Ashbourne, Sandstone, Hemel-en-Aarde Valley

Ashbourne · Cape South Coast › Hemel-en-Aarde Valley › South Africa

White · White Blend

Critics

89 /100

Reviews

professional

Vintages

No vintages

No vintage-specific entries have been added for this wine.

Community Reviews

Reviews

89.1

Avg Score

Highest

Drinking beautifully. Jalapeño. Stoney. Day 3. Incredibly good tonight. Deliciously reduced like some Roulot Blanc. Flint and snapped stone with all that jalepeno buried in there.

2008 vintage

still drinking beautifully

2008 vintage

Light greenish yellow. Sauvignon Blanc definitely comes through on the nose with some lemon grass, onion grass, citrus rind and a hint of minerality. Medium acidity (6/10) and medium bodied. Well balanced and structured with complex layers of citrus, granite and almost steely. Long finish. Drink till 2028.

2019 vintage

Medium gold color indicative of the age. Bouquet teases fresh cut grass with green apple. Steely minerality in a medium body, texturally rich, and oily. Puckering acidity that lingers.

2008 vintage

About two years since I brought this bottle back from a winery visit in South Africa, and I think it's improved even more. Nose shows green onion, bell pepper, sea salt, crunched sea shells, notes of anise and clove, too, all on top of white cherries, peaches and limes. Creamy texture but bracing acidity. Laser-beam style stuff. Tart green apples, limes, tangy peach. Complex elements of cucumber water, white pepper, sea salt, minerals, chalk and talcum powder. Wow. This is …

2008 vintage

stramgest thing.....first time i drank this i didn't love it at all! this time- COMPLETELY different experience.....it was wonderful! long lingering finish, great minerality, wonderful flavor- quite oddly fantastically surprising!

2008 vintage

Just a fantastic wine...see previous note.

2008 vintage

Very unusual blend, just terrific. Substantial weight on the palate with good cut and a long finish. A really well-made wine but unlikely to reappear often in the U.S. market.

2008 vintage

a complex wine with taste characteristics of a European Sauvignon Blanc as well as Chenin Blanc and Rosanne. On the nose one gets the grapefruit and pineapple along with apple. On the palate there is brisk acidity, but much more nuanced tastes of apple, pineapple, liche, and almonds. very long finish. this needs time and patience, but is rewarding in the end.

2008 vintage

Deep golden color. Odd mix of grass and fruit. Astringently dry. Agree with other comments that it is 'different' and 'interesting'. Discovered a half case, so looking forward to getting to grips with this one. Wouldn't necessarily pair it with sushi again, though.

2008 vintage

didn't love this upon first opening, but my friends called me the next day and said they loved it.

2008 vintage

Thin, heavy middle, overdone apricots

2008 vintage

Golden yellow, clear, pineapple, green apple and and toasted butter pecan on the nose. Bright pineapple on the palate, medium+ acid, good legs.

2008 vintage

Really surprising and delicious wine! tropical fruits spicy acidity a bit of bell pepper nice weight in the mouth and lively longish finish, really paired will with roast chicken. Interesting!

2008 vintage

Friday Night Double Blind Tasting $40+ (Bin 75) : 77% Sauvignon Blanc, 20% Chardonnay, 3% Semillon; bright yellow with light green hues; grass, straw, herbal, bitter melon, wooly; richer on the palate, good acid but lower for SB, gooseberry, almost tannic, grainy mineral; seems like domestic SB in a way.

2008 vintage

Blind this, @&#hole. Golden color, looks like an old Chenin. Then comes a fresh, pyrazine-y nose, jalapeño, bell pepper. Round on the palette with ripe tropical and orchard fruit, nice weight. Overall balanced and a really interesting, unique wine.

2008 vintage

Very light wine. Tart, bitter. Smells like hair coloring chemicals. Maybe it's corked.

2008 vintage