Tim Atkin MW (95)

It says Cabernet Sauvignon on the label, but master blender Abrie Beeslaar adds 5% Merlot and Cabernet Franc for extra nuances and layers. Sourced from three blocks that provide more pyrazine notes, this is a deceptively forward red with leafy top notes, capsicum, coffee bean and blackcurrant flavours and plenty of underlying grip and structure.

Decanter (97)

In 2023, Kanonkop (owned by the fourth generation of the founding family, brothers Johann and Paul Kriege) celebrated 50 years of wine; the inaugural release being the 1973 vintage of this Cabernet Sauvignon. Joining in 2002, Abrie Beeslaar soon became only the third winemaker in the farm’s history, replacing Beyers Truter (1981-2003) who followed Kanonkop’s first official winemaker Jan Boland Coetzee (1968-1981). Of the estate’s 95ha of mainly dry-farmed vines, 35% are Cabernet Sauvignon, averaging 30 years, from Simonsberg in Stellenbosch, used for this varietal cuvée as well as Kanonkop’s flagship Paul Sauer Bordeaux blend. This 2019 was fermented in open-top concrete vessels then aged for 24 months in French oak barrels, 50% new and 50% second fill. Tina Gellie: Gorgeously seductive with its satin mouthfeel, silky tannins and flavours of smoked meat, saddle leather, green olives, plum skin sappiness and black fruit richness. Like diving into a cool, deep, dark pool. Beautiful freshness, length and composure – pitch perfect for drinking now but will age very well. What a belter. Anne Krebiehl MW: Smoke and earth, tobacco, the palate is dense but super-elegant, unravels like silk. Fine tannin, savoury umami edges, yet such salty, gorgeously ripe fruit. Altogether brilliant, with a lovely, serene balance – the ideal of proportions. Michaela Morris: Aromas are open, a bit flinty, but the palate is where it’s all happening: starts seductive but finishes serious, in the best possible way. Still needs time. The nice, savoury herbal character promises much. Nominated by Malu Lambert.

Greg Sherwood MW (97)

The 2018 Paul Sauer is a classical blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc from vines averaging 30 years of age grown on dryland vineyards of Decomposed Granite and Hutton and Clovelly soils. Vibrant and ruby / purple, the wine almost glows in the glass with inviting promise. At this youthful stage, the Cabernet Sauvignon component shines through strongly revealing a generally dark, broody, black fruited demeanour embellished with subtle notes of saline crème de cassis, star anise, lead pencil shavings, dried violets and signature nuances of freshly tilled earth, buttered brown toast and hints of breakfast espresso. In the mouth, the palate shows gorgeous elegance, purity and fruit focus with the most fine grained filigree tannins, soothingly generous black berry fruits and delicious mouth-watering acids. This wine is precision personified showing such effortless grace and harmony together with a measured power and intensity. The 2018 is certainly a very classically schooled expression that waltzes across the palate without ever putting a foot out of place. Like all truly great Bordeaux blends, this has the finesse and textural harmony to drink on release but also the intensity and gravitas to age effortlessly for 20 to 30+ years.

Greg Sherwood MW (96+)

This classically styled Paul Sauer 2019 is a blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Cabernet Franc and 11% Merlot. After noticeably more fruit forward aromatics on the 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 on release, this 2019 represents somewhat of departure in style with a decidedly tight, broody aromatic profile of inky dark berry fruits, iodine, crushed gravel, Bouquet Garni, dried herbs, sweet clove and graphite before subtle hints of pithy black currant and black cherry join the party and mingle with perfumed notes of pressed violets and lilac. Despite its 24 months in 100% new French Never oak 225 litre barriques, there is only a mere suggestion of wood influence with a beautifully refined cedar spice and unsmoked cigar nuances. On the palate, the results of a cooler and smaller harvest manifest themselves through a distinctly classical Old World restraint, purity, wound spring tension and supremely refined tannins that linger on the palate with seamless precision. As with many longer, cooler Bordeaux vintages, there is more a sense of concentration and power rather than an actual overt textural display, with sinewy black fruits, cocoa powder and earthy, brambly layers concertinaed by lively acids and yet more overt minerality. An impressive creation indeed that will benefit from a good 8 to 10 years in the cellar to fully blossom despite its textural finesse, balance and accessibility.

