Waterkloof at Thornton's
17 May 2011 Filed in: Tastings Cellar Notes
There was a time, just a few years ago, when I had completely given up on South African Sauvignon Blanc, not because it had turned into a grassy green caricature of itself, like some of its Kiwi cousins, no, it had gone in the other direction. In the process it became a lumbering flabby monster, drenched with alcohol and possessing not one whit of the freshness one wants from this grape. Then last week at a wine dinner in Thornton’s Restaurant, Dublin I tasted the Waterkloof ‘Circumstance’ Sauvignon Blanc 2010 and my healthy, well fed prejudice had to be thrown out the window. Read More...
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One Hit Wonder
19 January 2011 Filed in: Tastings
About 25 years ago New Zealand wine hit the world with a bang and it is not an exaggeration to say that in the process a new style of Sauvignon Blanc was born. Pungent, grassy and, some said, smelling of cat’s pee, it rapidly garnered legions of fans around the globe. It is still with us today but what was once a characterful wine has now slid into the cul-de-sac of caricature. This was confirmed for me at the recent Kiwi tasting in Dublin where the Sauvignons I tasted boasted eye-watering pungency and little else. But there were other treasures worth lingering over. Read More...
