A great wine is like a great piece of art or music; it lives in pride and keeps the winemaker’s legacy eternal. Here we will talk about couple of unicorn wines from South Africa, that will stay immortal. - Arnav Das

George Spies Cabernet Sauvignon

The wine was an experiment by George Spies, who then was the head of production for the Stellenbosch Farmers Winery (SFW). It was an experiment to see what single-vineyard Cape wines could deliver, at a time when most South African wines were blends. His selected Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard was in Durbanville, and he vinified the 1966 in stainless steel tank, something that is unthinkable for top shelf Cabernet Sauvignon producers. 1968 saw some time in foudré (famed Rhone valley casks which can hold up to 30,000L of wine).

 An acquaintance of George Spies confirmed this when quizzed in the mid-2015. The wine was made like white wine, with a short time on the skins before heavy filtering and immediate bottling.

 It’s rumored that he made the wines without the approval of his bosses, hence he couldn’t give the original name that he wanted to give it.  Spies decided to give this Cabernet Sauvignon to the SFW directors on special occasions after the marketing department decided not to sell it. As fun, the director named the wine GS after him with a simple small fun label. There have been notes showing that some of the wine was sold under a different label called Rendezvous.

Little did GS know he was creating a beast of wine that would be etched in wine history.

There comes a twist to the story with a lady named Jean Parker.  A former art teacher from the Eastern Cape without a winemaking background, who used to work with Spies. It’s said that when she left her position at her previous winery, she arrived at SFW, led by George Spies. What she got with her were a few cases of wine that she made. Later when George Spies retired in 1981, he visited her with a couple of cases of wine that she’d made.

Never having been commercially released, an interesting run was on to discover more about the GS Cabernet's and suddenly, these once-forgotten bottles were finding their way onto tastings, into the market for the first time and colouring the list of wine auction offerings.

The legend of the wine remains, as does the story. The fabled wines are nearing their end with the 1968’s still holding great character. If you find them, savour them as they might not hold for long.

Cordoba Crescendo

Called as one of the very first cult wines from South Africa, Cordoba Cresendo was produced in the mid to late 90’s. One of South Africa’s most famous wines, the Cordoba Crescendo, Cape Bordeaux Blend originally made famous by talented wine maker Chris Keet in an estate in Helderberg, Stellenbosch.

After the original 1995 vintage acquired 5 stars in the 1999 edition of Platter’s, the wine along with their maker, Chris Keet was propelled to a mythical cult-like status, amplified further by their small production. The last vintage produced to date was 2004. Drinking a bottle of Crescendo 1995 ranked as one of the heights of local fine wine experiences and then all of a sudden… the winery vanished. The wine is a classic Cheval style blend led by Cab Franc and supported by Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon; hence it was often called the Cheval Blanc of Helderberg.

The Oddo Family in 2017, bringing ex-Rupert & Rothschild cellar master, Schalk-Willem Joubert, on board has seen the spectacular return of this majestic wine. One of the most promising projects accomplished in the last decade in Stellenbosch. They can’t use the name Cordoba hence they went ahead with Taaibosch Crescendo. It’s not the same but its something to keep an eye on.

Written by : Arnav Das