Greg Sherwood MW (97)

Launched in the 50th anniversary of the estate, it was an absolute pleasure to first taste the new release 2020 Paul Sauer in London with both winemaker Abrie Beeslaar and uber critical owner, Johan Krige. Together, these are two individuals who both have very high expectations for every new Paul Sauer release, but not only that, they are both people who will find a way for the new wine to express the new vintage blend in the most succinct and honest way. In 2020, the Paul Sauer is a blend of 69% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Cabernet Franc and 14% Merlot from Simonsberg vines grown on decomposed granite at an average of 30+ years old. The aromatics are delicate yet sophisticated, whispering a rich complexity of saline cassis, sweet violets, dried sage, crunchy black berry, iodine and salty oyster shell nuances with a hint of melted candles and incense complexity. Fabulously pure, focused, weightless and intense, there is a notable ambition and intent on the palate, that bristles with a maritime salinity, deep layers of crème de cassis, blue berry, cedar spice and a tart red berry extravagance. This is simply like no other 2020 I have tasted from Stellenbosch. The wine possesses its own class, elegance and swagger, but with an incredible refinement and precision. You would expect nothing less from one of South Africa’s first growth producers!

Vinous (95)

The maiden 2015 Amphitheatre has an intense bouquet of dark cherries, star anise, camphor and wild heather scents, all well defined and expressive. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins and fleshy ripe red fruit laced with white pepper and sage, fanning out wonderfully toward the finish. This is a beautiful maiden release, exuding breeding and class, from Alex Starey at Keermont.

Vinous (95)

The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon is blended with 7% Malbec and 6% Cabernet Franc and spent 22 months in seasoned French oak. It has a classy bouquet of expressive red berry fruit, cedar and light undergrowth aromas that leans toward the Left Bank. The palate is medium-bodied with great sapidity right from the start. The tannins are extremely fine here, and the finish fans out gloriously with just enough bite to tempt you back for another sip. This is an outstanding Cabernet from winemaker Alex Starey.

Vinous (97)

The 2019 Fleurfontein comprises pure Sauvignon Blanc and was matured in Hungarian and French oak for 18 months. It has a fabulous bouquet of irresistible scents of honey, apricot jam, mango and passion fruit, all beautifully defined. The palate is balanced with a fine bead of acidity that slices effortlessly though the marmalade and quince notes. This sweet wine exudes heavenly poise; it’s almost Sauternes-like on the finish. Another fabulous Fleurfontein.

Tim Atkin MW (95)

This world-class Syrah hails from a 0.7-hectare parcel planted on a ridge in 2005. Made with no stems in 2016 – the wine normally sees 15% whole bunches - it's like a Cape Côte Rôtie, all perfume, nuance and texture, with notes of ginger spice, barbecued meat and some ferrous grip. 2021-28

Christian Eedes (95)

55% Chenin Blanc, 18% Chardonnay, 16% Sauvignon Blanc, 10% Viognier and 1% Roussanne. Expressive aromatics of flowers, herbs, citrus and peach plus a slight nuttiness while the palate shows good fruit expression and tangy acidity – plenty of detail, the finish long and dry.

Vinous (95)

Deep, full orange-gold. Knockout nose offers orange, apricot, cherry, raspberry, mace, nutmeg, honey and flowers. Thick, very sweet and hugely concentrated; like liquid velvet in the mouth but with outstanding energy to its palate-staining orange and apricot fruit. Utterly seamless wine with a palate-staining, lightly saline aftertaste hinting at red berries.

Tim Atkin MW (96)

South Africa's Sweet Wine of the Year 2017.

Decanter (98)

An historical wine, Vin de Constance has been re-established in the last few years as one of the world’s finest sweet wines. Dried Muscat grapes are aged for three years before bottling, in French and Hungarian casks with a touch of acacia wood. Citrus, orange zest, rosewater and spice notes leap out of the glass. The palate has a laser-like focus with massive sweetness perfectly balanced by acidity and a mineral finish. As impressive as Château d’Yquem (and considerably better value).

Tim Atkin MW (98)

Increasingly celebrated as one of the great sweet wines of the world, not just the Cape, Vin de Constance is a delight to taste and review. Slightly drier than the 205 release at 165 grams of sugar, it has more in common with the Loire or Tokaji than it does with Sauternes in terms of freshness and structure.

Tim Atkin MW (98)

"Lighter and lighter" is the motto at Klein Constantia these days, according to Matt Day. The latest, world-class release of Vin de Constance certainly doesn’t lack sweetness at 165 grams or even concentration, but it has a freshness that's reminiscent of Vouvray or Barsac. Subtly wooded in 50% new barrels, it unfurls layers of citrus, toast and tarte tatin, with a drizzle of honey and vivid acidity and palate length. Bravo!

