Traveling to Nitida in the Durbanville Hills on a lovely, summery winter’s day for a media tasting I felt full of excitement and expectation. I had already tasted the Nitida Coronata Integration 2012 which hugely impressed me. Their pungent Sauvignon Blanc bursting with flavour and powerful aromas always stands out at any tasting. What was I going to learn and enjoy about Nitida wines today?
Meeting part owner Bernhard Veller in the Nitida cellar he offered me a glass of their bubbly with a warm smile that matched the weather. The Matriarch 2012 was even straw in colour with green tinges and persistent bubbles and a yeasty nose. Green apples on the nose it had a lovely yeasty soft palate.
Feeling slightly tipsy (bubbly does that to you) Bernhard took us up in his tractor right to the top of his property. From the hills you could easily see the sea. Nitida benefits from altitude, cooling ocean breezes and good quality soils. A certain recipe for fine wines. After a brief address from Bernhard where he explained that when he and his wife Peta bought the property they did not intend to produce wine. Like many unplanned ventures they ended up by producing fine wine with unique flavours. So much for serendipity.
We then took the trip down for a sumptuous and lengthy lunch. Each fabulous dish being paired with a specific wine.
Club Select Sauvignon Blanc
Starting with the Club Select Sauvignon Blanc 2012. Pale straw with green tinges. Green pepper, figs and guava on the nose. The signature Nitida Sauvignon Blanc aromas. The palate was austere with green flavours. Quite drinkable for a young Sauvignon Blanc it is also more complex than the fine regular Sauvignon Blanc that they produce.
The Riesling 2013. Pale straw with the nose shy and musky. The palate had lovely floral and spicy tones with hints of green apples. A restrained but sensuous wine it is an excellent addition to some of the fine Rieslings currently being produced in SA.
Onto the Coronata Integration 2012. Straw with green tinges. A lovely almost petrol nose with honey crunch coming from the barrel fermented Semillon and the Sauvignon Blanc component adding freshness. Good follow onto the palate. Complex but surprisingly easy drinking.
The Chardonnay 2103 really impressed. Medium straw with the nose creamy, spice, and green apples. The palate tight and musky. It will develop further in the bottle.
The Shiraz 2011 proved a surprise and great favorite for me. Deep purple with a brooding and massive nose and vanilla hints. Delicious and creamy on the palate and vinified with French oak. Perhaps not as sleek and stylish as some of the other top CapeShiraz’s but in a different style. Very drinkable now I could not help drinking the whole glass. I really enjoyed it.
The highly rated Calligraphy 2011. Dark in colour and extraction with a purple rim. I found the palate closed. Perhaps it needs a few years to fully develop and open up?
Finally, the Noble Late Harvest Modjadji 2013. Surprisingly pale for a Noble Late Harvest but I saw this as a good sign. The colour pale and clear. On the nose lovely apricots and the same with the palate. Apricots being one of the signature characteristics of a Noble Late Harvest. Easy drinking with a gentle acidity in the background I gulped it down! It complemented the delicious deserts.
All in all a lovely day with great wines and warm, affable and down to Earth hosts. With all the exciting wines being produced in South Africa at present Nitida definitely has an individualistic character that stands out. It makes an important contribution to the Durbanville wine region and SA wines in general. We were all given a bottle of the Nitida Sauvignon Blanc 2013 as a present. A wine that expresses so much that is Nitida. Give it another year in the bottle to settle down.
