Drunk!

There are times when coming from the UK is a bit of a problem for one operating in the South African wine world. Every time I cross the boerewors curtain and meet people with panelled shirts who want to chat to me in Afrikaans reminds me of this handicap for example. But when I attended the Nederburg Auction media launch for the first time this week, having no knowledge of the history and tradition of this event did not deter me from having a great morning’s tasting.

The Auction is now in its 36^th year. Working from an original idea by Delheim’s Spatz Sperling of a charity auction in aid of Stellenbosch Rotary Club, the Nederburg Auction is Cape wine’s J&B Met event of the year. Wine aficionados fly in from all over the continent and beyond, to bid for specially selected cases of wine, some specifically made for the auction, some dug up from the darkest cellars where they have been happily maturing – for decades in some cases, some current releases which are thence reserved exclusively for the auction.  It’s a glittering celebration of all that’s good and great in Cape wine.

A barrage of beards!

Or is it? Coming to the auction with a clear mind and palate, unhampered by tradition or reverence, I have to say that a few of the wines gave me cause for concern. Yes, I know about caveat emptor, but there was disturbing variation in quality in some of the wines from bottle to bottle. One wine in particular, which has been lauded to the skies by another writer, was frankly awful in the opinion of the tasters on our side of the room. Several bottles were corked and one oxidised within an hour  of opening which I think could make one a little chary of buying some of the older vintages – sweet wines excluded.

JeanriTine van Zyl and Edo Heyns had the tiredest feet after the tasting!

The other thing which was a little disturbing about the auction was the age of the media folk there. Auction-master Dave Hughes decreed that if a wine is older than you, then you should stand up as you taste it, to do it honour. A 1983 Marsala had a couple on their feet, the 1974 Zonnebloem, a couple more. But serious numbers only started rising for a 1961 Port with the bulk of the room still remaining seated until a 1948 Monis hit the glasses. Where were all the new wine writers, the bloggers and tweeters, the online journalists? There were plenty of reminiscences about the good old times by the good old boys (and girls), but those times, they’re a-changing and I wonder whether new marketing guru at Distell, Carina Gous, might start tweaking the guest list for next year.

Gotta love a man who loves his sweeties – Razvan Macici with the 1977 Edelkeur

Niggles aside, I have to say that some of the wines were outstanding and I found myself looking thoughtfully at the reserve prices and doing some desperate sums involving bond repayments and child’s school fees vs unashamed quality and delight.

My stars on the white were Morgenhof Brut Reserve MCC 2005, both the Nederburg Sauvignon Blancs (2007 and 2008), the Stellenrust Chenin 2007 and the De Wetshof Unfiltered Chardonnay 2006 in magnums. Top reds were a pair of 1999’s – the Tukulu Pinotage and the Remhoogte Cabernet Sauvignon, the Saxenburg ‘SSS’ Shiraz 2001 and the Vilafonte Series C 2003. And finally, on the sweet side, some wines so good I would sell my firstborn for them including the Nederburg Edelkeur 2005 and the 1983 Monis Collection Marsala.

The auction takes place in early September and, calculator in one hand and child in the other, I look forward to seeing you all there!