Stellenbosch

Stellenbosch is South Africa's most important wine region, inland from Cape Town, best known for Cabernet Sauvignon and Bordeaux-style blends. Expect full-bodied reds with firm tannin, dark fruit and a distinctive savoury, smoky edge.

Where Stellenbosch is

Stellenbosch sits in the Cape Winelands, about fifty kilometres east of Cape Town, surrounded by dramatic granite mountains. The climate is Mediterranean — hot dry summers, wet winters — but two things moderate it.

The first is the proximity of False Bay, which sends cooling south-easterly breezes inland through the summer afternoons. The wind, known locally as the Cape Doctor, lowers temperatures and keeps disease pressure down.

The second is altitude and aspect. Vineyards climb the slopes of the Simonsberg, Helderberg and Stellenbosch mountains, and higher, cooler, mountain-facing sites produce noticeably fresher wines than the valley floor.

Soils vary sharply over short distances — decomposed granite on the slopes, sandstone higher up, and alluvial soils along the valley — which is why neighbouring estates can make quite different wine.

The grapes

Cabernet Sauvignon is Stellenbosch's flagship. It ripens reliably here, giving blackcurrant and dark plum fruit, firm tannin and a savoury, sometimes smoky or tobacco-like character that distinguishes it from both Bordeaux and Napa.

Bordeaux-style blends — Cabernet with Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot — are arguably the region's greatest strength.

Syrah/Shiraz is important and made in two directions: a ripe, sweet-fruited style, and a cooler, peppery, more restrained one.

Pinotage is South Africa's own grape, a crossing of Pinot Noir and Cinsault created in the country in 1925. It is divisive. Poorly made, it shows harsh, acetone or burnt-rubber notes that gave it a bad reputation. Well made, it is deeply fruited with plum, blackberry, smoked meat and a distinctive earthy sweetness. Modern examples are far better than the style's reputation suggests, and it also anchors "Cape Blends", which combine Pinotage with Bordeaux varieties.

Chenin Blanc — locally called Steen — is South Africa's most planted white and can be outstanding, especially from old bush vines: quince, yellow apple, honey and a waxy texture, in styles from bone dry to sweet.

Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc are both widely planted and reliable.

What it tastes like

Stellenbosch reds sit stylistically between Bordeaux and the New World. They have New World ripeness and body, but with more savoury, earthy and herbal character than California, and firmer, sometimes more angular tannin.

The recurring descriptor is smoky or fynbos — a reference to the aromatic native scrubland of the Cape, giving a dried-herb, resinous quality.

Alcohol is typically moderate to high, acidity medium.

Food pairings

• Braai — South African barbecue, and the natural home for these wines.
• Grilled and roast lamb — the mountain-herb character is a direct match.
• Boerewors and spiced sausage.
• Venison and game — the savoury edge suits it well.
• Mature Gouda or cheddar.
• Chenin Blanc with grilled fish, pork, or Cape Malay curry — its touch of richness handles gentle spice.

What to buy

Stellenbosch is one of the strongest value propositions in fine wine. Because South Africa has never commanded the prices of comparable French or Californian regions, a serious estate Cabernet or Bordeaux blend costs well below its quality equivalent elsewhere.

Old-vine Chenin Blanc is the other outstanding buy, and the country's Old Vine Project certifies wines from vineyards over 35 years old.

If you have only ever had a bad Pinotage, it is worth trying a good modern one before writing it off.

Serve reds at 16 to 18°C, Chenin at 9 to 11°C.