❤️ Sweet wines and spirits from South Africa

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Sweet and dessert wines South Africa's great variety

The alcohol content of a South African Muskadel, Haneepoot or Jerepigo or the Cape sweet wines is between 15% and 22%. As you may have guessed, the name "port" is also used as an epithet, just like champagne.

The most common grapes for a Cape liqueur wine are actually, even in South Africa, grapes of Portuguese origin such as Tinta Barrocca, Tinta Roriz, Tinta Cao, Touriga Nacional, Touriga Francesca and Souzao. The trick is to harvest the grapes during the optimum ripening period. If you pick overripe grapes, you get an undesirable sultana flavour.

As different as the names are, so different are the methods of production and the type of grape used. Basically, this depends on the following points: -The grape variety -The time at which the distillate is added -The type of distillate-, brandy or neutral wine distillate -The blend -The subsequent storage, maturation process

Cape sweet wines without added sugar

The addition of sugar is prohibited in the production of a Cape sweet wine and the addition of sweet grape juice is considered immoral, i.e. a faux pas. There are a variety of liqueur flavours and styles - which can be found under different South African Cape liqueur classifications in red and white varieties, but are based on Portuguese standards. There are dry Cape dessert wines that can be enjoyed as an aperitif or the sweeter varieties that can be recommended with dessert and as an aperitif. Both should always be enjoyed slightly chilled.White Cape liqueurs are usually made from Chenin Blanc - not from the Muscadel grape, as some might think.

Cape White & Cape Ruby

Cape White
The white one, which is called Cape White here, is matured in oak barrels for at least 6 months.

Cape Ruby
Cape Ruby takes its name from its strong, ruby-red colour. Only grapes with freshness and high fruit character are matured in large wine barrels for at least 6 months for the Cape Ruby. The biggest consumers of Cape Ruby are the French, who like to enjoy it chilled on ice. The storage time is around 5 years.

Suggestions for enjoyment:
Mature and flavoursome cheeses, salami, smoked ham, grilled lamb, game, medium-spicy Indian dishes and dark chocolate.

Cape Tawny - an all-rounder

Cape Tawny is made from grape varieties with a lot of character in old oak barrels - every winemaker has his own recipe when it comes to grape varieties. The influence of the degree of oxidation caused by the wood contact in the barrel gives the Cape Tawny sweet wine its brownish colour, hence the name.

Tawny means "yellow-brown" and the older the Cape Tawny, the lighter the colour. This typical brownish-yellow colour is a sign of quality and the taste, which brings out aromas of dried fruit, nuts and dried orange peel, unfolds pleasantly on the palate. This commercial Cape Tawny has already been aged for 7 years.

Serving suggestions:
Sirleon steak with Café de Paris sauce, tapas, decadent chocolate desserts and savoury cheeses.

Aged Tawny- Complex flavour explosion

Aged Tawny's usually consist of different vintages and these are calculated in steps of 10 years. Blending different vintages is allowed as long as they are from the same year. A 20-year-old, matured tawny gives you a unique taste experience and is the best value for money. The long maturation period makes it very complex and creates an opulent nose of marmalade and nut flavours. Orange blossom and wood flavours are much more prominent here than in a Cape Tawny.

Serving suggestions:
Patées of all kinds, Parmesan, Manchego, but also crème brûlée or almond cake make a perfect accompaniment to food.

Cape Vintage- New favourite discovery

The Cape Vintage can only be produced from one and the same vintage year and matures for a maximum of 1 to 2 years in old oak barrels. Vintage sweet wines are bottled unfiltered and leave fine traces of sediment in the bottle after years, which is a natural process. Vintages are for the wine lover who appreciates the young, aggressive character, tannic structure and grippy alcohol content of a young red wine. It has a deep, dark colour with primary flavours of black fruits, prunes and spices. After a few more years in the bottle, it also takes on a brownish to yellowish colour, increasing its complexity.

Serving suggestions:
Cape Vintage can be enjoyed on its own or with very strong blue cheeses such as Gorgonzola, Stilton, mature Gouda varieties or Vintage Cheddar.

LBV - "Late bottled Vintage" - the king of liqueur wines

LBV has the longest storage time in the barrel of all liqueur variations, 4-6 years. Different vintage blends are also used here. There are 2 variations, one filtered and one unfiltered, whereby the latter is less common and the former is left to mature in the bottle. The filtered LBV can be enjoyed immediately after bottling. In terms of taste, it offers a good balance of fruit and tannins of a vintage year and has a pronounced intensity of flavour. A dark violet-red colour with forest fruit aromas, black cherries and plum and cocoa notes from the wood maturation.

Serving suggestions:
As this LBV is a treasure in itself, it is recommended to enjoy it slightly chilled as an aperitif or digestif. Possibly with good quality salted nuts.

The history of gin

There are various theories as to where gin was invented. One of them states that juniper berry distillates were already being produced for medicinal purposes by the Dutch in the Middle Ages. If you ignore the Italian monks, who were already using juniper berries to intensify the flavour of high-proof spirits in the 11th century. In the 16th century, gin was used as a medicine (herbal schnapps) to treat gallstones, gout and stomach complaints. The soldiers of the Thirty Years' War liked to rely on the Dutch courage drink in the form of a gin shot! Gin is made from a flavourless distillate of various origins (wheat, barley, corn, sugar cane) and the addition of various herbs, spices or fruit essences. Juniper is the main ingredient. The alcohol content should be at least 37.5 %. The biggest gin connoisseurs are Spain, Belgium, Holland and the UK. Germany comes in last place (10th) (2017).

South African gin - modern craftsmanship

So what is so special about South African gin? Well, the South Africans have very clearly defined the criteria that must be met for the production of a gin. Gin from South Africa must be distilled from fermented, crushed grains (cereals) and its main ingredient, the juniper berry. It does not matter what additional flavour and aroma ingredients such as salt, plants, spices or seeds are added. The gin must reflect its authentic juniper aroma and flavour and have an alcohol content of at least 43%. In other words, slightly higher than the European standard for gin. In 2015, South Africa had only a handful of gin distilleries, but now (2018) there are more than 70, and the trend is rising. The international gin hype has also inspired the creative South African gin distillers. From herbs to plants and fruity gins, anything is possible here. Think of South Africa's amazing floral kingdom, the fynbos, for example. There are over 9000 different species of fynbos. Or the rooibos, a bush from which the famous rooibos tea is made. Rooibos is now also used in the production of gin, giving it a beautiful copper-red colour. Both are indigenous plants that are found nowhere else in the world and in such diversity. A colourful potpourri of herbs, spices, flowers, plants and fruits.

This already gives us a vague idea and premonition of what an exciting explosion of flavours awaits us in a South African gin. The extremely popular, worldwide trend of gin and gin & tonic mixed drinks is very wide-ranging and impresses with its extreme variety of flavours. Gin can also be a versatile food companion. The tart juniper berry flavour underlines salty, spicy, smoked and also rich dishes very well.

Gins in our shop

Fruit-orientated gin
Clemengold Gin
Pienaar & Son Bloedlemeon Gin

Herb-based gin
Solo Aviator Gin
Iverroche Gin Verdant
Iverroche Empire Gin

Oriental Gin
Pienaar & Son Orient Gin

Floral Gin
Six Dogs Blue Gin