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

‘Deeper and meatier than La Mouline 2001, with plenty of black fruit on the nose. This doesn't spring from the glass, you have to approach it and give it some air. There's a balsamic glaze to the black fruit, an agreeable oxidative edge as you'd expect from a 21-year-old wine. Medium-bodied and decidedly weightier than La Mouline, mouth filling and intense. Sappy acidity, juicy and vibrant. Long on the finish, much longer than La Mouline, partly thanks to the oak ageing. Velvety and luxurious on the palate, perhaps just lacking a little aromatic freshness and detail right now. Due to the somewhat introverted stage it's in, I would keep this for a few years before opening, around 2025. Certainly no hurry to drink. Quite extraordinary length.’ - Matt Walls, Decanter.com, 94/100 (Feb 2022)

‘93% Syrah, 7% Viognier, flint and limestone soil, fermented in stainless steel vats, 3 week cuvaison. Deep garnet. The most fragrant of the three Guigal wines tasted here. More primary spicy black fruit and pepper, yet with an incipient meatiness. Fine, fresh, almost delicate even though it is highly structured.’ - Julia Harding MW, JancisRobinson.com, 18/20 (Oct 2007)