2011 Rudi Schultz, Syrah, Stellenbosch, South Africa.
South Africa is going crazy with great wines, it’s an explosion of small farm production old vine wines, with Sadie Family, Badenhorst and Silwervis all making headlines around the world with amazing Syrah, Cinsault, Chenin Blanc offerings as well as Sparkling, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir bottlings impressing. At the moment the Rhone style stuff is catching my attention and for price and quality I’ve been really enjoying Rudi Schultz’s Stellenbosch Syrah, it is definitely a wine that speaks of place, slightly wild but with a rich expression of fruit, body and length and at 14% it gives ripe pleasures, sweet tannin and fullness without being cumbersome or jammy. The Rudi Schultz 2011 is a joyous evolved Syrah with layers of blackberry, boysenberry, blueberry and plum fruit along with fig paste, wild game, minty black licorice, dusty gravel/stoniness, light cedar, cinnamon, pepper and olive/earthy tones. The mouth feel is decedent and age has softened the structure, but it has plenty time left, I like where this wine is at right now, and it should hold firm for another 3 to 5 years easy, this is a good bottle of wine with old world charm, it’s very exciting times for South African wines, time to explore is now!
($26 Est.) 92+ Points, grapelive
