2011 Series M

"We are asking questions of ourselves in the post-Zelma era,” proprietor Mike Ratcliffe tells me when I visit the winery just outside Stellenbosch together with winemaker Arlene Mains. “We are questioning, again, about the possibility of a single wine, so we are testing experimental blends with Series M and Series C. It will take a number of years. We have to see if it would be a tangible level-up. The 2021 vintage is the first under Arlene Mains. The Cabernet Franc from Stellenbosch is a beautiful blending component. We have a new irrigation system using a 40cm pipe so that water is injected directly down into the earth. Our water usage has dropped 70%. When you switch it on, the vine reacts much quicker as the water goes directly to the roots.” It’s easy to see why they have established such loyal demand that their wines sell out on pre-allocation each year. It is stylistically consistent, veering more towards a fruit-driven, maybe more Californian inspired Bordeaux wine that is expected given Zelma Long’s prior involvement, plus Ratcliffe’s tireless own promotion overseas, which is crucial to establish brands. All three cuvées are worth seeking out, the Seriously Old Dirt representing excellent value for money.

Mike Ratcliffe sold his shares in Warwick Estate to focus on Vilafonté, a joint venture with winemaker Philip Freese and Zelma Long. Given both of them hail from the United States, Vilafonté has always been imbued with a Californian air, though its vines call Paarl their home, not Napa. I visited Mike at their winery on the outskirts of Stellenbosch. “The 2018 could be the greatest vintage we have ever produced,” he explains, although I will not taste those until next year. “It has been off the charts in terms of extract and concentration. Last four or five vintages have been strong. The last couple of years we have managed the vineyards well and we built a dam to counter the drought.” I discover that around 40% of their demand is for older vintages and so with this in mind, Mike kindly offers a complete vertical of the “Series M” cuvée that you can find in this report alongside recent releases. Suffice to say that these will appeal to those who like Californian Merlot, often opulent in style, but with the structure to support it. These wines do benefit from cellaring and as such, give them six or seven years in bottle and you end up with wine that develops rewarding secondary scents and flavours.