Alto M.P.H.S. 2007
Stellenbosch farm Alto has had only four winemakers since it was first established, these being Manie Malan from (1920 to 1956), Piet du Toit (1959 to 1982), Hempies du Toit (1983 to 2000) and Schalk...
View ArticleLomond Pincushion Sauvignon Blanc 2007
Billed as “A Night of a Thousand Glasses”, it was more like “The Infinitely Prolonged Evening of Nine Hundred and Ninety Nine and a Half Glasses”. We were at the fourth annual black-tie dinner hosted...
View ArticleDombeya Fenix 2009
With the 2009 vintage, the Bordeaux-style red blend from Dombeya Wines owned by American businessman Preston Haskell changes name from Altus to Fenix, this the result of a legal challenge brought by...
View ArticleAlto Shiraz 2011
A bit like when your favourite indie band signs with a major record company, Stellenbosch property Alto lost a lot of its mystique when it came to be owned by Lusan Premium Wines (a joint venture...
View ArticlePlaisir de Merle Cabernet Sauvignon 2010
After rating Alto Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 86/100, a somewhat mediocre score for a bottle of wine costing R149, I wondered if I wasn’t guilty of “Distell bashing” and so resolved to try two other Cabs...
View ArticleAlto Cabernet Sauvignon 1971
Before the start of judging for this year’s Old Mutual Trophy Wine Show, the traditional tasting of old South African wines – whites at least 15 years old and reds at least 20 years old. Meerendal...
View ArticleAlto Cabernet Sauvignon 2001
It’s hard not to view Stellenbosch cellar Alto as a victim of its own success. Take the red blend known as Rouge. Just under 400 000 litres produced annually, selling for R75 a bottle from the tasting...
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Tim James: Could great old names be rescued?
An almost inevitable topic came up for discussion among those attending the recent grand match between some old Cape stars and their international equivalents: the modern decline in reputation of wines...
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Alto Shiraz 2013
What’s striking about the Shiraz 2013 from Alto in Stellenbosch is just how South African it is; not Rhône or Swartland aping Rhône but South African on account of a certain burliness about it. Matured...
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Alto M.P.H.S 2007 – 2012
The 2012 vintage of the flagship red blend from Stellenbosch property Alto has just been released, and to mark the occasion, a tasting of this and the two previous vintages to date, namely 2007 and...
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