Description

An opulent concentration of crisp and complex fruit and redolent white flowers. The pungent base of ripe limes, tangy nectarine and quince fruit is softened with a mealy beeswax character. Drifting scents of apple blossom and honeydew deliver some alluring top notes. The waxy texture envelops the palate, succulent fruit in the middle, and the flavour protracted by refreshing acidity in the finish.

This is the first Albariño to be produced in South Africa, after the Newton Johnson family imported the vine material of this fragrant variety to the Cape with designs on establishing it as a harmonious pilgrim to the maritime conditions of the Upper Hemel-en-Aarde Valley. The grape has its origins on the wet and cool Atlantic north-west coast of Spain and Portugal, where monks are fabled to have brought it from the Rhine River in central Europe on their pilgrimages centuries before. Its native soil is of Granite origin, similar to that at Newton Johnson, where it expresses subliminal definition, almost Riesling -like floral notes and complexity.

"Vineyards planted in 2011 and 2012. Fermented in concrete, aged on lees in stainless steel and old oak. A far cooler vintage than 2022. A little more restrained than 2022, but still the acidity is ripe and vibrant - peaches and baobab fruit. Stunning length, and a little prickle of rosemary. More stony in the middle (than the 2022), but starburst luminosity and asterism. Kaleidoscopic. Bevan Newton Johnson's Albariño goes from strength to strength."
17.5 points.
Tamlyn Currin, jancisrobinson.com (October 2024)