Chocolate Block Magnum
£60.00
£80.00 per litre · incl. 20% VAT
In Stock — 3 bottles available
92James Suckling
91Vinous
Few South African reds carry the cult following of The Chocolate Block, and in magnum it becomes an event. A Swartland Syrah-led blend that pours dark, brooding and generous, all blackberry, spice and a savoury edge. The kind of bottle that turns a dinner into an occasion, and the homesick South African who receives it speechless.
Not for sale to persons under 18. Adult signature required on delivery.
Our Verdict
We keep coming back to The Chocolate Block because it does the rare thing of being both crowd-pleasing and genuinely serious. In magnum, it is our go-to when someone wants a wine that makes an entrance, whether that is a big family Christmas or a gift for a South African abroad who will recognise that label instantly. It earns its critical praise, scoring in the low 90s from both James Suckling and Vinous, but what we love is the balance: power and elegance in the same mouthful. We only have a few magnums, and at this format they never hang around long.
Tasting Notes
A dark, brooding nose: blackberry and bramble lifted by lavender, with savoury whispers of cured meat and freshly turned soil that signal a wine of real depth rather than easy sweetness. The palate follows through with a lush weave of blueberry, ripe plum, blackcurrant and cherry, all carried on cacao-dusted tannins that add grip and texture without drying you out. Cumin, white pepper, liquorice and a wild garrigue note linger on a long, velvety finish. Robust yet poised.
Brooding Dark Fruit
A deep compote of blackberry, blueberry, ripe plum and blackcurrant that fills the mouth without ever turning jammy or sweet.
Cacao-Dusted Tannins
Fine, powdery tannins with a cocoa-like grip give the wine its structure, texture and that savoury, moreish backbone.
Spice and Garrigue
Cumin, white pepper and liquorice meet a wild scrub-herb edge, the Swartland signature that keeps every sip interesting.
About This Wine
Some bottles you open. This one you present. The Chocolate Block in magnum is Boekenhoutskloof's most beloved red scaled up to statement size, and there is no quieter way to tell a table that tonight matters.
In the glass it lives up to the reputation. Intense blackberry and bramble lead, lifted by lavender and a savoury, almost cured-meat depth that hints at the wild Swartland landscape it comes from. The palate is lush and layered: blueberry and ripe plum, blackcurrant and cherry, wrapped in fine, cacao-dusted tannins that give it real structure without ever losing poise. White pepper, liquorice and a whisper of garrigue carry the velvety finish.
Syrah does the heavy lifting here, the backbone of a blend drawn from Boekenhoutskloof's own Swartland farms, with Grenache adding brightness and a little Cabernet Sauvignon lending spine. Most of it rests in seasoned French oak foudres and barriques, so the fruit stays pure and the oak stays in the background where it belongs.
A magnum ages more slowly and gracefully than a standard bottle, which makes this one to share now over slow-cooked lamb or a beef rib, or to cellar for a future celebration. We deliver across the UK, and for a milestone birthday or Christmas, few gifts land quite like this one.
Food Pairing
This wants something rich and slow-cooked. A lamb shoulder braised with rosemary and garlic is the obvious winner, the savoury, peppery edge cutting through the fat beautifully. It also stands up to a charcoal-grilled ribeye, a venison casserole, or a Sunday roast with all the trimmings. For cheese, reach for a mature Cheddar or aged Gouda.
- —Slow-roasted lamb shoulder with rosemary and garlic
- —Charcoal-grilled ribeye steak
- —Venison and red wine casserole
- —Sunday roast beef with all the trimmings
- —Mature Cheddar with quince paste
How to Serve
Temperature
Cool room temperature. Pull it from the rack about 30 minutes before pouring so it doesn't show too warm.
Decanting
Give this 30 to 60 minutes in a decanter. The structured tannins soften with air and the lavender and dark-fruit perfume opens right up. A magnum especially benefits from the splash of oxygen.
Glass
A large-bowled red-wine glass gives the brooding, perfumed nose the space it needs to unfold.
Cellaring
Ideal for cellaring. Store on its side somewhere cool, dark and stable, and the magnum will reward eight to ten years of patience.
Behind the Wine
Swartland summers run hot and dry, with low-yielding bush vines digging deep for water and concentrating everything they have into small berries. Boekenhoutskloof farm their Porseleinberg and Goldmine sites sustainably, managing the fruit directly rather than buying it in. Cooler, longer ripening seasons here tend to bring lower alcohols and bright natural acidity, and you taste exactly that: vivid dark fruit with a savoury, structured backbone and the freshness to age gracefully for years.
Ageing Potential
Drinking beautifully now, but there is no rush. Expect this to develop gracefully over roughly the next eight to ten years, the fresh natural acidity and structured tannins softening into something more savoury and layered. The magnum format slows that journey further, rewarding patience.
The Land
Much of the fruit comes from the Porseleinberg and Goldmine farms, where unirrigated bush vines, including the prized old-vine Grenache, root into Swartland's poor, schist and granite-influenced soils. These hungry, low-vigour sites force small, concentrated berries, which is the source of this wine's brooding density and its long, savoury, mineral-edged finish.
The Winemaking
This is a blend built around Syrah, with Grenache from old bush vines lending brightness and texture, plus a little Cabernet Sauvignon for structure. Syrah and Cinsault were raised in seasoned 2,500-litre French oak foudres and barriques, keeping the fruit pure and the oak in the background. The Grenache rested in seasoned demi-muids, while Cabernet alone saw new French oak. Twelve to fourteen months of ageing, varied by parcel, builds those cacao-powdery tannins without ever burying the fruit.
The Swartland Region
Swartland, 'the black land' in Afrikaans, named for the renosterbos that darkens after rain, rolls out north of Cape Town across the hills around Malmesbury and Riebeek-Kasteel. It's hot, dry, and stubbornly characterful: a place of old bush vines, granite and koffieklip soils, and a community of growers who've made it the most quietly thrilling corner of South African wine. Concentration, freshness, and a wild streak you don't find elsewhere, that's Swartland in a glass.
About the Producer
Boekenhoutskloof
Boekenhoutskloof sits at the head of the Franschhoek Valley on a farm first granted in 1776, named for the indigenous Cape beech trees in the ravine behind it. The modern estate was reborn in 1993, when seven partners bought the property and set about rebuilding it, those are the seven Cape Dutch chairs you see on the label. Marc Kent took over the cellar in 1994 and turned Boekenhoutskloof into one of South Africa's most influential producers, picking up Diners Club Winemaker of the Year along the way. Gottfried Mocke now leads the winemaking. The Chocolate Block, first made in 2002, has become the estate's calling card, and a wine that introduced thousands of UK drinkers to what the Cape can really do.