South (Africa) bound

Tips on a late-blooming wine power

Uncorked by David Marglin

A good friend of mine recently graduated from college and is headed to South Africa for a job. A decade ago, this would have been unheard of -- South Africa was still in the grip of apartheid and an international trade ban, and not many people headed there to work. And in the wine world, not many people knew much about South African wines -- or would have bought them if they could. But times have changed significantly, and South Africa -- now back in the international trade community -- is also exporting plenty of excellent wines to this country. Their style is distinctive, and can be off-putting at first, but they can also be most enjoyable and, in many cases, a tremendous value. But you have to be picky.

You can't exactly call South African wines "New World" wines, although they're certainly new to us. South Africans have been making wine since around 1652, when ship captains thought that wine would keep their men from getting scurvy. South Africa now produces roughly 3 percent of the world's wines, making it the eighth-largest wine-producing region.

Today South Africa is known primarily for its whites. The most widely planted variety is chenin blanc, known there as steen. These are table wines, not particularly complex and not readily available here. (When they are, they're affordable -- under $10 a bottle -- and not bad if you like your wines a bit sweet and fruity.) Like the steen, most South African wines don't use a lot of heavy new oak, so you get a fruitier style of wine across the board, including some very refreshing chardonnays. There's also a lot of sauvignon blanc that's competitive with the best bottles coming out of New Zealand, with a similar fruit-forward style. I would steer clear, if you run into it, of a wine called Hanepoot, which is a muscat clone. Rieslings are well made, if you see 'em.

The problem with South African reds hasn't been the growing conditions, but rather that the country's winemakers were stuck with a lot of bad, poorly suited grapes. Draconian importation laws have meant that, for more than a century, it was illegal for South Africans to import most vines. So there was almost no cabernet sauvignon or good pinot noir planted. Indeed, it was against the law to grow chardonnay, which is why the best-known South African wines were chenin blancs, muscats, and some sauvignon blancs, along with a notorious table wine made from colombard.

In the late '80s, South Africa's government finally eased importation controls, and you now have a lot of cabernet and decent pinot noir (and chardonnay) being planted. It takes time to figure out what grapes work best, and where they work best, but the learning curve has become a hairpin turn. In South Africa, as in the rest of the world, winemakers are quickly figuring out their terroir and what to grow where.

One red unique to South Africa is a cross between pinot and cinsaut known as pinotage, which is not to my taste at all; it's musty, musky, and not pleasantly fruity. But there are, I'm told, a few good pinotages; Aime Amar, the sommelier at Upstairs at the Pudding, recommends Backsberg, which I haven't found in any local stores.

There are also some red wines, including one pinot noir, that I think are exceptional: the Haute-Cabriere, reviewed below, I discovered in a tasting of pinot noirs from around the world, in which it held its own against some pretty stiff competition from Burgundy, Oregon, and California. South Africa also turns out some excellent shiraz, which has been growing there for centuries, and I've tasted a couple of Bordeaux-style blends that are competitive with their California and antipodean counterparts.

South African wines are particularly popular in England and the Netherlands, where they're viewed the way Australian and New Zealand wines once were: affordable, completely drinkable, often surprisingly good wines. Find them and you will be well ahead of the coming trend. Here are some suggestions; when you've found what you like, tell us.

**1/2 1997 Mulderbosch Stellenbosch Sauvignon Blanc ($19.99, widely available). Stellenbosch is the university town with the country's leading wine program (equivalent to UC Davis, in California), and this is the flagship wine from the region. I liked earlier versions better, but this model has high acid, with a sharp, almost tingly mouth feel. Add some mild citrusy flavors (some grapefruit and lemon zest) and you get a good wine to serve cold with shrimp cocktail or spicy foods.

**1/2 1992 Meerlust Rubicon Stellenbosch ($21.99, Marty's Liquors). A fine Bordeaux blend, not particularly deep, but with a broad sweep of merlot and cab flavors and a lingering finish that is soft and warm. Drinking superbly right now. I would not hold this for long.

**1/2 1997 Hamilton-Russell Chardonnay ($14.99, widely available). A fine and fruity chard with less oak than many of its American counterparts. This comes from the southern region of South Africa, which tends to have bigger temperature swings from day to night and longer exposure to the sun. It has bright fruit, mainly pineapple and citrus, and a pleasantly sharp, almost white-peppery finish.

*** 1996 Bouchard Finlayson Sauvignon Blanc Oak Valley Elgin ($17.99, Marty's Liquors). Tom Schmeisser and his crew are the leaders in South African wine in this area. This one has lots of grapefruit and citrus, but it is by no means overly tangy. A quixotically inviting wine, easily approachable, that will open your palate. Its tight structure allows it to pair well with food, but it could be a nice sipping wine for a warmish autumn night, too.

*** 1996 Haute-Cabriere Pinot Noir ($29.99, Marty's Liquors). Imported by Cape Classics, this is way young, but it shows lots of vibrant fruit, with a hint of eucalyptus. You can enjoy this now -- I did -- but it will reward the patient, or those who open it a day before they want to imbibe it. Check out the sandalwood finish. A pleasant surprise after all those 1996 Burgundies.

David Marglin can be reached at wine[a]phx.com.

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