Buying guide: sweet wines

Sweet wines
audited ratings

About the different categories:
Though Natural Sweet, Noble Late Harvest and Vin de Paille (Straw Wine) are all styles of sweet wine, their respective methods of production differ significantly.

Natural Sweet is the vaguest category, with the only requirement for wines to be classified as such being that they possess a minimum residual sugar level of 30g/l. This makes the category something of a catch-all, allowing for easy-drinking wines of no great complexity through to wines of real profundity.

What gives Noble Late Harvest wines their hallmark of complexity is ‘noble rot' - the fungal growth Botrytis cinerea, which concentrates acid and sugar in grapes while also increasing the viscosity (due to the production of glycerol) and altering the aromas and flavours of the finished wine.

Finally, there is Vin de Paille, which should be made from naturally desiccated grapes, either dried on straw mats or allowed to shrivel on the vine (minimum sugar being 30g/l).

Key findings: A tasting of South Africa's sweet wines usually yields quite a number of high ratings, but when the WINE magazine panel convened recently to judge a line-up of what's currently on the market, including eight Natural Sweets, 31 Noble Late Harvests and eight Straw Wines, results were middling. The feeling about wines in the Natural Sweet sub-group was that too few showed any real distinction.

Typically winemakers are working with grapes that have raisined on the vine but have not benefited from the ennobling effects of botrytis and so the challenge becomes how to move beyond wines that are overtly sweet and syrup-like to something with real complexity.

Regarding Noble Late Harvest wines in particular, there appear to be more and more wines made in a modern, light and elegant style rather than the traditionally rich and full. Here, the panel was of the opinion that while the pursuit of more finesse is no bad thing, this should never become an excuse for a lack of complexity.

Botrytis is the key to complexity and yet too many wines showed insufficient botrytis character. If this is because weather conditions in recent vintages have simply not been conducive to the development of noble rot, then so be it.

On the other hand, there was a suspicion that wines appeared one-dimensional on account of winemakers lacking the nerve to leave the crop in the vineyard long enough for botrytis to develop fully. The longer picking is delayed, the greater the chance of losing the crop entirely to grey rot, but Noble Late Harvest wines are surely not about playing it safe!

Straw Wines typically don't lack for richness but these often came across as simple, sugary and excessively oxidative, which is to say lacking in freshness.

BEST VALUE - TOP FIVE WINES ON PRICE
Wines rated 2½ Stars or better and recommended for particularly good value on the basis of their quality/price ratio in the context of the average price per bottle of the
31 Noble Late Harvest wines assessed:

Name of wine Rating Price
1. Nederburg  The Winemaster's Reserve 2009 4½ Stars R61
2. Badsberg Limited Release 2005 (750ml) 4 Stars R130
3. Van Loveren Wolverine Creek Rhine Riesling Reserve 2008 3 Stars R51.25
4. Badsberg 2007 2½ Stars R70
5. Fort Simon Platinum Collection Viognier 2007 3½ Stars R99

ARE YOU GETTING WHAT YOU PAY FOR?
Average price per 375ml bottle of the 31 Noble Late Harvest wines assessed: R113
Average price per 375ml bottle of the 5 wines rated 4 to 4½ Stars: R105
Average price per 375ml bottle of the 14 wines rated 3 to 3½ Stars: R125
Average price per 375ml bottle of the 9 wines rated 2 to 2½ Stars: R104
Average price per 375ml bottle of the 3 wines rated less than 2 Stars: R93

Natural Sweet Wine
★ ★ ★ ✩ three and a half stars
Badsberg Badslese R130
Natural Sweet 2009 (500ml)
Klein Constantia R370
Vin de Constance 2005 (500ml)

★ ★ ★ three stars
Buitenverwachting 1769 R90
2007 (500ml)

★ ★ two stars
Slanghoek Private Selection R28
Crème de Chenin Natural Sweet 2009 (500ml)
Fortress Hill R44
Natural Sweet Rosé (Fort Simon) (750ml)
Lord's Nectar Natural Sweet 2009 R60
Ridgeback R62.70
Natural Sweet Viognier 2010
Stony Brook V on A 2008 R105

Noble Late Harvest
★ ★ ★ ★ ✩ four and a half stars
Nederburg The Winemaster's
Reserve 2009
CELLAR PRICE R61
Alc 11.34% RS 214.8g/l TA 10g/l pH 3.21
87% Chenin Blanc, 13% Muscat de
Frontignan. Delicate yet complex nose with
notes of floral perfume, citrus and dried fruit.
The palate possesses weightless intensity, and
while it has pleasing texture, remains medium
bodied. Good line of acidity. Persistent finish.
Drink over the next 10 years
CE 17 TB 16 CF 18 MC 18 JP 17

