Jerez Wine

On the Tuesday of Vinoble the South African contingent offered a tasting session, introduced by Dalene Steyn (Wines of South Africa) with winemakers Sebastian Beaumont and Jean-Vincent Ridon talking us through the wines.

(The wines we tasted, from left to right: Beaumont Goutte d’Or 2005, Nederburg Edelkeur 2003; Signal Hill Vin de L’Empereur 2005; Klein Constantia Vin de Constance 2000; Signal Hill Straw Wine 2001; Rietvallei Muscadel 2004; KWV 1820 Cream; Bredell’s Cape Vintage Reserve 1998).

We learned that South Africa was once world-famous for its sweet “Constantia” wines. These wines enjoyed their heyday in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Sadly, competition from French wines in their main market, the United Kingdom, and then phylloxera bought this all to an end by the late 1800s. Obviously, the South African wine industry has since made a full recovery, and it’s clear there is more to come!

In light of the above, the wine from this tasting I’d like to mention first is the Klein Constantia Vin de Constance 2000. This is an attempt at recreating the famous “Constantia” wine, using Muscat de Frontignan vines believed to descend from the original stock and by studying old records. The wine had a medium gold colour with copper lights, a floral muscat nose with aromas of dried apricot and spice. It was sweet and full, with zesty flavours of citrus and wood with a long finish.

Next I should mention the wines made by the two winemakers present:

Beaumont Goutte d’Or 2005. A noble late harvest blend of Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc. Pale yellow, apricot and honey aromas, sweet viscous and balanced in the mouth with honey flavours, and a long clean citrus finish. Rare, since only two to three thousand bottles of this wine are made each year. Sebastian Beaumont, definitely an ambassador for his country and his wines, also makes award winning dry whites and reds and is the only winemaker to bottle a Mourvèdre in South Africa. Something I look forward to tasting one day.

Jean-Vincent Ridon had two wines at the tasting. The first, Signal Hill Vin de L’Empereur 2005, a gold coloured botrytised muscat with a floral nose, sweet balanced citrus flavour and a long dry mineral finish. The second was a wine made from grapes dried indoors for several weeks on mats of straw, the Signal Hill Straw Wine 2001. It had a medium amber colour with a thin clear rim, dried fruit and raisin aromas, sweet with citrus and mineral flavours, good acidity and a dry finish.

My notes for the rest of the wines we tasted:

Nederburg Edelkeur 2003
Noble late harvest from Chenin Blanc grapes. A medium gold colour with flashes of amber. Floral and apricot aromas, with dried apricot and citrus flavours. Long clean finish.

Rietvallei Muscadel 2004
Shiny pale salmon colour. On the nose, floral and raisin. Sweet raisins in the mouth, backed up with refreshing acidity. Clean finish.

Bredell’s Cape Vintage Reserve 1998
Bredells are acknowledged to be the best producer of Port-style wines in South Africa. This wine was a treat! Made from Tinta Barocca, Touriga Naçional, Touriga Francesca and Souzao grapes. Opaque purple colour, touch of tawny. Stained the glass. Thick slow purple legs. Pronounced nose of raisins and dried figs. Concentrated fruit, tannic and alcoholic, but all well integrated. Long dry finish.

KWV 1820 Cream
A punt at a sherry-style wine. Made from Palomino and Chenin Blanc grapes. Medium amber colour, wide rim. Oloroso-like nose, sweet spice, vanilla. Sweet and nutty. Short finish.

Later in the day, we sought out the Signal Hill stand to try two of their wines not included in the South African tasting. The Crème de Tête 2003 and Mathilde 2002. We were in for a bit of a surprise. The Mathilde it turned out was actually made after a Tokaji-style and a closer look at the label showed “Aszú 6 Puttonyos”. The colour was amber and looked oxydised, apparently deliberate since no sulphur had been added. Dried fruit on the nose. Powerful and complex taste.

