Tim James: Cape white wines continue to offer top value – just don’t overchill

I admit to something of a disconnect as I sit here writing about a handful of white wines I’ve drunk recently while the window that I spend too much time staring through shows a leaden sky and, much of the time, falling rain. A lovely Cape autumn has turned, at least for a while, into a wet and cold Cape winter.

And yet that disconnect is probably too conventional in its association. Perhaps, it occurs to me, we too easily associate white wines only with summer because we tend to drink them very cold – too cold, chilled from the fridge, even to the point where the’ve lost aroma and flavour. We wouldn’t often want them that cold in winter. Obviously it could be the other way round, and, simply, we drink them in summer and therefore want them very cooling.

I drink plenty of red wine (even port) in summer, and I drink white wine in winter  – though less, I confess. Over the last decade or so, however, white wine has formed an ever greater part of my wine consumption, though it’s still probably in the minority over the year. That personal shift is doubtless because of the compelling quality and brilliant value, not to mention the greater variety now, of good Cape white wines at the lower-middle to upper price levels that I focus on. White wines are still, on the whole, the best of what’s made locally, though the number of really good local reds has increased greatly. I still buy quite a bit of imported red wine (mostly French, some Italian), but, on reflection I realise that I buy few foreign whites apart from German riesling and irreplaceable sherry. I’m not much of a sparkling wine drinker, let alone one of overpriced champagne I’m relieved to say.

Interestingly, I learnt recently that I’m not alone in increasing my consumption of white wine – the whole world is doing so, alhough the increasing popularity of sparkling stuff, especially Prosecco I suppose, counts for a good proportion of the increase. According to a substantial, detailed report from the International Organisation of Wine and Vine compiled in 2023, at the beginning of the century white wine accounted for some 46% of the world total production; in recent years this share rose to 49%. Red wine’s share declined from 48% to 43%. Accounting for the rest is rosé, with an even steeper climb than white.

So, after that prepratory bumpf, I can happily report that two well-established white favourites of mine, the two that are arguably the greatest value I know, at just under R130 per bottle, have had outings with my dinner recently. Both rieslings. The local one is Stone and Steel, from Oak Valley, the 2024 as usual dry, acidic and deliciously succulent (too austere to be a neophyte’s choice); the foreigner is a modest old friend from Checkers, the emphatically off-dry but pleasingly balanced, fresh and charming (and lowish-alcohol at 8%) Kabinett from Moselgarten (the 2022 currently available), which I’m sure everybody should love unless they’re wilfully prejudiced against sweetish wine.

Late last year I mentioned (and got good support from readers) the winning Asylum blend from Cape Rock, up near Vredendal. I went to get some more the other day, but my excellent local shop, Constantia Wine & Craft, were out of stock, so I got instead the same producer’s Vermentino. What a pleasure, unsurprisingly – subtle and unassertive, but with a great, characterful presence despite its restraint (and modest 13% alcohol). I’ve lost the receipt, but it was well under R200; a wine I shall certainly buy again.

Last week I visited the delightful Winshaw farm in Stellenbosch for their new-release event. Unlike for the Cape as a whole, the Winshaw reds are their great triumph (see Christian’s notes here), but they do a handful of decent whites. My two favourites were the cheapest and the priciest. The Runaway Pinot Gris 2025, at R170, is nice and bright, a firm acidity if not really fresh, quite intensely flavoured if not very lingering; a bit more appealing, I thought, than the grander, all-oaked Queens Horses version. The maiden Gold Dust to Grapes Chardonnay 2025 (the name referring to founder William Charles Winshaw’s lucky strike in the American gold rush), also naturally fermented, is light-feeling at just 12.5% alcohol and pleasingly modest and fresh, well-structured, with just a pleasing hint of oak. As these things go, reasonable value at R240.

And so to Cavalli, the estate at the foot of the Helderberg, where Rianie Strydom has for a few years been raising the wine quality. I’ve spent a few fascinating (albeit rainy) days with three of her recently released 2025 whites: Chenin Blanc Reserve, White Reserve, and Chardonnay. The last of these was the least exuberantly fine, but still considerable – supple, textured, understated, fresh and elegant; very recommendable to those who don’t want too much overtness, and recognise R285 (cellar door) as reasonable. I think I’d call it a good buy.

As I would the Chenin Blanc Reserve. Less fruit-rich than many of the top Swartland chenins I admire unreservedly, it is flavourful and intense at a little over 13% alcohol, almost umami-ish with its lemon-limey appetisingness, much more than fruity, and almost disconcertingly silky-velvet in texture. It coped admirably with a highly spicy dinner, revealing a suave sweetness. R255? You could do worse at double that, or more.

And then there’s the Resrve White. From 60% chenin, with green-tinged verdelho, chardonnay, and a bit of viognier to add a note of ineffable charm. I’m getting bored with silly descriptions, and want to get on to my next point, so I’ll be brief: this is a really first-rate wine and I don’t think you’ll anywhere in the world do better for R310. I’ve always thought of Rianie as a quintessential Stellenbosch-big-red-winemaker, but I’ve never been quite so convinced of her ability to do excellently subtle as here, with these whites (though I have admired her Cavalli Warlord too).

My last point reverts to temperature. I opened these wines on Saturday and tried them nicely cold. Sunday, I let them escape from the fridge to achieve room temperature – probably about 15ºC prior to making my first stove-fire of the season. I tried them as the room happily warmed up, before dinner and with, and after. It was almost the warmer, the better, the more complex and lovely. It might be worth your while to do some experiments yourself, if this possibility of increased pleasure with white wines has not occurred to you.

• Tim James is one of South Africa’s leading wine commentators, contributing to various local and international wine publications. His book Wines of the New South Africa – Tradition and Revolution appeared in 2013.