You can see a glimpse and overview of South Africa on my preview earlier this week. Wines
of South Africa was kind to supply some of our bloggers with some chenin blanc
to sample. June 21st is
coming quickly which is #CheninBlancDay so it was the perfect time to
experience this wine. The wine that I
tried was a 2017 Raats Old Vine Chenin Blanc.
The Winery ~ Raats
In 2001 the Raats winery
was founded by Bruwer Raats and his brother Jasper, whom has since stepped away
from the business. Their father was the
viticulturalist until his unfortunate passing in 2009. Today their cousin, Gavin Bruwer, has joined
the family business as the current winemaker. They are located in the Polkadraai Hills of
South Africa’s most popular wine region, Stellenbosch.
Raats Winery solely produces chenin blanc and cabernet franc and takes great pride in focusing on these particular varietals. Their grapes are sourced from the few hectares of their estate vineyards as well as some other parcels of land closely managed by Bruwer with low-yielding old vines in the areas of the Bottelary Hills, Simonsberg and Blaauwklippen at over 800 feet above sea level. These areas have soils of Table Mountain sandstone and decomposed granite.
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| Table Mountain |
A respected winery whom earned Winery of the Year in 2018
from Platter’s South African Wine Guide.
According to Raat’s website they are the first in history to have 8
wines within the same year receive 5 stars from Platter’s. I’m not always one for ratings, but that alone
should peak your interest in discovering what their wines are all about.
The Land ~
Stellenbosch
Stellenbosh along with Franschoek are two of the wine
regions that I drove through on my journey through Africa. Although I didn’t visit Raats at that time I
did visit some others including Spier Winery
that I’ve written about. I realized I dropped the ball on writing about the
others including Asara and the unique winery Vergenoegd where they use runner
ducks to keep out pests instead of chemicals.
Quite unique and something I still must share.
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| Runner ducks at Vergenoegd Winery |
Stellenbosch is located in the Western Cape along the Eerste
River and is only about 25 miles east outside of Cape Town. It is the 2nd oldest settlement
after Cape Town and is named after one of the prior governers, Simon van der
Stel. Winemaking here dates back to the
late 1600’s when vines were planted by the French Huguenots. I also read that it’s the birthplace of
pinotage established in 1924. This one
region alone contains about 1/5 of all of South Africa’s wines.
The Wine ~ Chenin
Blanc
The 2017 Raats Old Vine Chenin Blanc is sourced from 3 of
the vineyards mentioned above with an average age of 40 year old vines. Half of the wine grown in granite was fermented
in stainless with the other half sourced from the sandstone fermenting in 300
liter French oak barrels that are 20% new.
After 9 months they are blended together and spend another 2 months on
the lees before they are bottled. A brilliant straw color. Mostly tropical on the nose with a toastiness and hints of vanilla. Nice crisp, bright acidity with notes of pear and citrus, some minerality and good length. SRP $24 ABV 13.5%
Food Pairing with
Chenin Blanc
I tried a couple pairings with this wine including marinated
chicken in a honey soy sauce with a side of fresh green beans in a feta dijon mustard
topping.
Although, my favorite choice
pairing was a crustless zucchini quiche.
The quiche consisted of zucchini, eggs, a bisquick substitute, fresh
herbs and some fresh pecorino romano. The lusciousness and crisp acidity of the
old vine chenin blanc with the zucchini and
creaminess of the quiche was a perfect balance.
- Camilla from the Culinary Adventures of Camilla offers A South African Braai (Rhymes with 'Fry') + A Trio of Chenin Blancs.
- Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm features Grilled Chicken Caesar paired with a South African Chenin Blanc.
- Lori of Dracaena Wines is Unlocking the Marvels of Nature ThroughWine.
- David of Cooking Chat shares South African Chicken with Chakalaka and Chenin Blanc.
- Deanna of Asian Test Kitchen features South African Chenin Blanc Paired with Vietnamese Food.
- Gwen of Wine Predator writes 3 Summer Wines from South Africa Shine for #CheninBlancDay #RoseDay #WinePW.
- Nicole of Somm's Table pairs A South African Pinot Feast Hamilton Russell, Tesselaarsdal, and a GlazedPork.
- Sarah of Curious Cuisinere features South African Chutney Chicken and Chenin Blanc Pairing.
- Cynthia and Pierre of Traveling Wine Profs writes A Celebration of Wine Industry Upgrading Paired with South African Food Truck Takeout.
- Pinny of Chinese Food and Wine Pairings is sharing Spier Pinotage/Shiraz from South AfricanPlus Sliced Lamb as Wrappers.
- Jeff of FoodWineClick! features Gemaak en Gebottle Oorsprong: We're Not in Kansas Anymore.
- Linda of My Full Wine Glass highlights Golden Wine from a Golden Land - South Africa.
- Jill of L'Occasion writes Making a Meal with Wine from South Africa.
- Cindy of Grape Experiences features A Family Affair: South African Chenin Blanc with Scallops, Tomatoes and Pesto.
- Jane of Always Ravenous writes South African Chenin Blanc Paired with Shrimp,Scallops, and Mango Salsa.
- Michelle of Rockin Red Blog is Wandering into June with Lubanzi Wine and #WinePW.
*This wine was provided as a sample, but opinions are my own.
