A Golden Night At Veritas: Acclaim For Spier’s Winemaking Heritage
Spier was one of the top award winners at the 26th Veritas Wine Awards on Friday night, 7 October. A jury of five international and more than 100 local specialists blind-tasted 1670 medal contenders from 266 wineries, and awarded Spier two Double Golds and seven Golds, 10 Silvers and nine Bronze medals.
The two Double Gold winners – the Spier 21 Gables Chenin Blanc 2014 and Pinotage 2014 – are from a range which celebrates Spier’s contribution to South Africa’s 300-year winemaking history. The 21 Gables range pays tribute to the farm’s architectural legacy: an unrivalled 21 Cape Dutch gables surrounding its historic farmyard, the Werf.
“Balance and elegance are the threads which go through each of our 21 Gables wines,” Spier cellar master, Frans Smit, says. “The 2014 vintage was a tough year for South African wine, so we are very proud that we achieved these two Double Gold with this vintage.”
The Spier 21 Gables Chenin Blanc 2014 is rich and complex, and produced from vineyards that are well over 40 years old. The only wooded Chenin in the competition to win a Double Gold, its remarkable pedigree includes being listed in the Standard Bank Top 10 Chenin Blanc Challenge 2015 and the Top 100 SA Wines 2015.
The Double Gold awarded 21 Gables Pinotage 2014 originates from a vineyard that is unusually close to the sea. The wine’s previous vintage has been awarded five stars in Platter’s 2016, and won Gold Outstanding at the International Wine & Spirits Competition last year.
Double Gold:
2014 Spier 21 Gables Chenin Blanc
2014 Spier 21 Gables Pinotage
Gold:
2015 Spier Private Collection Chardonnay (exclusive to Woolworths)
2014 Spier Private Collection Chenin blanc (exclusive to Woolworths)
2015 Spier Private Collection Chenin blanc (exclusive to Woolworths)
2016 Spier Vintage Selection Sauvignon Blanc
2013 Spier Creative Block 3
2013 Spier Private Collection Cabernet Sauvignon (exclusive to Woolworths)
2013 Spier 21 Gables Pinotage
Silver:
2016 Spier Vintage Selection Sauvignon Blanc/Sémillon (exclusive to Woolworths)
2015 Spier 21 Gables Chenin Blanc
2015 Spier Vintage Selection Chenin Blanc
2016 Spier Creative Block 2 Sauvignon blanc
2016 Spier Signature Chardonnay / Pinot Noir
2013 Spier Signature Brut MCC
NV Spier Secret Sparkling
2013 Spier Creative Block 8
2014 Spier Creative Block 8
2014 Spier Private Collection Cabernet Sauvignon (exclusive to Woolworths)
2014 Spier The Hutton Single Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (exclusive to Woolworths)
Bronze:
2014 Savanha Naledi Chardonnay
2016 Spier Signature Chenin Blanc
2015 Spier 21 Gables Sauvignon Blanc
2016 Spier Private Collection Sauvignon Blanc (exclusive to Woolworths)
2016 Spier Signature Sauvignon Blanc
2013 Spier Creative Block 5
2015 Spier Vintage Selection Cabernet Sauvignon (exclusive to Woolworths)
2014 Spier Koffie Klip Single Vineyard Merlot (exclusive to Woolworths)
2010 Spier Private Collection Chenin Blanc
These wines, along with the other Veritas Double Gold and Gold winners can be tasted in Cape Town (18 October), Johannesburg (25 October), Durban (10 November), Port Elizabeth (16 November) and Knysna (17 and 18 November). Visit www.veritas.co.za for more details.