The Wine Witch is a HUGE fan of South African wines. Unfortunately they are often lumped with other Southern Hemisphere wine regions like Australia and Argentina. Again, while a I love the value and quality of Southern Hemisphere wines, this lumping does South Africa a bit of a disservice. South Africa has a much longer wine making tradition than the others. To me they generally make wines that are the perfect cross over between the “in your face” style of most New World wines and the more elegant and restained European tradition.
While South Africa covers most of the major varietals, for whites they are probably best known for Chenin Blanc. If you ever see a South African wine called Steen, it is the same thing. The 2008 Indaba Chenin Blanc is a good introduction to both the region and the grape.
The wine is a pale yellow in the glass with a nose of peach and banana. It has a medium mouth feel with the peach in the nose carrying through. There is a nice interplay between some green mineral, lively acid, and a little bit of honey. While it is considered off-dry, it is just the tiniest bit so. All together very pleasant. If you are not a fan of Reisling , the 2008 Indaba Chenin Blanc is a good choice to pair with almost every ethnic cuisine.
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