De Krans Cape Tawny Port (South Africa)

[Andy Velebil]

Roy was kind enought to recommend some South African (SA) fortified wines. I picked up a few yesterday and open this one last night after dinner with friends, where a SA dry red was also consumed. I woun't get into details on the dry red, but it was very good :) .

I didn't take any notes but here are my thoughts on the Tawny;
Color: meduim red center fading to orange at the rim.
nose: Nuts and spices
Palate: very smooth on the front of the palate, the mid-palate was interesting. The flavor really changed to more of a madeira type nuttyness and VA. However, this lasted just a couple of seconds and then on to the back of the palate where a bit of heat showed. normally this would probably detract from the overall experience, but I actually think it helped the finish a bit.

Overall: This is one of the better tawny's I have had in a while. Very much in line with a Douro tawny. Matter of fact, had I not known, I would have sworn this was from Portugal not SA.

For a $11.00 (US) tawny I will buy more. Here is some info on it

Winemaker: Boets & Stroebel Nel
Appelation: Klein Karoo
IN THE VINEYARD: 2-wire trellis, as well as old bushvines on poor soils.
THE HARVEST: Picked at 25º Balling.
IN THE CELLAR: Matured in old barrels for 6 to 9 years (average 8 years old). A blend of different vintages, freshened with a small percentage of younger Port.
BLEND INFORMATION: 50% Tinta Barocca, 35% Touriga Nacional, 10% Sauzoa, 5%Tinta Roriz
Type: Fortified; WOODED

Chemical Analysis
Alcohol: 19.5%vol
pH: 3.41
RS: 104g/l
Total Acid: 5.2g/l

[Roy Hersh]

I am very pleased you like the reco. As you all know I am a big SA fan. The fortified wines there are every bit as good as Australia and truer to the Portuguese methods and in some cases, (DeKrans is one of them along with 3 or 4 others) they have gone to great lengths to bring over the true Portuguese cultivars. There are some exciting dessert wines over there and incredible bargains ... especially when the ZAR is more favorable than it is today.

[Andy Velebil]

Last night I gave this to a friend who stopped by the house, and I should say he works at a well known wine store. All I told him was that this tawny was from SA. After tasting it, he made me show him the bottle because he did not believe it was from SA, he swore it was from the Douro

BTW, he really liked it too :!: