Cape Wine under R60 a Bottle

Wine experts highlight some of South Africa’s best value wines at the 2011 Best Value Wine Awards

(Update: 3 November 2018: Discover the official 2019 Platter's selection of the best wines of South Africa.)

2011
In Cape Town you can always find a good wine to fit even a small budget. It’s just not always easy to know which wines offer the best value. Six of SA’s wine experts have taken it upon themselves to taste some low budget wines at the 2011 Best Value Wine Awards and scored 419 wines above 2 ½ Stars to be included in the 2011 Ultra Liquors Best Value Wine Guide.

For wines to be entered into the Best Value Wine Awards, they had to be priced at under R60 a bottle, producers were required to have a reasonable amount of stock available to the public and the wines had be submitted in a completed state of production. (No tank or barrel samples were accepted.)

Two wines merited 4 Stars – the Glen Carlou Tortoise Hill Red 2008, selling at R45, and the Overgaauw Shepherd’s Cottage Merlot 2008, priced at R39 – with a further 14 wines rated 3½ Stars.

A total of 47 wines achieved Value Awards, with two stand-out producers being recognised for their exceptional Value offering. These are Orange River Cellars, which had seven wines selected for the Best Value Wine Guide – five of which achieved Value Awards – and Distell, which achieved five Value Awards, with 11 wines included in the guide.

The panel of judges comprised Chairman Christine Rudman (Cape Wine Master), Carrie Adams (partner at Norman Goodfellows Fine Wine & Spirit Merchants), Fiona McDonald (wine judge at the International Wine Challenge, Decanter World Wine Awards and Concours Mondial de Bruxelles), Ginette de Fleuriot (Cape Wine Master), Mark Norrish (GM of Ultra Liquors Wine Division), Christian Eedes (Wine magazine panel chairman and editor of www.whatidranklastnight.co.za) and Gawie Marx (Tasting Academy graduate and GM of the Grande Roche Hotel).

Here’s Wine magazine’s selection of top-scoring wines at under R60 a bottle

Red Wines
Aan de Doorns Pinotage 2009 R30.00
Africa Five Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 (Waterstone Wines) R26.34
Bottelary Shiraz 2008 (Perdeberg) R25.00
Kleine Zalze Cellar Selection Gamay Noir 2010 R29.99
Openers Occasion Opener Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 R20.64
Obikwa Shiraz 2009 (Distell) R24.95
Obikwa Pinotage 2009 (Distell) R24.95
Koelenbosch Sangiovese 2009 R28.50
Riebeek Pinotage 2009 R30.00
Rooiberg Shiraz 2009 R33.00
Robertson Chapel Red NV R17.10
Secret Cellar Cabernet Franc Petit Verdot NV (Ultra Liquors) R29.99
Sonata Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 (Waterstone Wines) R28.62
Weening & Barge Cuvée Twister Cabernet Franc 2005 R30.00

RoséWine
Graça Rosé NV R19.95
Oranjerivier Rosé 2010 R21.20
Openers Festivity Opener Rosé 2009 R20.64
Slanghoek Vinay Rosé Natural Sweet NV R25.00
Tulbagh Rosé 2010 R20.00

Sparkling Wine
Swartland Cuvée Brut Nv R31.00

White Wine
Arabella Viognier 2010 R34.00
Bonnievale Sauvignon Blanc 2010 R29.50
BC Chenin Blanc 2010 R17.50
Cape Atlantic Sauvignon Blanc 2009 (Cederberg) R30.00
Graça NV R19.95
John B Riesling 2010 (Rietvallei) R29.95
Lutzville Cool Climate Sauvignon Blanc 2010 R24.20
Oranjerivier Colombar 2010 R21.20
Obikwa Chardonnay 2009 (Distell) R23.00
Perdeberg Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2009 R36.50
Riebeek Viognier 2009 R29.00
Swartland Premier Grand Cru R22.00
Van Loveren Cape Riesling 2010 R24.00
Windmeul Sauvignon Blanc 2010 R29.50

Dessert Wine
McGregor White Muscadel 2008 R34.00
Oranjerivier White Muscadel 2009 R31.85
Oranjerivier Red Muscadel 2009 R31.85
Oranjerivier Wit Jerepigo NV R31.85
Swartland Bukettraube Natural Sweet 2010 R26.00
Wagenboom Hanepoot 2008 R23.00

Port
Bon Courage Cape Vintage 2008 R30.00
Best value performers overall in 2010
Distell, Stellenbosch
Orange River Wine Cellars, Upington
Waterstone Wines, Stellenbosch
Swartland Winery, Malmesbury
Riebeek Cellars, Riebeek Kasteel
Perdeberg Winery, Paarl

The 2011 Ultra Liquors Best Value Wine Guide is printed as a user-friendly booklet and is inserted into all copies of the November issue of Wine magazine, on newsstands from 25 October.

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