Provenance

The Coats Family Cellar is arguably the most prestigious fine wine collection ever offered in South Africa. It contains a deep collection of the worlds finest, most sought-after wines, spanning over 150 years. Collected over many decades, the cellar was imported from Ireland to South Africa via reefer. Each bottle within the Coats Family Cellar was authenticated by Michael Egan in August 2022 and given an ID number for tracking.

Michael Egan is a world-expert in fine and rare wines with more than thirty five years of experience. He was the principal expert for the plaintiff in the two major wine counterfeiting trials in Koch v. Eric Greenberg and United States v. Rudy Kurniawan, both of which occurred in 2013.

Along with Michael Egan, the Strauss & Co Fine Wine team have tasted extensively through the cellar and are confident of the wine storage and hence quality. The entire collection is currently stored at Wine Cellar.

Critics Ratings

'87.5% Grenache, 11% Syrah, 1.5% Viognier. ?65% from Eleven Confessions, 29% Cumulus, 6% Bien Nacido.? 21% New French oak (demi-muids), rest in used French barrels. Deep ruby. Fragrant, almost floral. Similar to the Turn the Whole Thing Upside Down 2009 but with lovely notes of orange as well as the red fruit; and smells a bit richer. Lots of spice. Quite firm tannins but juicy on the finish. Ripe plums and more leathery with time in the glass.' - Julia Harding MW, JancisRobinson.com, 17/20 (Oct 2012)

'This wine was just released in April of this year, and is a blend of 87.5% Grenache, 11% Syrah, and 1.5% Viognier, with 21% whole clusters used in the Grenache component. Seventy-eight percent of it came from the 11 Confessions Vineyard and the balance from Bien Nacido and the White Hawk. It is no measly wine at 15.5% alcohol, but it displays extraordinary berry fruit and kirsch notes intermixed with lavender and other floral components. Intense, full-bodied, voluptuously textured, and stunningly pure, with no real noticeable oak (21% new French oak was used, most of it the larger demi-muids), this beauty has put on weight and is showing additional complexity since I first tasted it. Anticipated maturity: now-2023.' - Robert Parker, Wine Advocate, 98/100 (Aug 2011)