Breede River Valley's Grapes: Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Syrah

Chardonnay

Jancis Robinson described Chardonnay as the tart of the grape world, as it would lie down anywhere and do what the winemaker told it to do! In other words it will grow almost anywhere and produce decent and quite stylistically different wines ranging from minerally Chablis, Champagne, buttery fruit wines, tropical fruit wines or oaky vanilla wines. During the late 1990's Chardonnay was the drink of choice for many. However people became bored with the oaky wines found in so many bars and the term, 'ABC' (Anything but Chardonnay) came about. The ubiquitous yet noble Chardonnay grape has virtually become a brand name. From its homeland in Burgundy, its fame and fortune have taken it all over the world. It�s grown on different soils in varying climates to be used either as a single varietal or in blends, for still and sparkling wines, and with or without oak ageing to create a wide range of wines with diverse personalities. As a result, it�s impossible to describe a typical Chardonnay. For a start, the grape can make anything from an everyday glugger to a high-quality wine deserved of ageing. Its popularity in the vineyard stems from the fact that it�s easy to grow, consistently yielding generously with relatively high sugars (and, therefore, alcohol). In the winery its advantages are obvious � it�s difficult to make a poor wine from it, unless it�s been picked too late, because then its acid levels fall quickly, which make it flabby. Chardonnay isn�t strongly aromatic: some detect anything from apples (or barely ripe apples in Chablis) and melon in Maconnais Chardonnay to tropical fruit flavours in New World examples. Common descriptives, however, tend to refer to texture and weight rather than flavour � buttery for broader styles, such as Meursault from the Cote de Beaune; steely for Montrachets and nutty for Corton-Charlemagne. There�s an attractive leanness to fine Cote d�Or white burgundy, that sets it apart from Chardonnays from the rest of the world, but this can be emulated further south in the Cote Chalonnaise and Maconnais in good vintages with clever winemaking.

Chenin Blanc

Chenin Blanc is a native of France, or more specifically the Loire, yet it's now more prevalent in South Africa, where it is the most planted grape. This white grape is certainly versatile: it goes from producing some of the finest, most age worthy sweet wines to being responsible for a vast amount of sparkling wine, basic New World gluggers and high-quality examples. In South Africa, it is also used as a base for fortified wines and spirits. The variety is marked by the flavours of honey, flowers and damp straw as well as high acidity, which can be a problem in the Loire's less-ripe vintages but is a bonus in hotter climates. It's a vigorous grower with good resistance to disease and wind, but it buds early, which exposes it to spring frosts, and ripens late. In newer wine regions, it's grown on a wide variety of soils but French growers prize the calcareous soils, particularly the tuffeau of Touraine. In fact, it's Touraine as well as Anjou-Saumur that are Chenin's bases today in the Loire. Here, wines range from basic and vaguely floral to intense honeyed wines made either sweet (moelleux), dry or demi-sec, but all with vibrant acidity. The region's Chenin sparklers include Saumur Mousseux, Cremant de Loire and Vouvray, while, in the south, the grape is also an ingredient with Mauzac and Chardonnay in the sparkling wines of Limoux. Chenin Blanc is also grown in other New World countries, including Australia and America (mostly California), where it's often blended. In France, it is sometimes called Pineau or Pineau de la Loire and in South Africa it also goes by the name Steen.

Syrah

Shiraz and Syrah are the same grape. However apart from Australia where it is always called Shiraz, and France where it is Syrah, the rest of the world tends to follow the style of these two. If the wine is ripe and full bodied the wine is often called Shiraz. If the wine has less fruit, more acidity and lower alcohol, it tends to be called Syrah after the wines produced into the North of Rhone. Shiraz/Syrah is produced by itself or can be blended typically in three ways. A small amount of the white grape Viognier can lift the deep flavours of Syrah, this is common in Northern Rhone. In Southern Rhone and recently Australia, blending has been based around adding Grenache and Mourvedre, copying the blending behind Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Even more recently Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz/Syrah has been blended in the Southern French wine region of Languedoc, creating big wines with elegance. Hotter climate Shiraz often has aromas of plum, tar and leather and with the right oak treatment even chocolate. Cooler climate Syrah can have a peppery note to the wine.