We continue this week with more about Stellekaya wines from South Africa. Ntsiki Biyela, the country’s first black woman winemaker who joined Stellekaya in 2004, is especially good with blended wines. Orion, the flagship red discussed last week, is a Bordeaux blend of merlot, cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc. Even though it is rare in China, this is a wine worth pursuing.

The nose on the 2006 Orion offers an almost bitumen-like aroma combined with intense flavors of cassis. The tannins are soft and the wine has wondrous length.

This week we consider another 2006 edition, the Cape Cross – an unusual blend of merlot, pinotage and cabernet sauvignon. It is common in Bordeaux in France to blend merlot and cabernet sauvignon, but the addition of pinotage is rare. The pinotage grape grows well in South Africa. It adds body and depth to Bordeaux styles of wine.

The 2006 Cape Cross is serene and stately, with an elegant nose of vanilla and spice, the result of 22 months in new oak. It has good structure and is black cherry in color.

The flavors cascade like a madrigal on the tongue, offering a range of sensations, and the tannins are soft and slightly chewy. It would match a traditional meat dish like steak or casserole. This is a wine to savor over the next decade but is approachable now.