Some observations on Platter's 2012

The blind tasting of wines nominated for 5 Stars in the 2012 edition of Platter’s South African Wine Guide takes place on 18 August so right now there are some harried contributors working through their last few wines in order to make this cut-off date. I’m glad to report that I’ve largely finished tasting my allotment – some 250 wines from just over 30 producers and here are few general observations.

Firstly, the overall quality was good. Ingrained in Platter’s is the dichotomy between red ink and black ink, wines rating 4 Stars or more appearing in red and wines below 4 Stars in black, winemakers typically feeling hard done by if the fruits of their labels do not end up in the red. However, I was glad both as professional taster and enthusiastic imbiber to see how many 3-Star wines which came modestly priced I encountered.

It’s important that everybody remind themselves concerning the definitions of the “black ink” rating tiers in Platter’s: 2½ Stars equates to “Good everyday drinking”, 3 Stars to “Characterful, appealing” and 3½ Stars to “Very good/promising”. No mean achievement if a producer in a less celebrated region has managed to make 5 000 cases of 3-Star quality Merlot selling at R65 a bottle, if you ask me.

And as for Merlot generally, it really does seem all pervasive appearing in the most humble to the most ambitious incarnations and I think this is because it’s pretty much critic proof. Merlot has transcended being merely a variety and has become a brand. I’ve made the point before that if any wine has gained a following thanks to texture rather than flavour, it is Merlot. In the mind of the average punter, it produces wines that are “smooth” and almost nothing seems to convince him or her otherwise.

In recent times, Merlot has usurped Pinotage as South Africa’s most problematic red wine category, but after assorted examples for Platter’s, I’m not sure the spread of quality is that much worse than any other variety. Most Merlot is inoffensive but uninspiring, wines from it typically medium bodied with red rather than black fruit and some herbal character, more or less tolerable depending on the particular wine in question; the much hyped character of “smoothness”, however, not often in evidence...

In terms of everyday drinking, the consumer is much better served by single variety Shiraz and blends, whether these be according to conventional or unconventional templates (check out the wines of Akkerdal in Franschhoek for some pretty smart alternative reds – Wild Boar 2009, for instance, featuring 25% Petit Verdot, 17% Cab Franc, 17% Malbec, 17% Roobernet, 17% Tempranillo and 7% Merlot).

At the top end, however, it is my sense once again that our whites generally outperform our reds. South Africa has enjoyed a good run of success with Sauvignon Blanc, the resurgence of Chardonnay is in full swing and Chenin Blanc is a national treasure. However, the real excitement for me this year was how cleverly the Rhône varieties of Grenache Blanc, Roussane and Viognier are starting to be deployed. Roll on more plantings of these.