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Producers · 4

Pioneers and renewal

The Sadie Family

Swartland

  • Twelve vineyards for « Columella »: From its first vintage in 2000, « Columella » has embodied the ambition of a red on the scale of Swartland: at Sadie, blending starts with vineyards rather than a fixed recipe of varieties. The 2022 brings together twelve vineyards and six varieties, from syrah to tinta barocca, to compose this portrait of Swartland.
  • Ten years before questioning the choices: After ten vintages, the Sadie family revised its choices in 2010: earlier harvesting and less new oak, for a « Columella » it describes as fresher and more precise. In 2022, only 5% of the barrels used for the first year of ageing were new.
  • A red that needs time: « Columella » 2022: flowers, fresh fruit, spice and earthy notes. The palate remains compact, carried by noticeable acidity and structuring tannins; a red that needs time to unfold.
Essential references

Mullineux

Swartland

  • Three soils for the same wine: Chris and Andrea Mullineux founded their Swartland estate in 2007. Their 2023 « Syrah » combines six vineyards: Kasteelberg schist, Paardeberg granite and iron-rich soils west of Malmesbury.
  • Blending soils or discovering them separately: This « Syrah » offers a blended interpretation of Swartland. It sits alongside cuvées devoted to distinct soil types: two complementary ways to discover the Mullineuxs’ work.
  • A rich, spicy syrah: « Syrah » 2023: blackberry, violet and black olive tapenade. The palate is rich, the tannins velvety, with red fruits and a finish of warm spices.
Pioneers and renewal

A.A. Badenhorst Family Wines

Swartland · Paardeberg

  • Two cousins revive a farm: In 2008, cousins Adi and Hein Badenhorst bought Kalmoesfontein and restored its old winery and Paardeberg vineyard. They made it the base for their family estate and ranges such as « Secateurs », intended for fresh, generous everyday wines.
  • Twenty-five parcels for « Secateurs »: « Secateurs Chenin Blanc » 2025 brings together twenty-five parcels around Paardeberg. It combines young and old dry-farmed bush vines with younger vines trained on wires: a chenin from several Swartland vineyards.
  • A textured, lively chenin: « Secateurs Chenin Blanc » 2025: flint, honey, orange blossom and white stone fruits. The palate combines texture, salinity and lively acidity, with a persistent finish.
Essential references

Boekenhoutskloof

Franschhoek · Swartland

  • Old semillon vines turn grey: In Franschhoek’s old vineyards, some vines naturally produce pink-skinned semillon gris, picked on a second pass because it ripens more slowly. The 2023 « Semillon » blends three vineyards, including vines from 1902, with a small touch of muscat of Alexandria.
  • « The Chocolate Block » chooses Swartland: In 2015, Marc Kent refocused « The Chocolate Block » on Swartland to manage more vines directly. The syrah-led 2023 bears this origin; the 2014, of Western Cape origin, still included cabernets from Franschhoek and Stellenbosch.
  • The white’s texture, the red’s spice: « Semillon » 2023: orange blossom, lime and ginger, a creamy texture and a saline finish. « The Chocolate Block » 2023: blackberry, blueberry, black olive and white pepper; a juicy palate, velvety tannins and a dry, spicy finish.