Vergelegen Wine Estate launches vinoteque
Wine lovers and collectors now have easier access to sought-after, award-winning older vintages, with the opening of a dedicated vinoteque at Vergelegen Wine Estate in Somerset West.
· 3 min read
The well-appointed wine library was opened in April at a small gathering attended by the wine trade, members of the Reserve Membership wine club at Vergelegen, Wines of South Africa representatives, and media.
The glass-fronted, air-conditioned Vinoteque shows off the outstanding wines to perfection. It includes a table for tastings, wine accessories and memorabilia. The tasting room has also been upgraded with working fire places to ensure cosy gatherings in the cooler months. “Our Vinoteque area is the ideal space to showcase our beloved older vintages,” says Vergelegen MD Wayne Coetzer.
The enviable collection includes 500 bottles, representing nine types of wine. Vintages range from 2005 to 2013 for red wines, and 2014 to 2017 for white wines. All have been stored under optimal conditions and personally tasted by wine judge and writer Michael Fridjhon. Guests were treated to tastings of three of Vergelegen’s finest wines – a 2015 GVB white wine, a 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve, and a 2009 GVB.
The wines range from R235/bottle for the 2013 Straw Wine to R3000/bottle for the stellar 2005 V and many interesting vintages in between.
Remington Norman MW, a former wine merchant in London, and strong supporter of Vergelegen wines, snipped a red ribbon to formally open the Vinoteque. “I feel very privileged, as wine has been a hobby and fascination of mine for many years,” said Norman.
“As you get older, age doesn’t matter, unless you’re a bottle of wine. In that case, as a wine gets older, you can enjoy the secondary and tertiary characteristics that emerge. There is absolutism about quality in wine, but the great thing is getting pleasure from the glass when you sit down and enjoy wine with friends.”
“Vergelegen wine has always been known for its ageability, but not everyone has a cellar or the right facilities to store wine appropriately. We accordingly assessed our wine stocks, in collaboration with Michael Fridjhon, who tasted 80 wines. We selected the best and began the process of recorking to ensure optimal longevity,” said Coetzer.
The wines include the following:
- V (six vintages)
- GVB Red (six vintages)
- GVB White (three vintages)
- Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve (six vintages)
- Merlot Reserve (three vintages)
- DNA (two vintages)
- Chardonnay Reserve (three vintages)
- Semillon (two vintages)
- Straw wine (one vintage).
The tasting room at Vergelegen is open Monday to Sunday 08:30 to 17:00. The entrance fee to the estate is R10/adult, R5 for pensioners/scholars, free entry for pensioners on Mondays. Find more info about the wine tasting packages, go to: https://vergelegen.co.za/wine-tasting/
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