Chenin Blanc

This wine provides all the immediacy and gratification you could want, but the old vines grown on ancient Swartland soils give it a granitic edge, with a residual impression that is rather more complex for this price than experience would indicate.
Mark Pardoe MW, Wine Director

South Africa and the central Loire Valley are linked by Chenin Blanc, as are husband Vincent Careme (French) and wife Tania (South African).  Their venture into Swartland produces a tremendous intense, lime and butterscotch layered wine from old vines.
Rich & full-bodied.
100% Chenin Blanc.

Roussanne, Viognier and Marsanne join Chenin Blanc in this Swartland blend from the slopes of the Kasteelberg Mountain. Subtle spice and hints of vanilla underpin the fruit, which is reminiscent of white peach and pear. Touches of grilled sourdough add to the complexity on the finish of this rich, medium-bodied white wine.

Katherine Dart MW, Wine Buyer

From fruit grown in the Polkadraai, the aromas are mineral with hints of stone fruit and florals. The attack is controlled and elegant, with classic Stellenbosch, salty Chenin notes. Long and textured, with showing layers of ripe fruit able to shine thanks to the complete absence of any new oak.
Katherine Dart, MW, Wine Buyer

The Old Vines White is predominantly Chenin Blanc from 70-year-old vines. The fruit on the nose is condensed and richly scented. The attack is generous and leads to a mid-palate filled with glossy, ripe fruit – think apricot kernel and white peach. Stony undertones layer with fresh acidity bringing definition and an extra dimension.
Katherine Dart MW, Wine Buyer

This is the freshest and most finely tuned straw wine I have ever tasted from the Mullineux stable. Hints of barley sugar and orange marmalade are layered with concentrated and tangy acidity. It’s incredibly intense, possessing phenomenal depth and presence. Long and focused on the finish.

Katherine Dart MW, Wine Buyer

Mullineux and Leeu Family Wines is one of the stand-out producers in South Africa's budding Swartland region. Winemakers Chris and Andrea Mullineux’s ambition is to bottle wines that are a true expression of the Swartland, and all steps of their winemaking process are taken with this in mind. They work closely with a select group of growers who follow sustainable, reasoned farming practices. This is one of a range of single terroir wines, produced from dry-farmed old vines planted in the granite soils of the Paardeberg. 

This is discreet and refined, with flinty notes of citrus and stone fruit minerality.  It’s nicely judged on the palate, with some weight and an attractive layered texture lifted by firm acidity – subtle, yet with gentle richness.

Gaston Huet and his wife built up a domaine with a formidable reputation over the years following its creation by Victor Huet, his father, in 1928. Gaston, war hero and one-time mayor of Vouvray, managed the family domaine from 1947 until his death in 2002. This wine comes from the original vineyard, Le Haut-Lieu (literally meaning “the high place”) which surrounds the house and extends for some nine hectares. Its wines are opulent and approachable when young but are genuine vins de garde and benefit from long-term ageing.

Burnished gold in colour, the nose is full of spiced orange, cloves, a touch of quince and lemon rind, and hints of anise. This wine is lovely and mouth-filling and yet has surprisingly high acidity and a dryness that gives the wine a beautiful mouth-watering snap.

Eric Morgat is the star of Savennieres and the inherent quality of his wines is displayed in each of his cuvees and from year to year. There is finesse and elegance in this cuvee, with a tension and energy that makes pouring a second glass very tempting. Saline, stony mineral core with nervy acidity, with a weight and concentration that makes this incredibly long on the palate.
Fiona Hayes - Buyer

Gaston Huet and his wife built up a domaine with a formidable reputation over the years following its creation by Victor Huet, his father, in 1928. Gaston, war hero and one-time mayor of Vouvray, managed the family domaine from 1947 until his death in 2002. This wine comes from the original vineyard, Le Haut-Lieu (literally meaning “the high place”) which surrounds the house and extends for some nine hectares. Its wines are opulent and approachable when young but are genuine vins de garde and benefit from long-term ageing.

A big, deep, rich honeyed bouquet leaps from the glass. The palate is, unsurprisingly, youthful, but is also wonderfully luscious. There’s plenty of sweet, mouth-filling fruit and enough acidity to make one involuntarily drool. Drink it now or tuck away for decades.

Gaston Huet and his wife built up a domaine with a formidable reputation over the years following its creation by Victor Huet, his father, in 1928. Gaston, war hero and one-time mayor of Vouvray, managed the family domaine from 1947 until his death in 2002. This wine comes from Huet’s most famous vineyard, Le Mont. It is from this site’s green-tinged soils and late-harvesting vines which Gaston produced his longest-lived and arguably most famous wines.

This is a jam-packed glassful with waxy lemons and fresh orange peel on the nose, then a bitter toffee character. The combination of ripe nectarine sweetness with refreshing acidity delivers a perfectly judged and beautifully balanced wine. Quite simply, you can taste the care taken in producing this wine.

