Elgin wines shine in 2021 Platter's by Diners Club

The reward for excellence and consistent quality is sweet in the 2020-aftermath, and despite a trying year, Elgin dominated local wine compe...

The reward for excellence and consistent quality is sweet in the 2020-aftermath, and despite a trying year, Elgin dominated local wine competitions with outstanding white and red wines.

Adding to this repertoire are the top achievers of the prestigious 2021 Platter's by Diners Club unveiled earlier this week. 

As a wine region, we are extremely proud of our members who achieved five stars, an accolade reserved for wines that score 95 points or more on the internationally recognised 100-point scale. We are equally proud of the respectable collection of 4 and 4 ½ star performers.

Since its inception in 1980, Platter's has become an institution and serves as a reputable source of information for people wanting to learn more about South African wines, regardless of your level of knowledge. The Elgin Valley might be a small wine region situated in the Overberg. Still, its wines have made a significant impact on the international wine stage, and this guide is testimony of its vast offering of wine styles.

Forming an inland plateau, naturally defined by the surrounding mountains, the varied soil types and significant diurnal temperature fluctuations contribute to the elegant characteristics that make for award-winning wines.

Neil Ellis, who produced the first wine of origin from Elgin, stayed on this trajectory and earned five stars for its Neil Ellis 2019 Whitehall Chardonnay. Thelema, another Stellenbosch producer, received a well-deserved five stars for its Sutherland Petit Verdot Reserve 2017, hailing from Elgin vineyards. Speaking of extraordinary red wines, it came as no surprise when the Shannon Mount Bullet Merlot 2017 collected another five-star award, making it the most awarded Platter's five-star wine in the Merlot category to date. This is the fifth year in a row that this three-hectare Merlot vineyard has produced a Platters five-star (Mount Bullet & Shannon Black combined), a testimony of consistent quality.

A clean sweep of Chardonnay for Oak Valley speaks to their vision of producing world-class cool climate Chardonnay from exceptional sites on our Groenlandberg mountain. This includes a five-star achievement for the Oak Valley Groenlandberg Chardonnay 2019, Oak Valley Tabula Rasa CY95 Chardonnay 2017, and the Oak Valley Tabula Rasa CY548 Chardonnay 2017.

Oak Valley CEO, Christopher Rawbone-Viljoen, says: "We're pleased to be awarded three prestigious 5-stars in Platter's, including the triple crown for the Oak Valley Groenlandberg Chardonnay 2019, which scored 5-stars for the third consecutive year. Both our Oak Valley Tabula Rasa Chardonnay's, CY95 and CY548, entered Platter's for the first time and achieved 5 stars. Tabula Rasa is our single clone and single-vineyard wine, with fruit from carefully chosen vineyard rows on the farm, matured in a selection of our finest French oak."

Finally, we can celebrate these achievements with two Five Star wines from Charles Fox, the only Elgin producer focused on crafting stellar Cap Classique Wines. Congratulations to the Charles Fox 2015 Cipher & 2016 Blanc de Blancs, two exquisite wines to pour at this year’s Christmas celebrations.







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