2017 Huilkrans Chenin Blanc
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We then journeyed to the Southern Hemisphere courtesy of a 2017 Huilkrans from Alheit Vineyards in South Africa. Probably the most inexpensive bottle of the evening, it more than held its own against prestigious company. The nose has closed up a little since I last tasted it, but with coaxing, it offers gorgeous dried honey, fennel and dill aromas; a subtle basalt note emerges with time. The palate is tensile right from the start, offering hints of honeysuckle and crushed rock, delicate stem ginger and chai notes toward the finish, which lingers in the mouth. This is a profound Chenin Blanc from winemaker Chris Alheit.
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Punteggio medio
Julia Harding MW, jancisrobinson.com
Neal Martin
Altre recensioni e punteggi
The 2017 Hulikrans is a bit more on the steely and acidic side. The mouthfeel is lifted and punchier on the mid-palate. It reminds me of the classic Loire "acid slam" that you get from warmer vintage Chenin Blanc from the Loire Valley. The lemon-focused, white flower nose and palate are classic descriptors for Chenin, with the soft phenolic bitterness that one would expect. This wine has some of the textural complexities that make the mouthfeel interesting for me. Medium-bodied, the wine ends with a medium finish. These grapes come from the Odam farm in Skurberg, from dry-farmed bush vines with low yields. Only 280 cases made.
The 2017 Hulkrains ("crying cliff") is named after a cliff close to the vineyard that is said to weep when it rains. Hitherto it was blended into the Cartology. The vines were planted on 1976 on red sand soils located at 450 meters above sea level. The wine has a wonderful, pure bouquet of dried honey, orange blossom, broom and just a hint of wild fennel, all detailed and expressive of their place of origin, as depicted on the label. The palate is very well balanced with touches of honeysuckle on the entry and a fine bead of acidity, and quite saline in the mouth, showing a touch of lemongrass toward the persistent finish. Outstanding.
Alheit notes: ‘This is the first vintage that we’ve bottled something from Oudam farm in Skurfberg as a stand-alone wine. We’ve been working with the Visser family since 2011 and have been planning this wine since 2015. They chose the name Huilkrans, the name of a cliff on the farm that weeps when it rains. Since the untimely passing of their son Kallie last year, the name now has an unintended double meaning. Even so, they’ve elected to keep it unchanged. There is something so special about this place in the mountains – isolation, old vines, low rainfall, deep red sand over red clay.’ At 450 m. 1,880 bottles. This is more limey than the Fire by Night and a little more spicy. Creaminess from the oak. There’s a very strong salty character (some of this fruit goes into Cartology) which reduces the fruitiness on the palate. Intense, mouth-watering, fabulous fruit depth and length. The oak shows a little more too on the palate both in spice and texture, very slight grip. Almost a sweet-sour finish. Totally thirst provoking, incredibly long. (JH)