Positively youthful compared with the 1953 and quite reticent on the nose. The palate is wonderful though, huge amounts of deep honey notes, with the sweetness balanced by moth-watering acidity, that’s very special, but amazingly young still for a 50 year old wine. Beautiful now, but even better in the future I’d venture.
Chris Pollington - Private Account Manager

The 1961 reveals a rather fresh and surprisingly mineral, wet stone laden nose, touch of caramelised pear with hints of freshly cut hay.  The palate is medium bodied and very vibrant, Apricot notes with a touch of residual sugar covers the mid palate but never cloying.  A gentle and spicy length and still as fresh as the proverbial Daisy.
Stuart Rae - Private Account Manager

The nose is very interesting, a combination of spicy ground white pepper, fresh lime sherbet, white peach and semi-dried apricots. This is a succulent and thick Chenin Blanc, very much about texture as well as flavour. The long finish has more of a spicy hit which is completed by a creamy, buttery softness. Drink 2014 – 2018+.
Laura Atkinson-Godwin, Fine Wine Account Manager

One of the most enjoyable and memorable tastings I have been to was the tasting of the wines from the Loire valley’s Moulin Touchais a few weeks ago. After a brief hiatus while available stocks were checked, I am now very pleased to offer you these fascinating and great value wines. Here at Berry Bros & Rudd, we have long championed the great sweet wines of the Loire. From Bonnezeaux to Vouvray and Coteaux du Layon to Quarts de Chaume, there are dozens of producers that stand out but very few that have a history that stretches as far back as that of Moulin Touchais. The ancestors of the estate were producing wine as far back as 1787, over 130 years before Gaston Huet founded perhaps the region’s most famous estate. Since 1990, the estate’s 150 hectares have been presided over by Jean-Marie Touchais, the 8th generation to run the winery, and very little has changed viticulturally in the last century.

Here the belief is that the best sweet wines are produced with traditional methods: low yields, hand harvesting and slow fermentations, aiming for approximately 70-80g/l of residual sugar in the bottle. Following the vintage, the wine is bottled quickly (the following March), having never seen a barrel and then left in the cellar for a decade before release. A labour of love not an economic enterprise. Fortunately for us the previous generations of the estate had the foresight not to sell through every year so we are in a position to offer a fantastic range of vintages from the estate. 

Chris Pollington, Fine Wine Account Manager

There is a noticeable difference in colour here. Very deep, old gold and clearly a wine marked by botrytis. This is evolved, but has probably been on this plateau of development for years. There are notes of caramel on the nose. Open and expressive. Delicate and elegant on entry, it builds well with a notable thread of acidity running through the wine. Persistent and powerful finish. This is drinking now but will continue to hold for many more years. It remains my favourite wine of the decade, developing savoury and a saline character once opened. Richard Kelley MW

One of the most enjoyable and memorable tastings I have been to was the tasting of the wines from the Loire valley’s Moulin Touchais a few weeks ago. After a brief hiatus while available stocks were checked, I am now very pleased to offer you these fascinating and great value wines. Here at Berry Bros & Rudd, we have long championed the great sweet wines of the Loire. From Bonnezeaux to Vouvray and Coteaux du Layon to Quarts de Chaume, there are dozens of producers that stand out but very few that have a history that stretches as far back as that of Moulin Touchais. The ancestors of the estate were producing wine as far back as 1787, over 130 years before Gaston Huet founded perhaps the region’s most famous estate. Since 1990, the estate’s 150 hectares have been presided over by Jean-Marie Touchais, the 8th generation to run the winery, and very little has changed viticulturally in the last century.

Here the belief is that the best sweet wines are produced with traditional methods: low yields, hand harvesting and slow fermentations, aiming for approximately 70-80g/l of residual sugar in the bottle. Following the vintage, the wine is bottled quickly (the following March), having never seen a barrel and then left in the cellar for a decade before release. A labour of love not an economic enterprise. Fortunately for us the previous generations of the estate had the foresight not to sell through every year so we are in a position to offer a fantastic range of vintages from the estate. 

Notes from Richard Kelley MW, one of the UK’s greatest authorities on the Loire. All are drinking now and will continue to offer pleasure for many years to come and in the case of the younger wines, decades to come!
Chris Pollington, Fine Wine Account Manager
The year of the heatwave. It was not difficult to make sweet wine this year, although with such and long, dry and intensely hot summer, there was little prospect of any botrytis developing this season. The resulting wine is lush and sexy. Immediately approachable, it is perhaps one of the greatest Moulin Touchais releases ever. The texture and density will ensure that this has a very long and enjoyable drinking window. Richard Kelley MW

One of the most enjoyable and memorable tastings I have been to was the tasting of the wines from the Loire valley’s Moulin Touchais a few weeks ago. After a brief hiatus while available stocks were checked, I am now very pleased to offer you these fascinating and great value wines. Here at Berry Bros & Rudd, we have long championed the great sweet wines of the Loire. From Bonnezeaux to Vouvray and Coteaux du Layon to Quarts de Chaume, there are dozens of producers that stand out but very few that have a history that stretches as far back as that of Moulin Touchais. The ancestors of the estate were producing wine as far back as 1787, over 130 years before Gaston Huet founded perhaps the region’s most famous estate. Since 1990, the estate’s 150 hectares have been presided over by Jean-Marie Touchais, the 8th generation to run the winery, and very little has changed viticulturally in the last century.

