SurePure Chenin Blanc Challenge 2009

This is the 14th year that the Challenge has been convened by WINE magazine and the first time that supplier of wine purification technology, SurePure have been involved as sponsors.

It is only the second time in the history of the competition that the overall winner did not undergo treatment in barrel, Stellenbosch farm L’Avenir having won with its unwooded 1997 in 1998. This year’s winning wine was rated 4½ Stars, as was Bellingham The Maverick 2006, which took the award for best wooded Chenin Blanc.

The award for best value went to Koelenbosch Houtverouderd 2007. With a rating of 4 Stars and selling for R25 a bottle from the cellar, it had the best quality/price ratio of the wines rating 3 Stars or better in the context of the average price (R51) of all the 121 wines tasted.

This year’s results highlight the excellent value that the Chenin Blanc category offers with no less than seven of the 15 wines to rate 4 Stars or better selling for R40 or less a bottle.

The top 15 scoring wines are as follows:

Mooiplaas Bushvine Chenin Blanc 2008 R 33.00 4.5
Bellingham The Maverick Chenin Blanc 2006 (w) ARP R 115.00 4.5
Welbedacht Bushvine Barrel Fermented Chenin Blanc 2005 (w) R 55.00 4
Hazendal Bushvine Chenin Blanc 2006 R 39.00 4
Tukulu Chenin Blanc 2008 (w) ARP R 38.00 4
Kleine Zalze Vineyard Selection Chenin Blanc 2008 (w) R 50.00 4
The Bernard Series Old Vine Chenin Blanc 2007 Bellingham (w) ARP R 115.00 4
Eikendal Chenin Blanc 2007 (w) R 39.50 4
Rudera Chenin Blanc 2004 (w) R 95.00 4
Graham Beck Bowed Head Chenin Blanc 2008 (w) R 95.00 4
De Morgenzon Chenin Blanc 2007(w) R 110.00 4
Kleine Zalze Cellar Selection Bush Vines Chenin Blanc 2008 R 30.00 4
Deetlefs Chenin Blanc 2008 R 54.00 4
Kleine Zalze Cellar Selection Select Cuvee Chenin Blanc 2007 R 40.00 4
Koelenbosch Hout Verouderd Chenin Blanc 2007 (w) R 25.00 4

The judges were impressed by the broad stylistic spectrum on offer and praised winemakers for rejecting formulaic styles in favour of confident and imaginative offerings. It was also noted that Chenin Blanc has by far the highest proportion of vines of 20 years or older in South Africa, with the winning Mooiplaas wine coming from grapes grown in a 36-year-old vineyard.