One of the gems of South Africa, the Syrah here is something to behold, and Porseleinberg is one of the best examples of the entire cape. A project initially created by South African wine pioneer Marc Kent when he was looking to source some Rhone varietals for two of his wine labels. He came across Swartland, on the western cape of South Africa, and seeing the potential in this terroir, purchased a 173-acre estate on top of Porseleinberg Mountain. Wasting no time, the farm was replanted to Syrah with a bit of Grenache, and Callie Louw, who was practicing organic viticulture at another South African winery, was appointed winemaker. Callie has a more traditional approach to winemaking similar to what we see in the Northern Rhone, focusing on extensive vineyard work implementing organic and biodynamic principles while having a more hands-off approach in the cellar with an old-school 100% whole cluster fermentation. As we have said before, this is about as good as Syrah gets. The 2017 is showing so well now after a few years in the bottle and its the first time we have offered this vintage. Another massive success for this South African team making another awe-inspiring rendition that runs with the big dogs of the Cote-Rotie at a fraction of the pricing and is a bottle that needs to be considered when looking at the best Syrah in the world. Huge notes below, we currently have low pricing on some of the only bottles available in the USA.
Tim Atkin 98 points!
Decanter (Mark Walls) 98 pts! "This Swartland property is owned by Boekenhoutskloof but run independently by gifted winemaker Callie Louw. Alive and dynamic, this soars out of the glass, a touch of firework smoke to the vibrant berry fruits. Incredible energy and elegance on the palate, great freshness and focus, tiny tensile tannins and zesty acidity. Very long, this crackles on and on. The handsome labels are produced at the estate on a vintage Heidelberg press – but don’t assume there is any style over substance here: the 2017 Porseleinberg is a truly great Syrah. (Drink between 2020 - 2032)"
Vinous (Neal Martin) 97 pts! "The 2017 Porseleinberg has a compelling bouquet of blackberry, fynbos, Provençal herbs and veins of blue fruit, all showing stunning delineation and composure. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grained tannins and pure blackberry and raspberry fruit laced with thyme, sage and white pepper. This is utterly refined and intense yet sophisticated. A quite stunning wine. (Drink between 2022 - 2045)"
2017 Porseleinberg Swartland
2017 Porseleinberg Swartland
One of the gems of South Africa, the Syrah here is something to behold, and Porseleinberg is one of the best examples of the entire cape. A project initially created by South African wine pioneer Marc Kent when he was looking to source some Rhone varietals for two of his wine labels. He came across Swartland, on the western cape of South Africa, and seeing the potential in this terroir, purchased a 173-acre estate on top of Porseleinberg Mountain. Wasting no time, the farm was replanted to Syrah with a bit of Grenache, and Callie Louw, who was practicing organic viticulture at another South African winery, was appointed winemaker. Callie has a more traditional approach to winemaking similar to what we see in the Northern Rhone, focusing on extensive vineyard work implementing organic and biodynamic principles while having a more hands-off approach in the cellar with an old-school 100% whole cluster fermentation. As we have said before, this is about as good as Syrah gets. The 2017 is showing so well now after a few years in the bottle and its the first time we have offered this vintage. Another massive success for this South African team making another awe-inspiring rendition that runs with the big dogs of the Cote-Rotie at a fraction of the pricing and is a bottle that needs to be considered when looking at the best Syrah in the world. Huge notes below, we currently have low pricing on some of the only bottles available in the USA.
Tim Atkin 98 points!
Decanter (Mark Walls) 98 pts! "This Swartland property is owned by Boekenhoutskloof but run independently by gifted winemaker Callie Louw. Alive and dynamic, this soars out of the glass, a touch of firework smoke to the vibrant berry fruits. Incredible energy and elegance on the palate, great freshness and focus, tiny tensile tannins and zesty acidity. Very long, this crackles on and on. The handsome labels are produced at the estate on a vintage Heidelberg press – but don’t assume there is any style over substance here: the 2017 Porseleinberg is a truly great Syrah. (Drink between 2020 - 2032)"
Vinous (Neal Martin) 97 pts! "The 2017 Porseleinberg has a compelling bouquet of blackberry, fynbos, Provençal herbs and veins of blue fruit, all showing stunning delineation and composure. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grained tannins and pure blackberry and raspberry fruit laced with thyme, sage and white pepper. This is utterly refined and intense yet sophisticated. A quite stunning wine. (Drink between 2022 - 2045)"
