Paul Wallace Wines

One of the members of the Old Dudes Wine Club, Stoffel is a big Malbec fan. So after an article appeared in the Versnit insert of Die Burger newspaper about Paul Wallace Wines’ Black Dog Malbec, we decided to pay them a visit on Saturday afternoon, 21 May 2016.

What a pleasant experience! The owners Paul and Nicky Wallace met us in front of their newly renovated tasting room and immediately invited us to make ourselves at home on the front porch. From there we had a magnificent view of the beautiful valley and hills of the farm and the vineyards. Pure bliss and tranquility.

Paul brought out his Little Flirt Sauvignon Blanc 2015 and started to tell us about the history of Paul Wallace Wines. He is a viticultural consultant and they bought the farm in 2003. The farm then had orchards of Golden Delicious and Granny Smith apple trees which were replaced by plantings of Sauvignon Blanc, Malbec and Pinot Noir, changing the face of the farm entirely.

It has long been Paul's belief that the cool-climate region of Elgin, previously best known for its apples and pears, is one of the most exciting developing wine regions within the South African wine industry.

Back to the Little Flirt Sauvignon Blanc tasting, I don’t know if it was because we were in apple-world, but on the nose I picked up golden delicious apples and tropical fruit on the palette. Paul entertained us further with little chocolate pellets flavoured with vanilla, chilly, salt and truffles. These we paired with the other wines in his range: Brave Heart Pinot Noir 2014; Paul Wallace Crackerjack 2009 and the Black Dog Malbec 2013. There is also The Nix Sauvignon Blanc Noble Late Harvest which we did not taste.

My favourite of the day was the Bordeaux-styled blend, The Crackerjack and obviously Stoffel loved the Malbec.

Paul and Nicky have recently completed some extensive renovations to their farm. One labourer's cottage has been converted into a charming tasting room which is open every Saturday from 10 am - 4pm. Further exiting developments are in the planning stages.

We chatted like old friends and if it was not that we had prior lunch reservations we would have stayed the whole afternoon. The Old Dudes Wine Club will definitely be back for a “lekker kuier”!