, Unathi Mantshongo (26) prefers the daily commute into the Winelands from Cape Town, so she doesn’t lose contact with the “urban energy”.

     

    “I love the city’s vibrancy. It’s what fuels me. And I have a great view of the mountain from my balcony.”

     

    By day she’s a viticulturist, but by night and on weekends she’s making the most of the restaurants, food markets and the movies in her neighbourhood. Sea Point’s promenade is where she goes for her regular run, while Table Mountain is her new favourite for hikes.

     

    “I am so totally into wine and food pairing that I have to exercise a lot to keep in shape.” Slender, long-necked and graceful, she looks like a dancer but she says it’s athletics that keep her looking trim.

     

    It was only after googling the word “viticulturist” she found out what she might want to do after leaving school. “I was looking at bursary options and that’s how the word came up. I grew up in Umtata and then as a teenager moved to Boksburg. I didn’t know much about the Cape and even less about the wine industry.”

     

    Now a vineyard specialist for Nederburg, South Africa’s most awarded winery, there’s no other job she could possibly want. “Imagine this,” she says making a wide sweep with her slim, elegant arms, “my ‘office’ changes every day and it has no walls. I never know what to expect when I come to work in the mornings and I have to think on my feet. It is amazingly exciting. I’m working with a team who are so technologically ahead it takes my breath away. I’m learning, learning, learning, every day.

     

    “I am exposed to lesser-known varietals and new clones of established cultivars that we use in some of our trailblazing wines like Ingenuity. You have no idea what a thrill it is to work with vineyards all over the Cape, to understand the uniqueness of each and what specifically they can produce. I get to work in new winegrowing areas, learning about the potential of new sites and I get to work with long-established suppliers who are teaching me the most extraordinary vineyard management detailing imaginable, so we can get the very best fruit possible, irrespective of the vintage conditions.

     

    “One of the greatest aspects of my job is being part of a closely aligned network that has to ensure consistency from one vintage to the next when working with popular wines for global markets like Baronne. The quality of the fruit is critically important in achieving this.

     

    “On the same day as I work in a vineyard where fruit is being grown for a major wine like this, I might also visit a truly tiny vineyard, coaxing the best out of the vines destined for a very limited-edition wine like Nederburg’s iconic Edelkeur.”

     

    It’s the range of activities, the fact that she’s extending her skills virtually daily and stimulated at such a high level that makes the daily commute worth every minute of it. But then she is used to putting her head down to get what she wants.

     

    Moving to Stellenbosch for her four-year degree, she learned the discipline of sticking it out. “I can’t even begin to describe the immensity of the transition. It was bad enough making the switch from school to university but doing it in a strange place and in Afrikaans, which was not exactly my first language, was very taxing. I just switched off from everything else and focused on my studies. I kept telling myself I didn’t have a choice, that I had to make it. I studied all the time. It was a way to feel in control.”

     

    She remembers fellow students on campus who weren’t able to tough it out. Some dropped out.

     

    Even before she had graduated, she had secured her first job, as a viticulturist with KWV, where she spent four years. She joined Distell last spring.

     

    A member of the Nederburg team since June, Unathi refuses to pick a favourite wine varietal or even wine. “Are you kidding! There are so many outstanding choices. Right now I’m loving them all. It’s like living in a paradise of the senses.”

     

    She hopes to extend her thrill for wine to more South Africans. “A lot of people enjoy wine but almost at arm’s length. There is still a resistance to the way it gets talked about. Most don’t think about tastes of peach and litchi and berries and stuff like that. Wine tastes like wine but you can make it relevant by talking about it in a language people use in their daily lives and communicate with them in a way that means something to them. Use the metaphors of perfume, fashion, cars, music and you can open up a whole new universe. I just love the idea of that possibility!”

     

    Would she ever think about winemaking? “Oh no. Never. It’s too dark way down in the cellar. Give me the light any day.”

  • NEDERBURG IS IWSC’S SA WINE PRODUCER OF THE YEAR

    Nederburg has been announced as the 2012 International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC) SA Wine Producer of the Year.

     

    The title follows Nederburg's trophy for best Sauvignon blanc of the show won by the 2010 Private Bin D234 Sauvignon Blanc. The wine, as best in its class, also won a gold outstanding medal, the equivalent of a double gold.

     

    Other 2012 IWSC gold outstanding Nederburg wines were the 2008 Eminence, the 2007 Eminence and the 2009 Edelkeur.

     

    Nederburg was also recently also one of the top achievers at this year’s SA National Wine Show. In addition, cellar master, Razvan Macici, won the 2012 Diners Club Winemaker of the Year title earlier this month.

