A pair of beauties from the Cape

published 18 April 2019

2018 Kottabos,Grenache/Syrah, Boschkloof, South Africa £22.50, Great Western Wine, 01225-322810, greatwesternwine.co.uk

I have not come across the wines from Kottabos before and, at a massive tasting with hundreds of wines on the go, it was the striking labels that drew me to them.Was this red, along with its white sibling, 2018 Kottabos Chenin Blanc (£22.50), yet another suite of wines that favour design over substance?Not a bit of it. In a way, the red and the white are mirror images of each other. The red is earthy, savoury, balanced and crunchy.It is not a typical Cape red in that it is leaner, more fragrant and kindlier on the palate.It is a baby, but it is already drinking well. Shaped like a Beaujolais or a Loire cabernet franc,this is the sort ofwine that you can glug down with sophisticated street food farmers' market kebabs, wraps, tacos, burgers, hotdogs and the like.

The white wine from Kottabos does exactly the same job and this time it is the lack of fat, oily fruit that makes it so alluring. South African chenin blanc can often seem exotically charged and rather hefty on the palate, which puts the brakes on your enjoyment of the wine. Kottabos is restrained, floral, edgy and it has a degree of traction on the palate. It would slice through cheesy dishes, spice and also heat. It is the perfect partner wine to the wonderful red. Modern, relevant, cutting edge and also delicious all boxes ticked.

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Matthew Jukes is a winner of the International Wine & Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year (matthewjukes.com)

Matthew Jukes has worked in the UK wine business for well over three decades and during this time has written 14 wine books.

Matthew regularly lectures, judges, speaks at wine conferences and runs masterclass tastings for both corporate and private clients all over the world. Matthew is also the creator of his ground-breaking initiative, the One Day Wine School, an indulgent day of tasting and learning first performed in 2006.

He has been the MoneyWeek wine correspondent since 2006 and has written a weekly column for the Daily Mail’s Weekend Magazine since 1999. His four highly-acclaimed, annual wine reports – the Burgundy En Primeur Report, the Bordeaux En Primeur Report, the Piemonte Report and the 100 Best Australian Wines – are published on his website, www.matthewjukes.com.

Matthew is one of the world’s leading experts on Australian wine and, with Brisbane-based wine writer Tyson Stelzer, runs an annual competition in Australia to find ‘The Great Australian Red’. He was made Honorary Australian of the Year in the UK at the 2012 Australia Day Foundation Gala dinner.

Matthew is a winner of the International Wine and Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year Trophy. His thoughts, recommendations and tastings notes are followed very closely by the wine world at large.