Crystallum, Clay Shales Chardonnay, Overberg, South Africa, 2013

Suave, silky and concentrated, this has a spiciness and distinct minerality that gives real complexity. Rounded fruit on the palate with impressive weight and nice lift of acidity to follow the rich flavours. Impressive quality with a good future. Peter Fin layson cut his teeth at Hamilton Russell, the first estate in coastal Hemel-en-Aarde to specialise in Burgundian varieties. He left to produce his own wines under the Bouchard Finlayson label, and throughout the 1990s and 2000s released citric, finely tuned Chardonnays in particular. In 2007 his sons Andrew and Peter-Allan, who had initially pursued other careers, teamed up to create Crystallum Wines, also specialising in Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Their Agnes Chardonnay (which did not shine in this tasting) is a full-bodied blend from various vineyards, and their top wine is this, the Clay Shales, which comes from a single vineyard 300m in altitude and facing south, which in South Africa implies extreme coolness. The shale and clay soils give the wine a striking minerality.