Radford Dale 'Vinum' Chenin Blanc, Stellenbosch 2020

From its modest base just outside Stellenbosch, Radford Dale delivers a large and impressive range under a number of labels, notably The Winery range (offering excellent-value benchmark examples) and the more premium and stylish Radford Dale wines. Most are single varietals, and all differ from the brawny Cape norm.

Many hands and different nationalities contribute to the success story here. Shareholders include Yalumba in Australia and French and English winemaking expertise in the shape of Edouard Labeye and Alex Dale, who founded the company in 1998, and whose Burgundian training formed his early love of and deft hand with chardonnay and pinot noir.

Vineyard sources range from the farm's own vineyards in the Helderberg area of Stellenbosch (where the ocean provides cooling breezes to the mountainside chenin blanc vines, which are planted granite and clay soils, and are up to 50 years old), as well as cool-climate Elgin for pinot noir, and southern-Rhône-like Swartland soils for old-vine carignan, grenache and mourvèdre.

The first bottlings were in 1998 and change and development has been a constant since, including the Land of Hope wines which support a trust established to benefit previously disadvantaged employees and their families. Social and environmental responsibility is central to the philosophy here and The Winery is accredited BEE (Black Economic Empowerment), IPW (Integrated Production of Wine) and WIETA (The Wine Industry Ethical Trading Association).

Some ingenious environmentally minded practices are employed. For instance, the team combats the rodent problem in the vineyard not with poison, but by installing bird of prey perches to encourage hunting. They also deter deer (who are great grape fans) by placing dog hair from a local grooming salon amongst the vines, as the smell makes them too scared to venture close enough to feed.

Cellar expansion and a visitor tasting room are planned, but the main focus is the wines, aiming for minimal intervention in the cellar, lower alcohols, and less oak than in the past. Radford Dale is one of the founders and original 15 PIWOSA (Premium Independent Wineries of South Africa) members.