     

    Macici said the news was a spectacular way to round off 2012. "It has been a full and exciting year and we are thrilled that so many of our wines have been acknowledged across the range

     

    Nederburg’s 2012 IWSC golds were for the 2011 Winemaster’s Reserve Noble Late Harvest, a wine that is following in the footsteps of the highly celebrated 2010 vintage, as well as for the 2010, 2008 and 2007 vintages of Edelkeur.

     

    There were seven IWSC silver outstanding medals awarded to wines across the spectrum of Nederburg’s multi-tiered range as well as 13 silvers. The silver outstanding medals went to two Private Bin wines, the 2011 Manor House Sauvignon Blanc, the 2010 Winemaster’s Reserve Noble Late Harvest, the 2009 Two Centuries Sauvignon Blanc, the 2010 Ingenuity White (aPlatter’s South African Wine Guide five-star wine), as well as the 2011 The Manor Sauvignon Blanc.

  • BACK AT NEDERBURG WHERE IT’S MORE INTERESTING THAN EVER SAYS WIM TRUTER

    Wim Truter, who makes Nederburg’s white wines under cellar master Razvan Macici, relishes the versatility of his job, making such a varied range across so many styles, but then he is used to being stretched in new directions. After a four-year stint, first as Nederburg’s assistant red winemaker and then as its fully-fledged red winemaker, he left his position in 2009. The move to Angers in France was to complete a prestigious Erasmus Mundus international Masters programme in vintage, vine, wine and terroir management. The course took him to Italy and Spain too.

     

    Earlier in his career, this University of Stellenbosch graduate also worked vintages in Australia (McLaren Vale in South Australia and the Margaret River in Western Australia), the US (California’s Sonoma County) and France (Rhône valley).

     

    How does it feel being back and switching from reds to whites? “It’s been a very interesting process for me and it has certainly helped in making some of our wood-aged whites like The Anchorman Chenin Blanc and Young Airhawk Sauvignon Blanc,” he says, referring to Nederburg’s recently released Heritage Heroes ensemble of limited-edition gourmet wines.

     

    “For the most part, when it comes to the whites, the intensity of the focus happens at the beginning of the process as you try to capture their youthful, fresh and fruity characters. You also get to experience the results relatively quickly, whereas in the case of reds, it can obviously take several years.”

     

    He is particularly proud of the gold Veritas medal earned for the 2012 Winemaster’s Reserve Riesling, a variety that gives him great pleasure. “Perhaps it is because Rieslings are known for their longevity. I’ve enjoyed the challenge of striking the right balance between elegance, sugar and alcohol.

     

    “Right now, I’m very excited by the potential of vineyards planted in a range of new areas, where we have seen some excellent early results. I’m also excited by the opportunity of working with Rhône whites.”

     

    His involvement with a multi-tiered range made to cater to a wide spectrum of wine drinkers, extends him creatively and practically. The wines include popularly priced everyday drinking options with upfront fruit, those more classically styled, and still others intended for more specialty markets, including micro-cuvées. Wines are planned in the vineyards, with many of the vineyard management protocols and later, the cellar techniques, dictated by the end price to ensure that all wines offer fair value, regardless of the place they occupy in the multi-tiered range.

     

    “Part of my Masters’ research focussed on trellising systems and their impact on grape profile. I’ve also done a stint in marketing. I find it fascinating to approach the making of a wine from so many different perspectives. From Foundation and the new 56HUNDRED tier to our Winemaster’s Reserve, Heritage Heroes, Ingenuity and Private Bin wines, it’s an invigorating and intensely motivating journey.

     

    “Actually, in whatever I do, I find the more you immersed in it you are, the more interesting it becomes.”

     

    At some stage, he would like to work a harvest in Germany, but he is also very keen to experience the vineyards of Georgia and Moldova. “There are so many autochthonous (indigenous) varietals growing in these regions that we’ve never heard of! I’d love to find out more.”

     

    Those are dreams for another day in the far distant future, he says. “I’m having so much fun, working with such a great and talented team.”

  • NEDERBURG TEAMS UP WITH WOOLWORTHS

    Nederburg and Woolworths have collaborated to create two very reasonably priced wines for exclusive sale by the national retailer.  They are a full-bodied Grenache that makes a great partner to Mediterranean fare (R59), and a highly versatile Sauvignon Blanc/Chardonnay blend (R49).

     

    While Woolworths does stock selected wines from the Nederburg range, this is the first time the winery has developed wines solely for the retailer, with cellar master Razvan Macici and Woolworths wine selector Allan Mullins collaborating closely on conceiving and styling the two new offerings.

     

    The 2010 Grenache, which is a first from the Paarl winery and also the first varietal Grenache marketed by Woolworths, is made from low-yielding, unirrigated, mature bush vines in Paarl and Klapmuts, yielding 4 to 5 tons per hectare. Macici says the fruit was picked at full ripeness with sweet, juicy and spicy flavours. “Each block was individually vinified and fermented in open tanks. Once taken off the skins and malolactic fermentation was completed, the wine was aged in a selection of second-, third- and fourth-fill French and Romanian oak barrels for 18 months.

