South Africa is the topic du jour it appears, as several of the past reviews have been from the ‘new’ world wine producing country. This is one varietal from a label that covers a large spectrum of grapes. The LCBO is carrying this for a small sum of $12.80 putting it in the super competitive $10-$15 range that summer in Canada fights over. The release of this wine covers most provinces and should be looked at carefully as you peruse your white of choice for the cottage season. As this is a school night we will keep this review short and sweet
This Fleur du Cap comes with a screw cap that unleashes a brisk whiff of green apples once open. The colour is a solid straw yellow and the nose will remind you of a Chablis. The first few sips will not convince you that this is anything but a Chardonnay made in a Burgundy style. The green apple (Granny Smith) remains firmly in the foreground with the toast of the barrels popping up their nose. This wine may appear to be French in style, but the butter of California Chardonnays rears itself the deeper you get into the wine. So to summarize: crisp clear fruit forward to start with hints of butter and toffee (the toast evolved into toffee). Strange, but it is an extremely nice pairing inside a wine. The acid is even-keeled and the finish lingers but is not long. This turns out to be a very nice wine, especially at $12.80. While this is neither a cellar keeper, nor is it going to hold itself to some of the amazing Chardonnays from Niagara or the Okanagan (at usually double the price) it is however a near perfect wine for the cottage or backyard this summer. It will give the fresh clean summer feel that most seek in other grapes and it will not blow the bank while doing so. Grab a few bottles and let me know your thoughts.
The CWG Subjective Rating is 86 out of 100.
