2018 Kanonkop Paul Sauer

2018 Kanonkop Paul Sauer The Kanonkop Paul Sauer 2018 has a saturated ruby color and is complimented by an array of scents typically associated with Paul Sauer – fresh herbs, tilled earth, pencil shavings, spice, red- and black fruits. While being heady and perfumed, the wine remains classic and refined, with an utterly elegant structure. The tannins are precise, and together with the clever use of new oak, creates the perfect backdrop to host the complex fruit spectrum. The finish is sappy and spicy, with layered notes of red fruits and cured meats on the long, youthful finish. Winemaker. 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cabernet Franc, 15% MerlotThe 2018 Paul Sauer is backward, almost surly on the nose and needs a few minutes to really find its voice, offering blackberry, raspberry coulis, aniseed and light floral scents. The oak is very well integrated here. The harmonious palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, and one of the most sensual I can recall in recent years. Suave and sophisticated, this is Cape wine from the top drawer. 96pts Vinous.

This wine should be on everyone’s short list for the cellar or just pure world class drinking pleasure. South African is the oldest of the new world wine regions and have received notoriety around the world for many years but not in the US until recently. The demand for South African has exploded and more and more wine lovers are looking for them and asking for them. The wines can be spectacular combining the best of both worlds. They have the depth, structure and complexity of the old matched by glorious fruit concentration of the new world wide regions. Today I bring one of their greatest red wines, the 2018 Kanonkop Paul Sauer that is truly one of the great red wines of the world, rivalling the finest Napa, the great Bordeaux’s or the top Super Tuscans.

Kanonkop is one of the top three wineries in South Africa and their flagship wine is the Kanonkop Paul Sauer. They are in Stellenbosch which is like the Napa of South Africa, famous for its Cabs and Cabernet blends. Tim Atkin MW calls the Paul Sauer, “one of the few genuine Cape icons”. John Platter, the Robert Parker of South Africa comments that Paul Sauer is, “Regarded as a SA first growth.” The wine took off worldwide with the 2015 vintage when Tim Atkin gave 100pts. This is the first South African wine to score 100pts.  Since then this Cabernet based blend has been impossible to get. The 2018 that we offer today is the first wine that has got huge US press, 96pts by Vinous and priced under fifty per, this is a must try for serious wine lovers.

Kanonkop is  fourth generation family farm, presently run by brothers Johann and Paul Krige, has been owned and operated by the Sauer-Krige family since the early 1930s. The name Kanonkop is derived from a “kopje” (small hill) on the property, from which a cannon was fired in the 17th century to announce the arrival of the Dutch East India Company’s trading ships at Table Bay. Abrie Beeslaar has been the winemaker since 2002. Beeslaar was crowned the 2008 International Winemaker of the Year at the International Wine and Spirits Competition in London. Kanonkop Wine Estate was also named the “Most Admired Wine Brand in South Africa” and listed at #32 on the “Most Admired Wine Brands in the World” by #Drinks International in 2020.

This is an iconic wine at the pinnacle of the finest full bodied reds and its $49.99 a bottle. If the most important thing to you is what’s in the bottle, how good is the wine? This wine has very few equals at the price.