The Winery CJ Family Wines of Unknow region

The rapid rise of South Africa’s Swartland wine region over the past 20 years has been thrilling to watch. And arguably the most influential winemaker during this renaissance has – and continues to be – Eben Sadie. Sadie was in London recently for a vertical tasting of his flagship wines, the red blend Columella and white blend Palladius. He explained to a rapt audience of critics, buyers and sommeliers how his approach to winemaking has changed over the years, and revealed how he’s preparing fo ...

Only 10? I feel a little like I do when faced with a hefty restaurant wine list. So many lovely wines, so little time to do them justice. My mind tracks the names, vintages and regions in fleeting time, flipping like a kaleidoscope. The effort is always accompanied by that nagging worry you’re missing the absolute gem. All the while, your dinner date is itching simply to get on and tuck into the evening with a good glass of wine. The Tooley household has been through a lot in 2021, including som ...

Our feet crunched through layers of dry oak leaves as we climbed a pebbly path towards the vineyards behind the farmhouse. Roots go deep here. Not just the tall oaks and squat vines, but families too. I walked the vineyards at Mas de Libian with Hélène Thibon, but it was her father Jean-Pierre that greeted me when I arrived. Hélène’s sister Catherine was out front with Bambi the horse, ploughing the sandier plots. Later, we tasted in the winery with Hélène’s son Aurélien. Three generations of a ...