David and Nadia Sadie are rightly considered to be in the top handful of Cape winemakers. Favouring light-touch texturally satisfying wines of great intellectual prowess, their drive to produce the country’s finest Chenin Blanc and Grenache is bound-up in a deep respect and belief in the quality of the Swartland’s terroir. One of the very few new wave producers in the Swartland to actually grow up in the region, David Sadie is keen to explain how “over the years the Swartland has learned to pare back the powerful nature of our wines. We are not gunning for an alcohol level but wines of precision and balance instead. In my case, I carry out multiple pickings in each of my vineyards, which enables me to layer up complexity and arrive with an even and stable pH. The wines are not as showy on release but they have adapted to the heat and have everything in place for the future.” He characterises the cooler, later 2021 vintage as one that “taught us to be patient.” Well, in our view, that patience has rewarded us with the most chiselled, detailed and intense vintage we have tasted here. Spectacularly taut, crystalline Chenins with a certain breadth and finesse sit proudly alongside a highly perfumed, silky, refreshing Grenache and Grenache-based blend which are routinely likened to Gredos or a certain renowned Châteauneuf estate. The 2021 collection is on average half a degree lower in alcohol than 2020 (itself a moderate and fresher-styled vintage) at the same pH and acidity level, so there is great energy to these wines.
At the single vineyard level, these are serious whites which represent the top-tier in South Africa and compare very favourably with high-ranking Burgundy, Californian and Loire Valley equivalents. Naturally low yields, attentive, dry-land viticulture and sensitive, hands-off winemaking in neutral vessels remains the order of the day.
Read MoreExcitingly, 2021 sees the birth of a fourth single vineyard Chenin Blanc, following in the line of soil-driven Chenins from across the Swartland. It is called Rondevlei and the vineyard was planted in 1984 on an arid plain area in the western part of the Swartland towards Darling, in deep iron-rich gravel soils. The vineyard looks like an oasis in the desert. Rondevlei (gravel) joins a line-up of Hoe-Steen (deep clay-rich iron), Skaliekop (shale) and Plat’bos (decomposed granite). All four single-vineyard wines, as well as the main Chenin Blanc, are part of the Old Vine Project, which exclusively features wines that are produced from vineyards at least 35 years in age. Quantities are limited.
The main four wines naturally form the mainstay of the output here, receiving all the care and attention of the top wines, and more. Both the Aristargos (Chenin-based white blend) and Elpidios (Grenache-based red blend) really reflect the beauty of the Swartland’s far-reaching landscape and varietal mix, whilst retaining the same sense of purity and textural delicacy that informs the single varietal bottlings.
As ever, we recommend the full range wholeheartedly. For tasting notes and information on each of the wines please visit our website. Please note that demand for the single vineyards increases each year and we kindly ask customers to buy across the range wherever possible.