MICHAEL FRIDJHON: Nothing frivolous about these Helderberg wines

SA’s fine wine culture dates only from the era after World War 2. A key — and sometimes forgotten — role in popularising wine was played by Bernard and Fredagh Podlashuk, who acquired Bellingham near Franschhoek in 1943. A few years later they set off to Europe in search of vinous inspiration. Max Schubert, the Australian winemaker who created the Antipodes’ most famous wine, had been sent to Europe on a similar mission at much the same time. He returned with the ideas out of which he created the iconic Penfolds Grange.

The Podlashuks returned equally inspired: they launched the Cape’s first rosé, followed in short order by a dry white wine (an almost unknown category at the time), which they called “Premier Grand Cru” as a tip of the hat to the French. Well into the 1970s it was the country’s best-known premium dry white. They also launched SA’s first commercial shiraz. Their late harvest (Bellingham Johannisberger) in its trademark gable-shaped bottle was a ubiquitous feature of the restaurant scene for decades, where it rivalled chianti fiaschi as a candleholder.

Today Bellingham survives under the rubric of “The Bernard Series”, where its Old Vine Chenin Blanc (which sells for R250) has been an industry benchmark for at least 15 years. The Bushvine Pinotage is equally striking, generous rather than showy — the kind of wine that could evangelise even the most hardened pinotagophobe.

DGB (the country’s second-largest premium wine producer) has owned Bellingham for many years. Unlike other Cape wine corporates that appear to be ditching wine for more easily marketed spirits, DGB has been on a vinous shopping spree, acquiring or building several other high-end brands. Under its umbrella sit several free-standing marques, most notably Boschendal, Old Road (with access to some of the Cape’s best single-site vineyards) and, most recently, Avontuur.

The Avontuur property on the Helderberg has belonged to the Taberers since the 1980s. With more of a focus on their horse stud, they seem to have neglected the wine operation. In yet another example of its contrarian approach, DGB has been acquiring rights to ultra-premium vineyards, most notably in the Helderberg, for several years. Its model involves entering into long-term leases in prime locations and then replanting and managing the vineyards. Avontuur is one such contract — except that it comes with the property’s long-established brand name and will be the hold-all for the best of the Helderberg fruit under DGB’s control.

The company’s viticulturist, Heinie Nel, has overseen the planting of hundreds of thousands vines along the Helderberg over the past few years. The programme has been approached with a fanaticism that borders on the obsessive. This is hardly surprising, given that it costs about R500,000 to establish one hectare, and if you’ve done the job properly, the vineyard can deliver quality fruit for 30-40 years.

Using time-lapse photography to determine the exact line of the sun’s passage over the proposed vineyard blocks, Nel lays out the vineyards in such a way that shading is exactly equal on both sides of the row. He also applies rigorous protocols developed over the past three decades to halt the spread of the Cape’s ubiquitous leaf-roll virus

The new-era Avontuur wines have just been launched. They range from the entry-level Luna de Miel Chardonnay 2024 and Val de Ra Cabernet Merlot blend, via the Disa Gorge Chardonnay, Stonefield Syrah 2023 and West Peak Cabernet 2021 to the super-premium 2022 Taberer.

Given the size of the investment in the Helderberg, there’s nothing frivolous about any of the wines. You can’t go wrong with the Luna de Miel Chardonnay at R180, the Val de Ra at R200 and the Disa Gorge Chardonnay (even at R350). The Taberer is splendid: finely made with great fruit intensity, dense tannins, flavoursome, nuanced and persistent. It’s not an everyday buy at more than R1,000 a bottle — but it’s made in such small quantities there won’t be stock about when it reaches its plateau of maturity.

Business Day.