The Wines of Loire

Timed Online Auction, 1 - 8 May 2023

Session 1
About the Session

The Loire Valley is a large region that follows the longest river of France. The Loire is an exceptional place to find lean, racy, white wines, including those of Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscadet. Red varieties include Cabernet Franc, Gamay and Cot (Malbec), which produces herbaceous, rustic reds.


Sold for

ZAR 17 588
Lot 2
  • Alheit Vineyards; Radio Lazarus; 2017; 6 (1 x 6); 750ml


Lot Estimate
ZAR 18 000 - 24 000
Selling Price
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
ZAR 17 588

About this Item

2017 Radio Lazarus
6 (1 x 6) 750ml

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.

The 2017 was the last vintage of this wine released.

Provenance

Wine Cellar Private Client

Critics Ratings

‘The terroir in the Alheit wines shows through with the 2017 Radio Lazarus. Beyond the classic Chenin Blanc expressions of yellow apple, Meyer lemon and lanolin, there is a cheese rind aspect that lingers on the palate. The depth and breadth are evident once the wine hits the palate. Alheit knows exactly what they are doing with these wines, which turn out as focused Chenin with precision and minerality. The fruit is woven into a textural sensation that lifts the dusty white minerality, which may have been lent from the clay pots the wine was aged in. No oak was used for this wine. In short, this is a cerebral, medium-bodied wine that has texture and a lively tension, ending with a long mineral-driven finish. Only 165 cases were made, and it's worth the money.’ - Anthony Mueller, Wine Advocate, 93+/100 (Oct 2019)

‘Swansong for this label: old Bottelary vines no longer viable. 2017 great aromatic breadth but also mineral tension, vigour in its concentrated, reverberating flavours. Lovely textural quality from ferment/ageing in 100% (Bottelary) clay pots.’ - Platter’s SA Wine Guide 2019, 4.5* (93/100)

‘Get out your handkerchiefs, as they say in France, because 2017 may be the last ever vintage of this incredible wine after the extreme drought of 2018. If so, it’s a good note on which to end. Dense, compact and super concentrated, with stony grip and the acidity of a late-picked site, complemented by aromas from the wild fynbos that surrounds it. RIP, Radio Lazarus. 2020-29.’ - Tim Atkin SA Special Report 2018, 96/100

View all Alheit Vineyards lots for sale in this auction