The Old Diocesan Issue 12 - Magazine - Page 88
WINE
WINE AWARDS
It’s been another haul of medals and kudos for OD winemakers.
Congratulations to all on the great vinos!
I
t’s difficult not to envy Tim
Atkin MW his day job when
you find out that, for his 2025
South Africa Special Report, he
tasted 2,000 wines from nearly
400 producers during two separate
visits to the country – and if you
follow him on Instagram, you’ll
have seen that he enjoyed every
moment of this tough task. Now in
its 13th edition, Atkin’s report has
become a highly respected source
of information on the state of our
wine industry – so it’s good to see
ODs continuing to feature highly
in the Master of Wine’s estimation.
Atkin has scored two wines 100
points in this year’s report – and
one of them is Chris Alheit’s
(1999O) 2024 Magnetic North,
a single-vineyard Chenin Blanc
sourced from two parcels of bush
vines in Citrusdal that’s also been
named Overall White Wine of the
Year. (Chris’s 2023 Nautical Dawn
Chenin achieved a perfect score in
last year’s report; good to see he’s
not been slacking off.) In addition,
the 2024 Alheit Nautical Dawn
Chenin Blanc and 2024 Huilkrans
Chenin Blanc each scored 98; the
2024 Fire by Night Chenin Blanc
scored 97; and the 2024 Cartology
white blend and Monument
Semillon each scored 96.
Alheit’s r!
te
100-poin
Other ODs to tickle Atkin’s fancy
in 2025 were Gary Jordan (1978G)
with his 2021 Sophia red blend
(96 points) and 2024 Timepiece
OVP Sauvignon Blanc (95 points);
Alex Starey (1997W) with his
Keermont trio of 2020 Single
Vineyard Series Topside Syrah
(96), 2020 Single Vineyard Series
Steepside Syrah (95) and 2023
Fleurfontein (95); David Trafford’s
(1981W) 2023 Sijnn Red (96) and
2024 Sijnn White (95), as well as
2019 De Trafford Elevation 393
red blend (95); Anthony HamiltonRussell’s (1979F) 2024 Pinot Noir
(95); James Downes (1990W)
with his 2022 Shannon Mount
Bullet Merlot (95) and 2023
RocknRolla Pinot Noir (95);
John Loubser’s (1985F) 2019
Silverthorn Jewel Box CC (95);
and Mike Ratcliffe’s (1990W)
2022 Vilafonté Series C and M
red blends (95 points each).
COUNTING STARS
The 2026 Platter’s South African
Wine Guide celebrates 46 years
of reviewing the local industry by
featuring more than 900 producers
and brands, and more than 8,000
South African wines, brandies,
husk spirits and sherry-style wines.
Wine
Platter ar
e
of the Y
Platter
Wine of
the Year
As always, the five-star wines
list is a highlight – and of those,
the highest scorers in each category
are recognised as Wines of the Year.
For 2026, two ODs produced such
wines: Justin van Wyk (2003S),
whose 2022 Constantia Glen Five
topped the “Red Blends: Cape
Bordeaux” category; and John
Loubser, whose 2019 Silverthorn
Jewel Box was top of the Cap
Classique pops. Justin’s 2024
Constantia Glen Sauvignon Blanc
and 2023 Constantia Glen Two also
received five stars, as did John’s
special-edition CWG Auction Mad as
the Mist and Snow Brut Nature 2019.
Other ODs to produce five-star
wines were David Trafford with
De Trafford Cabernet Franc 2023 and
Skin Macerated Chenin Blanc 2024,
and his two Malgas-origin blends,
Sijnn Red 2023 and White 2024;
Chris Rawbone-Viljoen (2001F)
with Oak Valley’s 2022 PN777 Pinot
Noir and 2022 CY548 Chardonnay;
Gary Jordan with Jordan Cobblers
Hill Red Blend 2022 and Timepiece
Chenin Blanc 2024; and Chris Alheit
with 2024 vintages of his Fire By
Night, Huilkrans, Magnetic North
and Nautical Dawn Chenins, as
well as his 2024 Monument Semillon
and 2024 Hemelrand Vine Garden
white blend.
