Modern, Post-War and Contemporary Art, Decorative Arts and Wine
Online-Only Auction, 25 May - 1 June 2020
Wine
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About this Item
Chris and Suzanne Alheit set the wine world on fire with their maiden 2011 Cartology receiving 96 points from Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate. Aiming to harness the best old vineyards across the Cape, the Cartology offered a textured old-vine Chenin Blanc Semillon blend with startling purity and depth. Passionate and focused on the expression of place, tiny, long-forgotten parcels were added to the range, and are today South Africa’s most profound white wines. We auction maiden vintages of Magnetic Makstok on the legendary ‘Skurfkop’ in the Citrusdal area, Huilkrans in the Paardeberg, La Colline in Franschhoek, and, extremely rare Radio Lazarus in Stellenbosch.
Setting the wine world on fire with their maiden 2011 Alheit Vineyards Cartology release, husband and wife team Chris and Suzaan Alheit set out to harness the best old vineyards across the Cape. With a passionate and detailed focus on expression of place, sourcing tiny, long-forgotten parcels of predominantly white grapes, today they produce South Africa’s most profound white wines.The 2013 Magnetic North was a Platters 5* winner and is only their 2nd single-vineyard release with merely 824 bottles produced. From the legendary ‘Skurfberg’ area, South Africa’s ‘grand cru’ site for Chenin Blanc.
Notes
Due to time constraints set upon us with the COVID-19 Lockdown no original bottle shots were taken.
Provenance
Wine Cellar
Critics Ratings
‘Old, ungrafted (‘makstok’), dryland chenin from Olifants river. ‘13 uncompromising & tight but its web of scent, textures & flavours already combines austerity, profundity, subtle dry power & generous deliciousness. Sweet fruit strained through stone. All these old-oak matured.’ – Platter’s SA Wine Guide 2015, 5*
‘The 2013 Magnetic North Mountain Makstok is 100% Chenin Blanc from 0.98 hectares of vine grown at 500 meters above sea level. It has a slightly more aromatic bouquet than the Cartology, but not toward fruit, rather towards lanolin, beeswax and yellow flowers. The palate is medium-bodied with crisp acidity (pH 3.27) rending this quite tense and focused. It is very understated with fleeting glimpses of chalk dust, pithy pear, and a touch of Japanese yuzu coming toward the Fino-tinged finish. Excellent – but it is not for those seeking fruit-driven Chenin. Only 824 bottles produced.’ – Neal Martin, Wine Advocate (October 2014), 91/100
‘The dry-farmed, old-vine Chenin for this comes from that extraordinary 'Skurfberg' region I visited up the west coast with Rosa Kruger, Eben Sadie and Tim James in January 2015. From the farmers up the road, I think. Pale straw. Very steely and austere with strong green-apple notes. Extremely youthful but it did open up in the glass.’ – Jancis Robinson (September 2015), 17/20
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