Wanderlust Red Blend 2019

90 points, “This lighter red is tight and grippy, woven with green branch and fresh green herbs throughout, bright cherry, green raspberry, with crunchy acidity, and light, downy tannins. Balance is brill on this glou-glou* wine. Take now with a chill.” – Dr Jamie Goode, WineAnorak.com

Craig and Anne Wessels’ wines have now developed cult status. Their Wanderlust project provides them the space to get creative and create a one-off wine that changes every year. The highly anticipated 2019 vintage release is a cool-climate blend of Pinot Noir and Pinotage, making it one of the most intriguing and original South African wines you’re likely to stumble across for some time. Whole clusters of grapes were fermented with native yeast, partially carbonic (the method used in Beaujolais), before being pressed. It was matured in old French barrels for a year, followed by two months in stainless steel before being bottled without fining (making it vegan friendly). Only 2,520 bottles were made, and we were only able to secure a dozen, so don’t think too hard about this one. We’ll be lightly chilling this one and sipping it with the cold Christmas leftovers.

When Craig Wessels isn’t working for his animation and design agency or directing films, he and his wife Anne can be found making Restless River wines on their tiny farm in Hemel-en-Aarde, located near the fishing village of Hermanus. They bought the only plot of land they could afford and have slowly transformed it into a 5-star rated winery in Platter’s guide. Armed with the coolest climate on the cape, self-taught confidence, tattoos, biker T-shirts, a couple of amphoras from Tuscany and a restless drive to experiment and learn, the Wessels family are producing some of South Africa’s most exciting wines.

*Super easy drinking and highly gluggable wine.