A triumphant 32nd Nedbank Cape Winemakers Guild Auction saw all records tumble at Spier in the Stellenbosch Winelands over the weekend, with total sales exceeding R13,8 million and new record wine prices for red, white, Methode Cap Classique and Port.
With sales of R13 833 400, almost R2 million more than the previous record, the auction showed its prowess one again as a showcase of top South African wines.
Carel Nel, cellar master of Boplaas Family Vineyards, celebrated this 27th year as member of the Cape Winemakers Guild (CWG) and his 27th consecutive wine on auction at the CWG Auction 2016, with his small batch Carel Nel 1880 Ox Wagon 8 Year Old Cape Potstill Brandy and Boplaas CWG Cape Vintage Reserve Port 2009.
Some might call him the Lone Ranger, as he is still the only Guild member east of the Huguenot tunnel, quietly crafting a host of fine wines from vines entrenched in the unique terroir of the Klein Karoo and from some of the Cape’s finest sites, in the cellar with a rich legacy.
The Boplaas CWG Cape Vintage Reserve Port 2009 reached a new record price of R7,000 per case of 6.
Only the finest Tinta Barocca, Touriga Nacional and Souzao grapes are selected from specific low-yielding vineyards. All the fruit is hand harvested at optimum ripeness, fermented and fortified in small lagares, and barrel matured in large seasoned oak barrels for 12 months, to craft this distinctive full-bodied, complex and structured dry-styled Cape Vintage Reserve Port.
The Boplaas CWG auction brandy was sold for R5,200 per case of 6. This is an expert blend of the finest eight year matured potstill brandy, crafted in small batches from hand-harvested Colombar grown in deep red alluvial soils, and double distilled in an old copper potstill using steam and matured in fine old Limousin barriques.
This potstill presents tasters with a multi-layered combination of dried apricot, ripe peach, orange blossom, Eucalyptus honey, bright wood spice, vanilla bean, while undercurrents of roast coffee bean, coco nib and tangerine marmalade are wrapped in a svelte, fine spirit and bees wax finish.
This auction brandy was named the 1880 Ox Wagon Cape Potstill to commemorate the very first export of a Boplaas brandy to the United Kingdom, which was transported by ox wagon from the Klein Karoo to the Cape Town harbour in 1880.