Matthew Jukes (19.5++)

I am informed by the top man at Klein Constantia that the price will be the same as last year’s superb 2017 and all of the likely candidates in the UK are likely to hold stock. It will require a little effort on Google and you will see that a large number of wine merchants will list 2018 Vin de Constance and while the prices swing around like no other wine I know, at £60 or so, for a half litre, it certainly makes sense to me and when you consider the sheer quality of this vintage, it is a bargain for this celestial experience. Stock is likely to arrive in September 2021, but do feel free to register your interest with your preferred wine merchant now. Vintage reports suggest that the build-up to the 2018 harvest brought the highest summer rainfall of the last six years and, combined with some of the coldest night-time temperatures on record, the vines were granted a very long and very slow growing season. These conditions have imbued extreme delicacy of perfume and flavour and also staggering concentration and length in this wine. It also means that the 2018 vintage has otherworldly characteristics and I cannot remember a young vintage tasting so refined and demure. Light bunches and tiny Muscat de Frontignan berries underline just how unusual this vintage was and with a harvest that was a fortnight later than average and crops down by about 15% all of these facts make sense when you taste this ethereal wine. Aged for three years in a combination of 50% new French oak barrels, a small number of acacia barrels, as well as large format foudres, this is both a sensual and also sensitive wine. For a start, the colour is incredibly pale – think a young Sancerre! But the viscosity is amazing when you pour a glass because the liquid moves ever so slightly slower and more deliberately into the glass. The lights come on and the brain fires up immediately and it takes you by surprise just how quickly your olfactory system senses that you are in the presence of greatness. I was in a state of heightened anticipation, long before I raised the glass to my lips and the reward is exquisite. The perfume and palate combine in an astral haze of delight with orange blossom, fig, lemon verbena, wild honey and acacia notes caressing your senses. The texture is super-smooth, incredibly long and unnervingly gentle. It certainly possesses the longest finish I can remember on a Vin de Constance and I have, very fortunately, a tasted huge number of vintages of this wine. If you have never tasted this wine before, please start with this vintage – it will blow your mind. If you have and you are a fan, this is a critical purchase for your collection. I cannot wait to add this wine to my cellar later in the year.

Decanter (98)

Butterscotch, lemon patisserie and peach aromas. Pristine quality to the texture, lively and thrilling, this is a serious, opulent and powerful wine, more on the spiced, nuanced side with aspects of dried herbs, wood scents and bitter lemon and orange with a touch of honeyed lychee. It feels supremely complex and characterful. Sophisticated, layered and balanced with some minerality, a slight graphite edge all of which adds to the whole. It's still extremely youthful but there is real sculpting here, a sense of precision, style and freshness. Well crafted with an extremely long life ahead. A wonder, and one of the best from the estate!

Decanter (97)

Best in Show - Those seeking out reds based on Cabernet Franc beyond their French home are, often enough, looking for a red wine which combines something of the structure and command of Cabernet Sauvignon but with more lift, grace and aromatic refinement. The red wine from this year's brace of South African Best In Show winners fills that role admirably. It's dark in colour, with refined, complex, raspberry and root-spice aromas in subtle and uninsistent style. Look out for bright, pure raspberry fruits on the palate with a further twist of liquorice and gentian. The structure comes more from the wine's quiet, limpid acidity than from any notable tannin presence, further unscoring that accessibility and responsiveness.

Tim Atkin MW (95)

This is "just" the basic Cabernet Sauvignon from Christo Le Riche, but it's a brilliant wine in its own right. Using grapes from ten different vineyards across Stellenbosch in Firgrove, the Helderberg, Jonkershoek, Raithby and the Simonsberg, it's a masterclass in blending. Matured in 18% new wood, it's wonderfully pure and scented, all violet, tar, tobacco leaf and liquorice, with plush yet structured cassis, black cherry and Asian spice flavours and the backbone to age for another decade in bottle.

Christian Eedes (95)

46% Grenache, 27% Cinsault and 27% Syrah, grapes sourced entirely from Swartland, the portion of Wellington Carignan that marked previous vintages no longer a feature. Approximately 80% whole-bunch fermentation. Complex aromatics of red and black fruit, rose, fynbos, olive, earth and spice. The palate has good fruit weight (despite a modest alcohol of 13%) to go with bright acidity and crunchy tannins. It’s a very measured wine – approachable without sacrificing character.

