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STRANDVELD WINEMAKER, CONRAD VLOK, AT THE
POFADDERBOS VINEYARD
MORGAN STEYN JOINED CHARLES HOPKINS, A MEMBER OF THE CAPE WINEMAKERS
GUILD, AT DE GRENDEL AS A PART OF THE GUILD’S PROTÉGÉ MENTORING
PROGRAMME. HE WAS SINCE APPOINTED AS WINEMAKER
Anyone who has visited South Africa and loves the outdoors has made an acquaintance with its flower
kingdom and is in awe of how quickly the vegetation can change over short distances. For an aromatic
variety that doesn’t need a lot of cellar intervention, it often embodies something of this flora, adding a
fresh, savoury twist.
Bartho Eksteen (Bartho Eksteen Wine Estate) and Charles Hopkins (cellar master at De Grendel Wine
Estate) are CWG members whose Sauvignon Blancs regularly come under the hammer at the annual CWG
Auction where collectors worldwide want to get their hands on these wines.
Eksteen chose Hermanus as his Sauvignon Blanc playground and shoots straight from the shoulder to
defend it.
«People can say what they want, Sauvignon wants to be as close to the ocean as possible unless you have
the altitude advantage like Cederberg.»
Hopkins cut his teeth on Sauvignon Blanc some 30 years ago and agrees with Thys Louw, proprietor and
winemaker at Diemersdal, that they have not seen any pertinent influences from climate change in the
Durbanville Wine Valley.
«We are like a small Peninsula,» says Hopkins, looking at a clear vista of Table Mountain from their tasting
room, «and by receiving cool air from both sides, we may have somewhat sidestepped significant changes.»
According to Louw, it was mainly due to its cool night-time temperatures that made them plant Sauvignon
Blanc here in the first place.
«By the end of May 2023, before mid-winter, we’ve already had 40% of our annual rain, the same as 40 years
ago,» says Louw, who now produces nine different Sauvignon Blancs, a tenth in conjunction with Ben
Glover Family Vineyards in Marlborough.
SUMMER 2023 • GILBERT & GAILLARD - THE FRENCH EXPERTS ON WINE
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