     

    “An intense but graceful wine with a velvety soft texture, it is brimming with peppery notes, succulent black and red fruit, a hint of liquorice and leather, and very subtle oaking.”

    He adds that it makes an excellent partner to savoury tapas and red meat dishes, as well as grills, roasts and casseroles.

     

    Nederburg has established a very loyal following for its white blends, with its Sauvignon blanc-dominated Ingenuity White consistently earning five stars in the Platter’s South African Wine Guide since its maiden 2007 vintage.

     

    The 2011 Woolworths white blend is also dominated by Sauvignon Blanc (60%), sourced from Darling, fermented in stainless steel and kept on the lees for 10 months until blending.  Chardonnay, which has not undergone malolactic fermentation to ensure a vibrancy and intensity to the wine, comprises the balance.  It includes a combination of both barrel- and tank-fermented wine. 

     

    The Chardonnay was sourced from Simondium and Durbanville.

     

    “A crisply elegant and refreshing blend with a lovely green colour that is tinged with gold, it shows traces of peach, pear and tropical notes, and a hint of vanilla,” says Macici. “It is zesty and creamy-textured, with a satisfyingly full mouth and is very food friendly.”

     

    He recommends serving it with seafoods, poultry and pastas made with creamy sauces.

     

    Woolworths is also carrying four of Nederburg’s Winemaster’s Reserve wines.  They are the Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. The reds also sell for R59 and the whites, for R49.

     

  • NEDERBURG’S RAZVAN MACICI NEW DINERS CLUB WINEMAKER OF THE YEAR

    Nederburg cellar master, Razvan Macici, crowned the 2012 Diners Club Winemaker of the Year earlier this month (November 3), says winning the coveted title marks one of the most significant achievements in his career.

     

    This year was the first time he entered the competition, that annually identifies a particular varietal or wine style as its single category for entry. The only competition of its kind, it is now in its 32nd year. Dessert wines have never been featured as a category before.

     

    His triumph sees the Diners Club title return to Nederburg for the third time after an interval of nearly 30 years. It was previously won by Gűnter Brȍzel in 1983 for Rhine Riesling and in 1985 for his Gewűrztraminer.

     

    This year, the top-scoring wine was Nederburg's Private Bin Eminence 2007, a wine made exclusively for sale on the Nederburg Auction. Macici also received top honours for two other wines, the 2010 and 2011 vintages of the Winemaster's Reserve Noble Late Harvest. Both wines are also rated five stars in the Platter's South African Wine Guide.

     

    Last year the 2009 vintage of Eminence was judged the wine of the show at the 2011 Five Nations Wine Challenge in Sydney in which wine producers from South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, Argentina and Chile competed. It also took the trophy for the top dessert wine as the highest-scoring wine in its class across the spectrum of Southern Hemisphere entrants. The 2008 vintage of this wine also won gold at the Sydney event. It had earlier earned 96 points to take the trophy for the best unfortified dessert wine at the 2011 Old Mutual Trophy Wine Show, and was one of the top ten wines in the 2011 Muscats du Monde in France.

  • START THE NEW YEAR ON A SENSATIONAL NOTE AT NEDERBURG

    If music is the rhythm of the soul, what better way to celebrate the start of 2013 than with top-class live entertainment under starry Paarl skies? Gather family and friends and dance your way into next year at Nederburg’s New Year’s Eve Spectacular!

     

    You can look forward to an enthralling line-up of musical compilations performed by the Cape Philharmonic Orchestra. Under the guidance of conductor Richard Cock, the orchestra will perform a programme of upbeat classical, jazz and contemporary pieces. Guests will hear jazz vocalist Melanie Scholtz (named the Standard Bank Young Artist for Jazz in 2010); up-and-coming classic tenor Derrick Ellis; classical-pop, cross-over singer Selim Kagee; as well as Heavenly Quartez, a popular male Afro-classic and jazz-infused quartet from Khayelitsha.

    Gates open at 19:30 and the concert starts at 21:30. Guests are advised to arrive early to select their spots on the lawns surrounding Nederburg’s historic manor house, for the best view of the stage.

     

    A selection of Nederburg’s award-winning wines, coffee, tea and soft drinks will be offered for sale. Home-baked sourdough flatbread baked in a wood-fired oven and served with various toppings such as smoked salmon, crème fraiche and rocket; spicy beef and chicken prego rolls; as well as desserts such as ice cream and chocolate brownies will also be available at very reasonable prices.