Here the belief is that the best sweet wines are produced with traditional methods: low yields, hand harvesting and slow fermentations, aiming for approximately 70-80g/l of residual sugar in the bottle. Following the vintage, the wine is bottled quickly (the following March), having never seen a barrel and then left in the cellar for a decade before release. A labour of love not an economic enterprise. Fortunately for us the previous generations of the estate had the foresight not to sell through every year so we are in a position to offer a fantastic range of vintages from the estate. 

Notes from Richard Kelley MW, one of the UK’s greatest authorities on the Loire. All are drinking now and will continue to offer pleasure for many years to come and in the case of the younger wines, decades to come!
Chris Pollington, Fine Wine Account Manager


Along with 1990 and 1996, the 1997 is one of the best three vintages of the decade. Rich, open and textured nose with some botrytis elements. This shows its distinction. Rich and lush on entry with great texture and poise. Excellent acid balance, focus and length. This is already approachable but will age and continue to evolve for many years to come. Top wine – top vintage.
Richard Kelley MW

The 2013 Cartology Bush Vines is a blend of 88% Chenin Blanc and 12% Semillon. The bouquet is very well-defined with great clarity, very reminiscent of the 2011, opening up with aeration to reveal subtle scents of lemon curd, apricot, honeysuckle and Mirabelle. The palate is well-balanced, harmonious in the mouth, everything understated at first, but it builds nicely toward a taut, saline finish. This seems more aligned to the 2012 than the 2011 and it deserves at least one or two years in bottle. Succinct is the word that comes to mind - and that is not an easy attribute to instill into a wine.
Neal Martin - Wine Advocate - eRobertParker.com - Oct 2014

By demi-sec we're talking about a beautifully composed wine, albeit with 24 grams of residual sugar, so balancing out the profound minerality thrown up by Clos du Bourg's limestone/chalk rich soils. Noel Pinguet remarked in Jan 2012 that of all the Gaston Huet wines, he felt the Demi-Sec style was the their most natural expression of Vouvray, and following on, that Clos du Bourg it's top site (while Le Mont could be said to be their best dry wine vineyard...).

A great vintage in the Loire, 2010 Clos du Bourg Demi-Sec shows wonderful harmony, mandarin notes, balancing salty & sweet notes perfectly, generous yet composed too. One for the cellar until 2020.
David Berry Green

1989 Vouvray, Le Clos du Bourg, Moelleux Première Trie, Domaine Huet
1989 Vouvray, Le Haut-Lieu, Moelleux, Domaine Huet
1989 Vouvray, Le Mont Moelleux, Première Trie, Domaine Huet
1989 Vouvray, Le Mont, Moelleux, Fin Pressée, Domaine Huet
1989 Vouvray, Le Clos du Bourg, Moelleux Essai, Domaine Huet
1989 Vouvray, Haut Lieu, Moelleux, Première Trie, Domaine Huet

The grapes for the Chenin blanc are sourced from a 34 year old unirrigated bush vine vineyard planted on gravely soils with a clay subsoil in Stellenbosch and a small portion is from the north eastern side of the Paardeberg in the Swartland region growing on Sandy Soils with a clay subsoil. Chenin blanc is picked in Stellenbosch over 2 pickings. One early on (at around 22 brix) to ensure freshness, minerality and length in the wine and the second picking once the botrytis infection and raisining has begun for flavour, richness and complexity. The Swartland fruit is picked early in the season to preserve the mineral texture in the grapes. Clairette Blanche is from a similar site to the Paardeberg Chenin blanc and is picked at a very low sugar to preserve the acidity that is inherently low in this variety. The Viognier is sourced from an 8-year-old vineyard on the southern slopes of the Paardeberg in Paarl. 

The nose is opulent and brimming with aromas of white peach, lemon blossom, marzipan and ginger spice. There are underlying notes of buttered toast and lime zest. The wine enters the palate with powerful fruit flavours that mirror the aromas on the nose. The mid-palate is intense and rich with stunning waxy notes and hints of toasted almonds. A perfect accompaniment to Lobster Bisque, Seafood Paella, Sushi or an mildly spicy dish.

This wine is an education in the nervous energy and fine line which can exist between wines which have luscious tropical fruit and vibrant, linear acidity. Sweet, certainly true to the Moelleux label but with very high, refreshing acidity this is eminently drinkable. Still on the young side at the moment and very capable of several more years in the cellar. .
Gary Owen, Account Manager