There was no Crème de Tête left but that was soon forgotten because Mr Ridon conjured up from somewhere another of his Tokaji style wines. An Aszú-Eszencia 2002. Recently bottled, it had been fermented for four years and only 120 litres were produced! It had a deep amber colour. The nose was light, and I could just make out grapey and perhaps floral aromas. In the mouth it was very sweet, but with such an acididy that it seemed to melt away almost to dryness on the finish. The flavour was intense and complex. Astonishing!

This week Jerez played host to “Vinoble“. It’s the world’s only wine fair dedicated to noble and fortified wines. The “salón”, as it’s called here, started last Sunday, ended Wednesday and happens every second year. As wine fairs go, it’s not very big, but this is made up for by the many interesting wines and the beautiful setting. The stands were laid out in the formal San Fernando gardens and inside the Villavicencio Palace, all within Jerez’s moorish fortress – the Alcázar. The nature of sweet and fortified wines means many of the producers were small, boutique, family-owned, experimental and passionate. I was very lucky to be given a couple of tickets for the trade days by a good friend here in Jerez. It’s a pity I didn’t have the time to try every one of the wines being exhibited.

As I arrived on the first day I bumped into a local mate, Stuart. This was fortunate as it’s so much better having someone to compare notes with. As a student in Scotland, Stuart used to work in wine merchants so knows his stuff. He also has all the WSET certificates under his belt.

Trying not to go off piste too soon, I’ll write about the sherries first. Two of the sherries sampled stand out for me because their palate was so unexpectedly different to anything suggested on the nose.

The first is the Lustau 1989 Añada, an age-dated sherry, which in itself is unusual. Everything on the nose pointed to a dry oloroso. Nutty and woody with faint aldehyde character. On the palate however, it was sweet, smooth, full and warm with flavours of dates and almonds.

The second wine, the Bodegas Tradición Palo Cortado Muy Viejo, was the opposite. This 32-year-old wine had a soft nutty nose with a certain sweetness, possibly a hint of honey. On the palate it was bone dry, almost salty, with woody and toasted flavours.

Lustau make one of my favourite finos, which we also tried. Puerto Fino. Its nose reminds me of roasted and salted sunflower seeds. My friend Stuart didn’t like this aroma and described it quite differently! It had a smooth, silky mouthfeel, which was matched by a refreshing acidity. Flavours in the mouth were hazelnuts and a slight saltiness. The only other wine we tried at the Lustau stand was their East India Solera, a dark-brown sweet sherry smelling of nuts and dried figs with just a suggestion of something savoury and salty, Bovril perhaps? In the mouth it was sweet, full bodied, complex and balanced, with flavours of nuts, wood and caramel.

Rey Fernando de Castilla make a very interesting fino viejo called Antique Fino. Some of their fino butts selected for inclusion in the amontillado solera are bottled under this label. It’s a fino from butts where the flor has become patchy and a bit of oxidation has crept in, adding a touch of amber to the appearance and a nuttyness and fullness on the nose and in the mouth. For comparison we tried their Classic Fino, a pale lemon colour, green apples and straw on the nose and dry, flinty flavours in the mouth. Of their other wines we tried the Antique Amontillado which had quite strong aldehyde character on the nose, slightly medicinal with iodine aromas. In the mouth it was nutty, woody and salty with a long dry finish. Their Antique Palo Cortado had less aldehyde on the nose and a hint of caramel in the mouth. We were fortunate to speak with the owner of Fernando de Castilla, Jan Pettersen, and his commercial director Andrés Soto. They are a small company aiming high and it shows. Their wines and brandy are first class. Yes, brandy, because Mr Petterson kindly poured us a slug of that too. I don’t know which of their bradies it was, but it had a clean, fresh nose with aromas of apple and oak. On the mouth it was soft, smooth and dry with a long dry finish. Very nice!

More about other sherries in my next post, also the South African stickies and other assorted sweets at Vinoble…