     

    Guests are most welcome to bring along their own soft drinks, but may not bring their own alcoholic beverages. They are also advised to bring their own glasses, blankets, cushions and chairs.

     

    Tickets cost R200 per person and R100 for scholars between the ages of 13 and 18, while entry for children under 12 is free. Tickets are available at Computicket outlets and online at www.computicket.co.za.

     

    For more information about the concert visit www.cpo.org.za

  • NEDERBURG TEAMS UP WITH WOOLWORTHS FOR MASTERCHEF SA

    Nederburg and Woolworths, both included in the line-up of sponsors of the debut reality cooking show series MasterChef SA, have collaborated to create two very reasonably priced wines for exclusive sale by the national retailer.  They are a complex, medium-bodied Grenache that makes a great partner to Mediterranean fare (R59), and a highly versatile Sauvignon Blanc/Chardonnay blend (R49).

     

    While Woolworths does stock selected wines from the Nederburg range, this is the first time the winery has developed wines solely for the retailer, with cellar master Razvan Macici and Woolworths wine selector Allan Mullins collaborating closely on conceiving and styling the two new offerings.

     

    The 2010 Grenache, which is a first from the Paarl winery and also the first varietal Grenache marketed by Woolworths, is made from low-yielding, unirrigated, mature bush vines in Paarl and Klapmuts, yielding 4 to 5 tons per hectare. Macici says the fruit was picked at full ripeness with sweet, juicy and spicy flavours. "Each block was individually vinified and fermented in open tanks. Once taken off the skins and malolactic fermentation was completed, the wine was aged in a selection of second-, third- and fourth-fill French and Romanian oak barrels for 18 months.

     

    "An intense but graceful wine with a velvety soft texture, it is brimming with peppery notes, succulent black and red fruit, a hint of liquorice and leather, and very subtle oaking."

     

    He adds that it makes an excellent partner to savoury tapas and red meat dishes, as well as grills, roasts and casseroles.

    Nederburg has established a very loyal following for its white blends, with its Sauvignon blanc-dominated Ingenuity White consistently earning five stars in the Platter's South African Wine Guide since its maiden 2007 vintage.

     

    The 2011 Woolworths white blend is also dominated by Sauvignon Blanc (60%), sourced from Darling, fermented in stainless steel and kept on the lees for 10 months until blending.  Chardonnay, which has not undergone malolactic fermentation to ensure a vibrancy and intensity to the wine, comprises the balance.  It includes a combination of both barrel- and tank-fermented wine. 

     

    The Chardonnay was sourced from Simondium and Durbanville.

     

    "A crisply elegant and refreshing blend with a lovely green colour that is tinged with gold, it shows traces of peach, pear and tropical notes, and a hint of vanilla," says Macici. "It is zesty and creamy-textured, with a satisfyingly full mouth and is very food friendly."

     

    He recommends serving it with seafoods, poultry and pastas made with creamy sauces.

    Both new wines will be sold for the duration of the MasterChef SA series, broadcast on M-Net from March 20 for 18 consecutive weeks.

     

    Woolworths is also carrying four of Nederburg's Winemaster's Reserve wines for the duration of MasterChef SA.  They are the Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. The reds also sell for R59 and the whites, for R49.

     

  • TRIO OF TROPHIES AND GOLDS FOR NEDERBURG AT INTERNATIONAL EVENTS

    Nederburg has won three trophies at the 2012 Decanter World Wine Awards across three different tiers, demonstrating again its ability to perform at top level throughout the range. It has also won three golds at the International Wine Challenge (IWC). The results of both were announced at the London International Wine Fair, visited by delegates from all over the world.  

     

    The 2008 Private Bin Edelkeur won the Decanter trophy for the best South African sweet wine retailing for over £10, while the 2010 Manor House Shiraz/Mourvèdre won the Decanter trophy for best South African red Rhône varietal retailing for over £10.  The 2010 Winemaster's Reserve Noble Late Harvest took both the Decanter trophy for best South African sweet wine selling for under £10 and an IWC gold medal. The botrytis wine also carries a Platter's South African Wine Guide five-star rating.

     

    The two other IWC golds went to the 2008 and 2009 vintages of Private Bin Eminence.

    Private Bin wines are sold exclusively on the Nederburg Auction. 

     

    Nederburg also came home with four Decanter silvers. These went to the 2010 Ingenuity White (a Platter's five-star wine), as well as to the 2009 and 2007 vintages of Private Bin Edelkeur and the 2010 Winemaster's Reserve Merlot. 

    Amongst the eight IWC silver medallists were the 2010 Manor House Shiraz/Mourvèdre and the 2008 II Centuries Cabernet Sauvignon. All other IWC silvers were for Private Bin wines.

    Earlier this month, Nederburg won a Syrah du Monde silver medal for the 2009 Private Bin R121 Shiraz.