Mulderbosch, Faithful Hound, Stellenbosch

Part of a Mulderbosch treo. Initially this was second choice, after 2001, but after time as that faded, this became ascendant and more interesting. FASCINDATING how it developed,

very dark, blackberry colour, completely not clear. nose: rhubarb - bit bland and sweet; generally delicate and not intense. taste: firstkly rather short but later when openes become of medium lenght. Smoky with black currant and with a lot of green notes. . Nice tannins though. This one definitly lacks balance. There is a lot happening in the glass but I am not sure if in good direction.

This wine was just singing! Dark chocolate and tart red fruit on the nose and palate. Some green vegetal tones, smoke, spice, cocoa and freshly roasted coffee beans on the palate. Almost the sensation of a dark chocolate covered coffee bean. This is a smooth and nicely balanced wine; still exhibiting a solid backbone of acidity. Pleasant finish with the same dark chocolate and red fruits lingering nicely.

I like this wine quite a bit. To me its interesting and different from so many wines. All in all a very enjoyable and well balanced blend. On the nose i get a lot of espresso and chocolate with some dark berries and a vegetal quality thats hard to put my finger (or nose) on. The wine is in the medium range on both tannins and length of finish. I get blackberry and greens up front with Milk chocolate on …

Staying with my notes from the first bottle drank a year ago. Not much change. Still a very nice wine with a smokey taste.

Initial nose right after opening was amazing. Vegetal, but with loads of spices. Good mouthfeel and again more vegetal/pepper notes, soft and elegant with nice balance and a medium tart finish. Not a long term aging wine, but in a very good spot right now.

Open 3 hours...did a sip to check for TCA - more screw caps please. Initial taste after 3 hours was right on with the two previous tasters' notes - smokey. Nose has a bit of vegetation (asparagus) that is not off-putting and sour cherries. Some earth and oak is also present. There is a hint of leather but it needs to be finessed out. Palate has some very nice tannins that are generally well integrated leaving you with a not …

We decided to open our last bottle given the comparative disappointment of the previous one this night. The second bottle had a more chocolate profile but less integrated tannins. Enjoyed this one more; we were still disappointed given our personal experience with this label. We were intrigued by thedistinct lack of consistency from bottle to bottle. We will think twice before making a volume purchase of Mulderbosch's Faithful Hound again.

drinking well - plenty of fruit with sour cherries to the fore. Tannins are blending well to give a smooth smoky finish that lasts

A very distinct smokey taste. Would not recommend with a light meal, but went very well with steak.

Oaky notes get brought out once the wine has opened up. Getting it to a warm-ish room temperature makes a big difference. Decanting helps too. Young, as someone elese has said, but very good under the right conditions.

Nicely rich with hints of chocolate. Decanted, it opened up considerably on day two.

VERY YOUNG right now and not ready yet, had vegetal/green pepper flavor that completely dominated (and took away from) it for the first 4hrs+ of being open and decanting. But once that blew away I was able to appreciate it. Interesting South African Bordeaux blend, complex enough to enjoy, though was a bit chalky for my liking. Not sure I'd buy it again, but was worth trying.