Sauvignon Blanc South Africa and FNB have revealed the winners of the 2019 FNB Sauvignon Blanc Top 10 competition with no less than eight out of the 10 victors being from the 2019 vintage. The results were revealed at a gala awards dinner on Wednesday October 9, at the FNB Portside building in Cape Town.
In alphabetical order, this year’s top 10 are:
Cederberg Ghost Corner Sauvignon Blanc 2019
De Grendel Koetshuis Sauvignon Blanc 2019 (Wooded)
Diemersdal Winter Ferment Sauvignon Blanc 2019
Du Toitskloof Land’s End Sauvignon Blanc 2018 (Wooded)
Groote Post Seasalter Sauvignon Blanc 2019 (Wooded)
Lomond Sauvignon Blanc 2019
Merwida Sauvignon Blanc 2019
Spier Ideology Sauvignon Blanc 2019
Stark-Condé Round Mountain Sauvignon Blanc 2018 (Wooded)
Tokara Reserve Collection Elgin Sauvignon Blanc 2019 (Wooded)
The Top 10 were drawn from a broad collection of entries this year, with 107 producers submitting 183 wines. The country’s diverse wine growing regions were well represented with five out of the six regions in the Western Cape delivering at least one wine in the top 20. Twelve of the top 20 wines were from the 2019 vintage, confirming the industry consensus that 2019 was an outstanding year for sauvignon blanc.
“Twenty-nineteen will be remembered as a very successful year for sauvignon blanc and the top 10 can rightly be proud of their achievements,” says RJ Botha, chairperson of Sauvignon Blanc SA. “The fact that more wines were entered this year, despite the drought that handicapped most wine producers, re-affirm the confidence producers have both in the competition and the excellence that South African sauvignon blanc is capable of and forecasts a very positive future.
“Once again, we see that good Sauvignon Blanc is impervious to geographical boundaries, revealing the broad style and flavour profiles the variety can deliver.”
Stephan Claassen, provincial head FNB business, Western Cape, congratulated the winners.
“In order for South African sauvignon blanc to remain competitive on a global scale, it is essential that we continue to celebrate and offer platforms to talented producers that allow them to hone and showcase their skills.
“Our local sauvignon blanc producers continue to produce great quality wine and as FNB, we are pleased to be associated with this exciting part of our wine industry,” Mr Claassen says.
The judging panel this year comprised Dr Winifred Bowman, Cape Wine Master and convenor of the panel; Charles Hopkins of De Grendel; Dr Carien Coetzee of Basic Wine; wine judge and writer, Fiona McDonald, and Wilhelm Pienaar of Hermanuspietersfontein.
The panel also included trainee judges Ben Snyman of Overhex Wines, Chandre Petersen of Flagstone Winery, Morgan Steyn of De Grendel and Rudger van Wyk of Starke-Condé Wines.
Wine lovers will be able to acquire the 2019 FNB Sauvignon Blanc Top 10 collection via Wine of the Month Club.
For more information, email admin@sauvignonblanc.com
A technical seminar based on this year’s performance will take place on Wednesday November 20, in Franschhoek.
For more information or to become a member, visit www.sauvignonblanc.com or call 021 975 4440.
