Top image: Jeanne, Carel en Margaux Nel.
The Boplaas Cape Tawny, a cellar master’s blend of the finest barrels of Cape tawny port, won the Cape Port Producers Association (CAPPA) Trophy for the “Best Port in SA”, as well as picking up a “Best in Class” gold medal. Boplaas also won “Best in Class” for its Cape Ruby and “Best in Class” in the Museum Class (10 years and older) for the Boplaas Cape Vintage Reserve 2006 and walked off with more gold in the Cape Vintage Class with its Cape Vintage Reserve 2013.
This well-known and award-winning Calitzdorp winery, however, does not only excel in the production of world-class port wines. In the category for the table wines made from Portuguese varieties, Boplaas did exceptionally well with 6 wines in the top 10.
This year, as in the past, the judging panel was astounded by the excellent quality offered by the Cape’s fortified wines and commented that consumers should take heed of the incredible value, quality and sheer enjoyment offered by these port wines. Convener of the panel of tasters, Christine Rudman (CWM), was particularly pleased by the tawny and vintage classes. She was equally impressed by the improvement made by producers in crafting table wines from the Portuguese varieties.
The Boplaas Cape Tawny is a limited release bottling, available exclusively from the cellar door, and commemorates the Nel family’s winemaking heritage dating back to 1880. It is a blend of the finest tawny port carefully matured for a minimum of 15 years in barrels. Crafted in a slightly drier style, this fine Tawny exhibits the complex mélange of nutty, caramel, citrus, spice, oak and rancio characteristics which typify the style. Served chilled, this wine will make an exceptional accompaniment to roast duck, venison, slow roast pork or a selection of mature cheeses.
Having always crafted the Boplaas Cape Vintage Reserve port wines for extended bottle maturation, it is exceptionally pleasing that the Boplaas Cape Vintage Reserve Port 2006 took top honours in the Museum Class, says Carel Nel of Boplaas. Both the 2005 and 2006 vintages won the SA Champion Port Trophy at the respective SA Young Wine Shows. The Boplaas Cape Vintage Reserve 2005 was runner-up in the Museum Class.
By winning the Cape Ruby Class, Boplaas once again showed why this exceptional port wine is one of the top selling Cape Ruby’s in South Africa. It’s pure quality n a bottle. It boasts a lovely, intense ruby colour with complex flavours of black and red berries, chocolate cake and a lingering aftertaste.
Boplaas not only showcased its prowess in the production of Cape Ports, but also its dedication to the crafting of the finest table wines from Portuguese varieties and ended up with no fewer than 6 wines the CAPPA Top 10. They include the Boplaas Gamka 2015, a suburb red wine made from touriga nacional, shiraz, touriga francesa and tinta barocca with a beautiful, intense red/black colour and flavours of red/black berries and a lingering aftertaste. The wine was matured in French oak for 12 months. Another Boplaas wine in the CAPPA Top 10 is the Daniel’s Legacy CWG 2015, a complex wine matured in French oak for 14 months and also made from touriga nacional, tinta barocca, touriga francesa and shiraz. Both these wines have the potential to age for 10 years and more.
The other 4 wines are the Boplaas Touriga Nacional 2015, Boplaas Woolworths Tinta Barocca 2015 and Portuguese Connection 2015, and the Boplaas Tinta Chocolat 2015.
Discover these award-winning wines and other Portuguese varietal table wines at the Boplaas cellar at Calitzdorp, as well as the winery’s tasting room in Little Brak along the Garden route.
For more information, contact Boplaas at +27 (0)44 213 3326 or [email protected], or visit www.boplaas.co.za, or you can tweet them at @Boplaas1880.
