Chenin blanc is one of my favourite grapes and it is a grape that is grown, at least to any great extent, only in the central Loire Valley and in South Africa. In South Africa chenin wines are getting better and better.
One person who knows how to make good wines with chenin is Teddy Hall in Stellenbosch.
Teddy left his financial career in 1994 in order to devote himself fully to his passion, wine. And perhaps it is the financial background that made him forego any major investments. He leases his vineyards and for some wines he buys the grapes. In addition to making his own wine, he works as a consultant in four other properties.
Teddy’s wines always have a pleasant, refreshing fruit and are easy to drink but always with character and personality. He wants to make balanced wines that are not too oaky. “The fruit we get here in South Africa should never be masked by too much extraction or too much oak,” he says.
His Methode Cap Classic (MCC) is a very good sparkling wine with 4 years on its lees. It is a complex Cap Classic, filled with character and the toasty aromas. The name Cap Classic shows that the wine is made with the traditional method of a second fermentation in the bottle.
More on Teddy Hall’s wines:
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