Two of Bouchard Finlayson’s white wines have just received the highest accolade from South Africa’s longest standing and largest wine club, the Wine-of-the-Month Club, winning tastings in both the Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc categories. Started in 1986, www.wineofthemonth.co.zainvite a panel of 10 independent expert wine judges to taste and score the wines blind, ensuring that each judge remains completely unbiased.
In March 2018, the 2015 vintage of Bouchard Finlayson’s celebrated Missionvale Chardonnay scored top marks ahead of 19 other wines to win the Wine of the Month Panel Tasting in the Chardonnay category.
It was followed (in April 2018) by another 1st place in the next Wine of the Month blind tasting, and this time it was Bouchard Finlayson’s Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2016 which took top honours.
The Hemel-en-Aarde Valley and its associated terroir has long proven itself to be one of the Cape’s most treasured Chardonnay locations. Bouchard Finlayson’s geographic location, lying within five kilometres of the cool Atlantic Ocean, offers the most ideal temperature zone of the Cape. Thus, Sauvignon blanc is grown here too with much success – so much so that the Bouchard Finlayson Sauvignon blanc has become the estate’s biggest seller.
The winning Reserve edition of the Bouchard Finlayson Sauvignon Blanc can safely be considered as a collector’s item. A refreshing dry wine that has a great minerality, aroma and taste of herbs and grasses and a nice crisp pucker, it displays the bright and fruity character of the grape, whilst the heavy shale clay soil that typifies the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley lends an inviting tropical tone to the flavour profile of the 2016 vintage. The major portion of this Sauvignon blanc is obtained from grapes grown on a sandy South facing slope. An early pick ensured the capture of austere flavour components which have been enhanced through the addition of 14% Semillon. (R163 per bottle at the cellar door)
Bouchard Finlayson’s 2015 Missionvale Chardonnay is no stranger to the world’s top accolades, where amongst others, it received a Gold Award in the International Wine and Spirits competition (IWSC) 2017; scored 93 points and won a Medal of Excellence from Tim Atkin (South African Special Report for 2017); and was scored at another 93 points by James Suckling in his South African Report 2017. With excellent ageing potential, the Missionvale is described as a robust Chardonnay with loads of creamy feel, supported by subtle peach and melon flavours following a zesty citrus watermark and an after taste with fig and quince like character. (R258 per bottle at the cellar door)
