I was recently in World Market looking for wine bargains and found a featured wine from South Africa that looked interesting. First of all it was a Cabernet Sauvignon which is not commonly bottled as a single varietal in South Africa, it was labeled Coastal South Africa (which made me wonder where the grapes originated), and it was a bargain at $10 US.
The producer of this wine was MAN Vintners (an unknown to me) and it was a 2008 vintage--relatively young. However, I bought a bottle to try and shared it with my parents, pairing it with some grilled pork chops and roasted squash. We were very impressed with the wine's pleasing blueberry and cherry fruit, the impressive color, and round and sumptuous mouthfeel. A few days later I returned to the World Market to buy a few more bottles and was disappointed to find they had since sold out of this wine.
Luckily I was able to order this wine through my local Kroger supermarket and I enjoyed another bottle with grilled chutney glazed chicken and grilled corn and portobella mushrooms. Yum.
I went online to find out more about the producer and learned that their wines had been chosen as "Best Value" by both Wine Enthusiast magazine and South African Wine magazine. Their portfolio of wines also include Shiraz, Pinotage, Rosé, Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, and Sauvignon Blanc.
I also found out that the 2008 cab was a blend of 80 percent Agter-Paarl and 20 percent Stellenbosch grapes and that 2010 Platter's Wine Guide had given it 3 ½ stars out of five for its "Fleshy succulence and drinkability."
I couldn't agree more!
