Winemakers must get pretty tired of being asked to name their favourite wine but we keep asking, because their answers are usually interesting and give us some insight into where and how we might enjoy their wines.
Like most, Lanzerac cellarmaster Wynand Lategan is reluctant to single out a “favourite child”, but as we tasted through the estate’s core Jonkershoek range recently, he shared some of his favourite foods and occasions for the wines.
The more than 300-year-old Stellenbosch landmark wine estate has recently had a label refresh as part of relooking and reorganising what are now three distinct ranges.
Lategan says Lanzerac’s renamed core Jonkershoek range aims to “claim the valley”, of which it is the landmark entrance, and focus on making wines that “are more rooted in the Lanzerac heritage and Jonkershoek terroir”.
“Emphasising the Jonkershoek terroir gives us focus and distinctiveness within the broader Stellenbosch region.
“Jonkershoek has more rainfall and is more the cool-climate part of Stellenbosch, and the difference can be tasted in the wines,” Lategan said.
The difference is immediately apparent in the Lanzerac Sauvignon Blanc 2023 (usually R110 from the estate, now a bargain R66, more about that below) — all from Jonkershoek fruit and quite different to Stellenbosch sauvignon blancs which tend to be ‘hot’ and tropical.
“Ours balances the tropical with some green grassiness, neither too fleshy nor too acidic, and there’s some minerality, and texture from lees contact.
“I love this with food, it has flavour interest and the right amount of weight to work with spicy foods and strong flavours like goat’s cheese.”
Lanzerac Chardonnay 2023 is another foodie favourite for Lategan — butter chicken for the win, or Thai green curry, “anything lightly spiced, rich and creamy”.
It works because the wine is wooded but not overly so, giving it the palate weight for food without heaviness, balancing creaminess and vanilla sweetness with invigorating freshness and layers of citrus.
Lanzerac Merlot 2022 cries out for savoury Italian flavours in veal, pasta or risotto dishes — think porcini mushrooms, marinated red peppers, pancetta or Parmesan.
Great with the wine’s intense aromatics, bright red fruits, touches of liquorice and creamy chocolate, and gentle tannins.
It’s a highly drinkable, juicy, elegant top-class merlot.
As the home of SA’s first commercially bottled pinotage, this remains a core focus for Lanzerac across their three wine ranges.
The Jonkershoek range 2021 Pinotage is a beauty — savoury and a bit “wild”, a fine balance of light and dark in what Lategan calls “dark, broody fruit” featuring roast plums, prunes, lifted by bright acidity.
His favoured “conversation lubricant” is the Lanzerac Cabernet Sauvignon, classic, full-bodied, elegant, silky-textured — “the bright natural acidity of the Bordeaux varietals in Jonkershoek ends the wine on a high note, like good humour in good conversation”.
Lanzerac Reserve 2020 (a Platter’s 4.5*), a “Bordeaux-esque” blend of cabernet sauvignon, petit verdot and shiraz is the “little brother” of Lanzerac’s flagship Bordeaux-style Le General and, says Lategan, “the one I pack for a weekend away with friends”.
Dark, velvety-plush, ripely fragrant with floral and liquorice notes, dark berries and spice on the palate, a touch of dark chocolate, it’s easy drinking, soft and rounded, but with complex layers of flavour and aroma that keep evolving.
“It’s the kind of wine that’s lekker with your dinner — game, steak, braised short-rib — and also to carry on with after dinner, especially if you add some dark chocolate to the conversation.”
Lanzerac Jonkershoek wines are widely available locally. Cellar door prices are R110 for the Sauvignon Blanc and Pinotage Rosé, Chardonnay R195, and the reds between R210 and R240.
However, they have a great promotion for November, with all of these at 40% off in the online shop https://lanzerac.co.za/our-shop/ — don’t miss out!
