Parliamentary leader of Cope and his copious wine

Cape Town’s heavy hitters of hedonism caucused at Belthazar this lunchtime for wild west coast oysters, prawns as big as the national debt, more Chicago cuts (forequarter rib-eye on the bone) than a Michigan masochist convention and copious amounts of the Epicurean red blend produced by the parliamentary leader of Cope, Mbhazima Shilowa and his three Johannesburg-based partners, who to save carbon credits, remained in the Big Smoke. The seven wonders of the Western Cape Wine World: Vaughan Johnson, Jörg Pfützner, Fiona McDonald, Jonathan Steyn, Jean-Pierre Rossouw (handing out lime green copies of his restaurant guide and asking for endorsements “I don’t do marketing” replied Mbhazima), James Pietersen and Martin Meinert, all agreed that the vertical tasting of six vintages of Epicurean clearly demonstrated fingerprints of freshness, powdery tannins and rich red fruit flavours. The eighth wonder, Emile Joubert, was committed to a Wine Swines lunch with Karl Lambour and sent apologies.

Neil, Mbhazima, JP and Jonathan

The wines were served blind in a curious order: 08, 04, 07, 03, 05 and 06 “the order I would served them at home” pronounced Mbhazima, gnomically. My favourite (by a short head) was the 07 which will be released in April or May (“it all depends how many times we walk out of parliament”). My notes “very perfumed and expressive, intense, very Bordeaux, extremely youthful (well I didn’t know the vintage).” Not that it was back slapping all round. JP was looking for more austerity and Jörg for more depth, length and complexity which will surely come as the vines age. But Vaughan, who actually sells the stuff, pronounced the wines eminently sellable. And what was undisputable was a genetic similarity of moderate alcohols, elegance, finesse and a classical intent across the flight.

The Cabernet component comes from Hempies du Toit’s famous Annandale vineyards on the Helderberg while the Merlot hails from Johann Rupert’s farm in Darling and adds a hint of mint to the mix. The 08 is still coming together (“fruit juice” joked Mbhazima) but the presence of Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc in the blend is clearly evident in both the 08 and 07. Works in progress, like the major highways around Cape Town.

One amazing penny was dropped. After the initial capital investment to make the 2003 vintage, the partners have not had to add any more cash. Sales have allowed the venture to wash its face, buy new barrels, fruit, labels, bottles and corks. A remarkable achievement at the BEE (Bordeaux-style Ego Expression) summit of the wine pyramid. But then letting Johann bear the capital cost of the Rupert&Rothschild cellar and pay the salary of savvy winemaker Schalk-Willem Joubert was a smart move on the part of the project’s financial whizz, Mutle Mogase. Epicurean 2007 is destined to become one of the most fashionable wines in SA. Just the thing to drink at your next Star Lifestyle Audit as it costs a small fraction of the French equivalent.

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