SA Syrah: 2017 proves the hype is justified
By Christian Eedes, 20 August 2026
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Whereas the Cape Bordeaux Red Blend tradition is well established – Welgemeend released its first vintage in 1979, followed by Meerlust Rubicon in 1980 and Kanonkop Paul Sauer in 1981 – the modern Syrah phenomenon is much younger. Boekenhoutskloof released its first Syrah in 1997 and Mullineux in 2008, with the first Single Terroir wines following in 2010. The variety’s age-worthiness is therefore still something of an open question.
To explore it, private collector and Winemag.co.za reader Ryan Coetzee selected 14 South African wines from the much-celebrated 2017 vintage, along with two international benchmarks. The wines were tasted blind in flights of four.
Flight One
Mullineux Iron 2017
Boekenhoutskloof 2017
Porseleinberg 2017
Van Loggerenburg Graft 2017
Flight Two
Boschkloof Epilogue 2017
Cederberg Shiraz 2017
Mullineux Granite 2017
Hartenburg Gravel Hill 2017
Flight Three
Mullineux Schist 2017
Lismore Estate Reserve 2017
Reyneke Reserve 2017
Savage Red 2017
Flight Four
Stark-Conde Three Pines 2017
Henschke Mount Edelstone Shiraz 2017
JL Chave L’Hermitage 2018
Leeuwenkuil Heritage 2017
Here’s how I rated the wines:
98
Mullineux Iron 2017
Reyneke Reserve 2017
Leeuwenkuil Heritage 2017
97
Mullineux Granite 2017
Porseleinberg 2017
96
Hartenberg Gravel Hill 2017
Lismore Estate Reserve 2017
95
Boekenhoutskloof 2017
94
Cederberg Shiraz 2017
JL Chave L’Hermitage 2018
93
Savage Red 2017
91
Mullineux Schist 2017
Van Loggerenburg Graft 2017
90
Henschke Mount Edelstone Shiraz 2017
CORKED
Boschkloof Epilogue 2017
Stark-Conde Three Pines 2017
What does this tasting say about South African Syrah at just under 10 years old? First, there can be no question that it can compete with the best in the world: three local wines scored 98. The Chave L’Hermitage 2018 was imposing, with plenty to like, still very youthful, while the Henschke Mount Edelstone Shiraz 2017 from Eden Valley, Australia appeared rather too advanced, with distinctly odd aromas and flavours.
Indeed, the results lend weight to the view that Syrah is South Africa’s strongest red variety. Swartland predictably fared well, but Reyneke and Hartenberg brought Stellenbosch into the mix, while Lismore represented Greyton.
South African quality is high, but the quality relative to price is almost laughably good. According to Wine-Searcher, the most recent global average price of the Chave is R6,970 and the Henschke R2,765. By comparison, Brice & Burnett are currently offering the following wines on brokerage:
Boekenhoutskloof 2017 – R975
Cederberg 2017 – R500
Hartenberg Gravel Hill 2017 – R1,425
Lismore Estate Reserve 2017 – R1,075
Porseleinberg 2017 – R1,450
Reyneke Reserve Red 2017 – R950
The performance of the three Mullineux wines is also instructive. I tend to prefer the Granite and Schist on release, but here Iron triumphed. Clearly, terroir isn’t a hierarchy: different sites can produce different kinds of excellence, and one isn’t automatically “better” than another.
How are these wines drinking now? I’m very glad to report that the best are hugely pleasurable already, while still having plenty of life ahead, thanks to excellent fruit concentration and tannic structure. Cederberg was something of a stylistic outlier, unsurprising given its particular provenance, while Savage and Mullineux Schist appeared to be holding rather than developing further. In fairness to Van Loggerenberg, this vintage of Graft was 55% Cinsault and 45% Syrah; subsequent vintages are likely to mature more convincingly.
In closing, perhaps the killer question this tasting poses is: why isn’t Leeuwenkuil more talked about? The 2017 showed epically well and its performance was clearly no flash in the pan. The current-release 2022 scored 97 and was the best overall wine in this year’s Prescient Fund Services Report.
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Kwispedoor | 21 August 2026
I know the perception of tradition and market pressures dictate for some that natural cork end up in certain premium bottlings, but it really spoils the occasion if a corked wine comes around, especially when it’s an older vintage. Even if a producer carries deep library stock and is always happy to replace old vintages (that should be a minimum requirement), the particular moment is gone – whatever the special occasion was. In this case, we all really wanted to know how those two other wines would have fared in this context. Now, we’ll never know.
Tim James | 21 August 2026
As to Leeuwenkuil, I suspect the answer to your question about why it isn’t more talked about is that it doesn’t have a rockstar winemaker. But it is talked about quite a lot, even on this website. In 2022, I wrote that “2013 was a remarkable wine in its youth – ‘powerful but exquisite’ I described it in Platter’s back then (it got its five stars)… Suffice it to say that it is drinking even better now and pretty youthfully.” In 2024 I wrote of the 2015 that “I’ve never enjoyed a Swartland syrah more”. I did say that “Leeuwenkuil generally doesn’t have the reputation it deserves – though this wine was, in fact, the Platter’s Guide Shiraz of the Year in 2019”. It is odd how some wines just don’t get the widespread acclamation they deserve, and it’s usually because the winery is small and unhyped. It was, for example, rather the same for Welgemeend in the 80s and 90s – certainly as good a cab-blend as any, but always in the shadow of Meerlust’s and Kanonkop’s, and some others.
Andrew Gunn | 24 August 2026
No Solace, a pity.
Jan Carlsson | 26 August 2026
Hi Christian! You forgot to mention the legendary Stellenzicht Syrah 1994 with great vintages until 2003. They are for me, at 15 years aging, still one of the best Syrah’s produced in SA. At least that has given me most pleasure……