On the 1st of August Judith Lee came to present the wines on Blaauwklippen to us. It has been quite some time since Judith was last at Vats, last time was 24th of April 2012. At that tasting Judith presented the wines of Van Loveren to us. It was awesome to see Judith and it was a tasting that was top notch too. Judith came armed with presents and wines that were simply amazing. This was the tasting below, the comments from the tasters and the scores.
1. Brut MCC NV (Zinfandel)
Colour- light pink, fine but lively mousse. Nose- Turkish delight, citrus, apple, spice, strawberry. Palate- crisp acidity, red berry fruit which lingers to the finish, toast, apple, rose water, apricots, soft mouth feel.
Score- 17.14.
2. Sauvignon Blanc 2022
Colour- light green. Nose- perfumed, green herbs, citrusy, lemon and lemon curd, figs, pineapple. Palate- crisp acidity, complex, lemon and lemon curd, grassy, gooseberry, green apples, quince.
Score- 16.75.
3. Chenin Blanc 2022
Colour- light green, with a tinge of gold. Nose- watermelon, citrus, passion fruit, peach. Palate- crisp acidity, passion fruit, citrus, melon, peach and spice, with a savoury finish.
Score- 17.13.
4. Blush Rose 2022 (69% Zinfandel, 31% Malbec)
Colour- light pink. Nose- meaty, candy floss, red berries. Palate- crisp acidity, black and red fruit, watermelon, savoury.
Score- 17.00.
5. Merlot 2021
Colour- inky dark red, gradating slightly to a light browning rim. Nose- black cherries, plums, Christmas cake, chocolate. Palate- crisp acidity, firm tannins, chocolate, spice, caramel and toffee, meaty, green herbs, pepper and black cherry that lingers to the finish.
Score- 17.25.
6. Malbec 2021
Colour- inky dark red, with no gradation to a light red rim. Nose- black fruits and lots of spice, violets. Palate- crisp acidity, firm but soft tannins, black berries, spice, nutty, almonds and cashews, black cherries, herby and savoury.
Score- 17.50 (tied with five other wines in 13th place for 2023, out of 168 wines tasted thus far).
7. Cabernet Sauvignon 2020
Colour- inky dark red, with no gradation to a red rim. Nose- spice, almonds, black currants, chocolate, caramel, spice, pencil shavings. Palate- crisp acidity, firm tannins, caramel, nutty, spice, black currants, cedar, chalky, Christmas cake, chocolate which lingers to the finish.
Score- 17.50.
8. Zinfandel 2019
Colour- inky dark red, with no gradation to a red rim. Nose- forthcoming and full, red berries and cherries, herbal, spice, jammy. Palate- crisp acidity, soft tannins, red cherries and berries, raspberry, cherry jam, herbal, palate almost creamy.
Score- 17.00.
9. Before and After Apéretif NV (wood matured red Noble Late Harvest and Blaauwklippen Potstill Brandy)
Colour- inky purple-red, with no gradation to a clear rim. Nose- black cherries and currants, red cherry jam, hints of brandy. Palate- full and not too sweet, black cherries and currants, red cherry jam, beautifully soft, a wow wine.
Score- 18.38 (Top wine for 2023 so far).
If you missed this tasting, you sure missed out! Judith sure spoilt us rotten. She also had a draw and Glynis Prosser won the Cabernet Sauvignon, Roy Pursey the Before and After and Bernd Sonnenberg the Malbec. There we have it the best wine of the year thus far, narrowly beating the De Grendel Baronet2013 by 0.081 in score. There were five wines in Vats’s top 40 of the year. The quality, related to price was superb. Judith’s presentation one of the best I have been to this year and in the last couple of years, awesome, thanks!
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