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SOUTH AFRICA
GRAPE
oldest red wine producers in South Africa resting on the sunny north-facing slopes
of the Helderberg. Their Cabernet Sauvignon 2018, scoring an impressive 93 points,
benefits from the moderating influence of the nearby ocean and south-easterly
winds. Winemaker Bertho van der Westhuizen credits their deep decomposed
granite soils for providing optimal growing conditions with water retention capabilities,
ensuring deep root systems and resilience against heat waves or drier years.
With more than half the estate planted to Cabernet, this wine has become an institution
in South African households. It is renowned for its powerful elegance and
delicious red and black fruit melange, but with a distinctive hint of cool graphite.
Simonsig is one of the pioneering wineries that founded the Stellenbosch Wine
Route, where the baton has always been handed from father to son.
Gilbert & Gaillard scored Simonsig The Garland 2018 94, which warmed the heart
of Stellenbosch stalwart Johan Malan, now joined by his son Michael in the cellar.
“It was always a big dream to make a Cabernet Sauvignon from the slopes of the
Simonsberg and fruit growing on the farm that belonged to my grandfather - the
previous van Niekerk generation and where my mother grew up,” he shares proudly.
“I bought the grapes from my cousins, thrilled that I could finally make a wine from
the vineyards where my grandfather walked, completing a circle with a profoundly
elegant wine.”
And he can be proud as the wine exudes that profound quality he eagerly wanted
to capture - opaque and almost black in the centre, quintessentially Simonsberg.
BERTHO VAN DER WESTHUIZEN IN HIS CELLAR
50 AUTUMN 2023 • GILBERT & GAILLARD - THE FRENCH EXPERTS ON WINE