Nederburg Private Bin
Eminence 2007
CELLAR PRICE R130
Alc 10.7% RS 210g/l TA 10.5g/l pH 3.48
Muscat de Frontignan. Citrus and floral perfume
on the nose as well as slight botrytisderived
fungal note. Extremely elegant on
the palate with great fruit expression and
vibrant acidity. Drink now or over the next
seven years.
CE 18 TB 15 CF 17 MC 16 JP 18.5

★ ★ ★ ★ four stars
Badsberg Limited
Release 2005 (750ml)
CELLAR PRICE R130
Alc 12.62% RS 162.7g/l TA 7.9g/l pH 3.92
90% Chenin Blanc, 10% Muscat of
Alexandria. Dried apricot and peach as well
as vanilla on the nose. The palate is rich and
textured with flavours of raisins, caramel,
honey and spice. Drink now.
CE 15.5 TB 15.5 CF 16 MC 15.5 JP 18

Delaire 2008
CELLAR PRICE R120
Alc 8.4% RS 250.67g/l TA 8.15g/l pH 3.65
Semillon. The nose shows appealing oxidative
notes such as dried fruit and honey; oak
also in evidence. The palate is rich, sweet and
textured without becoming unctuous. Drink
now or over the next three years.
CE 16 TB 15.5 CF 16 MC 16 JP 17

Nederburg Private Bin
Edelkeur 2008
CELLAR PRICE R150
Alc 10.76% RS 232g/l TA 10.5 pH 3.45
Chenin Blanc. Complex nose showing tropical
fruit, dried apricot, caramel and appealing
botrytis-derived fungal note.  e palate is rich
and full but balanced by a good line of acidity.
Drink now or over the next eight years.
CE 17 TB 16 CF 16.5 MC 16 JP 16.5

★ ★ ★ ✩ THREE AND A HALF STARS
Fort Simon R99
Platinum Collection Viognier 2007
Neethlingshof R101.10
The Short Story Collection M.M.M Maria
2009 ARP
Nederburg R140
Private Bin Eminence 2008
Kika 2009 (Miles Mossop Wines) R145
Boekenhoutskloof 2007 R150

★ ★ ★ THREE STARS
Van Loveren R51.25
Wolverine Creek Rhine Riesling Reserve 2008
Nelson Estate 2009 R85
Lourensford 2009 R90
Nederburg Private Bin Semillon 2007 R100
Onyx 2009 (Darling Cellars) R100
Nederburg Private Bin Edelkeur 2007 R150
"T" 2006 (Ken Forrester) R175
Blaauwklippen Zinfandel 2009 R180
Paul Cluver Weisser Riesling 2009 R180

★ ★ ✩ TWO AND A HALF STARS
Badsberg 2007 R70
Mulderbosch R134
Sauvignon Blanc 2007 (500ml) ARP
Joostenberg Chenin Blanc 2009 R110
Beaumont Goutte d'Or 2007 R115
Delheim Edelspatz 2009 R120
Rudera Chenin Blanc 2006 (sold out) R120
Jordan Mellifera 2009 R125

★ ★ TWO STARS
Villiera R105.60
Cellar Door Rhine Riesling 2005 (500ml)
Kanu Kia-Ora 2006 R97

★ ONE STAR
Slaley Chardonnay Reserve 2007 R45
ALSO TASTED
Opstal Chardonnay Barrel Dessert 2008 R 85
Blaauwklippen Malbec 2008
Straw Wine

★ ★ ★ ★ FOUR STARS
Hazendal The Last Straw 2007
CELLAR PRICE R110
Alc 11% RS 228g/l TA 7.5g/l pH 3.8
Chenin Blanc. Dried fruit, spice and some
nuttiness on both the nose and palate. Rich
and complex with bright acidity.
CE 17 TB 16 CF 17 MC 14 JP 16

★ ★ ★ THREE STARS
Slanghoek 2007 (500ml) R95

★ ★ ✩ TWO AND A HALF STARS
Tierhoek 2006 R140
Lammershoek 2009 R165
De Traff ord 2008 R200

★ ★ TWO STARS
Rustenberg 2009 R120
Saronsberg 2006 R120

★ ONE STAR
Radford Dale R195
Vine Dried Viognier 2008* ARP

PRICES: Wines in each quality grouping are listed in order of ascending price - all excellar unless otherwise stipulated

ARP Approximate retail price
* Bottled unders screwcap

WINE TASTERS: Christian Eedes (chair) (CE), honorary member of the Institute of Cape Wine Masters Colin Frith (CF), Wine Judging Academy graduates James Pietersen
(JP) and winemaker Trizanne Barnard (TB) and sommelier Miguel Chan of Southern Sun Deluxe Hotels (MC).