tasting notes - part I

As mentioned, South Africa being a wine-producting country was a big motivating factor in choosing it as our holiday/vacation destination. Here are our tasting notes for the bottles of wines we shared. I have not written up the tasting notes from the winery tours (way too many to write up), nor have I written tasting notes for wines by the glass I have had at restaurants.

White, rosé, and sparkling wines are in the first part of the tasting notes report. Red wines will come later, in part II.

White wines:

Drostdty-Hof Chardonnay 2005 (Western Cape)
color: pale yellow
nose: citrus
palate: full-bodied yet dry and refreshing, flavors of citrus and tropical fruits, long aftertaste. “Bites back.” Goes well with seafood and chicken. Also nice on its own.
grade: :-)+

Della Cia Sauvignon Blanc 2005 (Meerlust)
color: very pale
nose: citrus, grass, honey melon
palate: refreshing. "Anonymous" at the start but really develops itself. A different kind of dry, with a powerful grapefruity aftertaste (“bites” in the end). Flavors of tropical fruits, grass, hint of grapefruit.
grade: :-)+ with food, and :-) on its own

Haute Cabrière Chardonnay Pinot Noir 2006 (Franschhoek)
color: golden
nose: flowers, perfume
palate: interesting blend – the flavor of chardonnay with the hint Pinot Noir to make it all refreshing. Full-bodied, refreshing, slightly bubbly. Flavor of green apples and pears. Easy to drink. Lovely wine for summer, for example with seafood.
Grade: :-)+

Rosé and Sparkling Wines

Delheim Pinotage Rosé 2005 (Simonsberg, Stellenbosch)
color: pale for a rosé
nose: strawberries and raspberries
palate: round, full-bodied, slightly sourish aftertaste but not in a bad way. Refreshing, with the flavor of raspberries. Goes nicely with fish and seafood, also good on its own.
grade: :-)

Haute Cabrière Bella Rosa
color: orange with hints of pink. Very pleasing color.
nose: citrusy but otherwise difficult to determine
palate: refreshing dry flavor of grapefruit with a hint of orange. Slightly bitter aftertaste.
Grade: :-)+