Unless you’ve been roaming the vast plains of Mongolia or exploring the dense jungles of Papua New Guinea, you probably know that Cape Town has been caught in a very chilly cold snap. Wherever I go, people are saying “my, Winter must really be here!” or “sjoe, we’ve had a lot of rain, haven’t we!”

Apart from all the annoying small talk about the weather, I’m not complaining. Winter is the time to get snuggly and drink more red wine. Who can resist that? Now, I know that the obvious choice might be a hearty Cabernet Sauvignon or a spicy Shiraz, but sometimes it’s fun to shake things up, which is why I present to you the Steenberg Nebbiolo 2011. What manner of foreign creature is Nebbiolo, you ask? Let’s see what old faithful Wikipedia has to say:

“Nebbiolo (Italian), or Nebieul (Piedmontese) is a red Italian wine grape variety predominantly associated with the Piedmont region where it makes the Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG) wines of Barolo, Barbaresco, Gattinara and Ghemme. Nebbiolo is thought to derive its name from the Italian word nebbia which means “fog.” During harvest, which generally takes place late in October, a deep, intense fog sets into the Langhe region where many Nebbiolo vineyards are located.”

So there you have it. When I first tried the Steenberg Nebbiolo 2011, one of the things that I loved was the nose, which had a spicy, died fruit sort of smell. The flavours were even better: cherry, strawberry and some rather bold tannins. There aren’t really many wines that I know that i can compare this to, but I can’t recommend this sexy beast enough.

Image courtesy of Steenberg

The lowdown

Name:  Steenberg Nebbiolo 2011
Winery: Steenberg
Price: From R200.00 a bottle
The verdict: Gorgeous flavours and something different to enjoy. Amazing with risotto.