Christian Eedes (95)

W.O. Swartland. 44% Grenache Noir, 31% Cinsault and 25% Syrah. 80% whole-bunch fermentation. Whereas quite a few New Wave red wines sacrifice fruit depth for freshness, Lourens seems to achieve both. The nose shows top notes of lavender and fynbos before red and black berries, oliver, pepper and spice. The palate is medium bodied with fresh acidity and chalky tannins. Good fruit definition, lots of intricate flavours, the finish intensely savoury.

Greg Sherwood MW (95)

The 2018 Rubicon is a classical blend of 67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot, with every parcel of each variety fermented separately before undergoing malolactic fermentation in 300 litre barrels and large foudré. After 8 months in barrel, the components were blended and given another 10 months in barrel for harmonization before bottling. Wonderfully deep in colour, the nose is splendidly expressive showing quintessential Cabernet Sauvignon notes of pressed violets, black plum, sun raisin black currants, black salty liquorice, black chai tea, sweet cedar spice and layers of graphite and spearmint. While the aromatics are dominated by rich, dark berry fruits, the palate is classically proportioned with plenty of overt elegance and textural finesse – a great feat considering the heat and drought of the 2018 vintage. The extra bottle age before release has undoubtedly been a positive for this powerful, structured blend, helping to further round out the suave creamy tannins and harmonise the earthy black berry fruit layers, making the acids polished, glassy and fresh rather than taut and crunchy like many other 2018 reds. Unexpectedly approachable in its youth, I would have no hesitancy to cellar this super smart blend for another 10 to 15+ years.

Tim Atkin MW (95)

Block W is located in Faure, very close to the cooling breezes of False Bay on the Bredell farm and is my pick of the Mulderbosch Chenins in 2018. Intense, focused and mealy, with some added texture from 100% malolactic fermentation, lovely weight and concentration and a lingering, bone dry finish.

Tim Atkin MW (96)

"The hardest wine to make," says Andrea Mullineux of this Chenin Blanc from a nutrition-poor vineyard on the Kasteelbeg. But the effort is certainly worth it. Showing aromas of white flowers and gunflint, it has amazing focus, salinity and depth with linear acidity and notes of green apple, kitchen spices and umami.

Tim Atkin MW (95)

Generally shown first in a line-up of the Mullineux's three soil specific Syrahs, this is firm, dense and entirely whole bunch fermented with damson and blackberry fruit, sappy tannins, one-third new oak and notes of black tea, lavender and Mediterranean spices. Needs time. 2022-3

Tim Atkin MW (96)

One of a trio of brilliant soil-based Syrahs from the Mullineux in 2018, Granite hails from a 30-year-old vineyard on the Paardeberg. Structured and grippy, it's a wine that will reward patience, with clove spice from 100% whole bunches, notes of blood orange and blackberry, fine oak and a tangy, refreshing finish.

Tim Atkin MW (97)

We wine geeks love to discuss the relative merits of the three soil-specific Syrahs from the Mullineux. This is (just) my pick of the trio in 2019, sourced from a two-hectare block on the Jakalsfontein farm. Ginger and violet aromas segue into a palate of remarkable grip and persistence, with energetic acidity and a savoury, satisfying finish. 2022-29

Tim Atkin MW (95)

Chenin Blanc is the marquee variety here, with support from 26% Clairette Blanche, Grenache Blanc, Viognier, Semillon Gris, Viura and Verdelho, most of which is sourced from 37 to 70-year-old vines. Lemon, lime and wet stone flavours with some phenolic grip and remarkable palate length.

Greg Sherwood MW (95)

Bottled after 12 months, this is a very, very pretty vintage with lower yields but also beautiful fruit purity, precision and a wonderful fruit – acid balance. The aromatics are ripe, succulent and opulent showing honeysuckle, white blossom, lemon cordial, dried herbs and lovely white peach and pineapple pastille notes. Nevertheless, the stand out feature on the palate is undoubtedly the textural sophistication, harmony and chalky minerality combined with super tangy acids bursting with lemon rock candy, white peach and crystalline citrus flavours. Simply an incredible intensity with a harmoniously weightless balance combined with a long, piercing finish. This is definitely a noticeable step up on previous vintages and an incredible achievement for the Mullineuxs! Drink now to 2034+.

Tim Atkin MW (97)

My pick of the three top Mullineux Syrahs in 2018, this world-class red is the most perfumed and alluring of the trio right now. Combining fruit from the Kasteelberg and Roundstone, this has violet and lavender aromas, some sap and grip from 100% whole bunches, incredible focus and grip and a plush, seductive mid palate.