False Bay Chenin Blanc
£9.49
£12.65 per litre · incl. 20% VAT
Out of Stock
Real Chenin at a weeknight price. False Bay pulls fruit from cool, windswept coastal vineyards where old bushvines give tiny yields and natural zip, then lets wild yeasts do the talking. The result is a bright, characterful white with orchard fruit, citrus lift and a properly satisfying finish. Genuinely honest wine for not much money.
Not for sale to persons under 18. Adult signature required on delivery.
UK wide delivery
Expert curated
Our Verdict
We've listed False Bay Chenin for years, and it's still one of the wines we recommend most often when someone asks for an honest white under a tenner. What sets it apart is intent: Boutinot went hunting for old-vine coastal fruit and treats it with a lightness of touch you almost never see at this price. It's crunchy, textured, properly Chenin. Perfect for the wine drinker who wants character without ceremony, and a brilliant house white for anyone building a fridge stash. Genuine substance, no gimmicks.
Tasting Notes
Bright and unmistakably Cape on the nose: crisp green apple, ripe quince, and a squeeze of lemon zest, with a subtle waxy note that hints at the wild yeast ferment. The palate is where coastal Chenin really shows itself, all salt-tinged citrus and orchard fruit carried by a taut, natural acidity. There's a soft creaminess through the middle from lees contact, then a clean, dry finish with a saline lift that keeps you reaching for the glass.
About This Wine
Here's a wine that punches spectacularly above its price tag. False Bay was built on a simple idea: rescue fruit from old, under-appreciated Cape vineyards and make it into honest wine that anyone can afford. Founder Paul Boutinot came to the Western Cape in the mid-nineties looking for exactly that, and the philosophy has never wavered. In the glass you'll find bright orchard fruit, think crisp green apple and ripe pear, laced with lemon zest and a whisper of honeyed richness underneath. The coastal vineyards do the heavy lifting: cool ocean winds keep the acidity taut, the low-yielding bushvines pack the berries with flavour, and wild yeast ferments give the wine a texture and character you rarely see at this price. No acid additions, no winemaking tricks, just proper Chenin. This is your midweek hero. Pour it with a Thai green curry, roast chicken with lemon and thyme, or a proper fish and chips supper on a Friday night. It's equally happy alongside goat's cheese, a summer salad, or simply chilled hard on its own in the garden when the British sunshine finally shows up. Stock up by the case: at this price it disappears fast, and delivered anywhere in the UK it's the kind of everyday white you'll be pleased to have in the fridge. A quiet gift too for the friend who appreciates real wine over flash labels.
Food Pairing
This is a properly versatile weeknight white. The salty edge loves anything from the sea: think grilled mackerel, a plate of fresh oysters, or fish and chips wrapped in paper. The creamy lees texture handles roast chicken or a simple pasta with lemon and courgette beautifully, and the crisp acidity cuts right through a mature goat's cheese.
- —Grilled mackerel with lemon and capers
- —Roast chicken with tarragon
- —Fresh oysters or dressed crab
- —Spaghetti with courgette, lemon and parmesan
- —Mature goat's cheese with toasted sourdough
How to Serve
Decanting
No decanting needed. This is a wine that wants to be poured straight from bottle to glass while it's still cold and crisp, with all its coastal freshness intact.
Ageing & Cellaring
Built for drinking young and fresh, while the citrus fruit and lees creaminess are singing. Enjoy within two to three years of the vintage on the label. There's no reward in cellaring this one; the pleasure is in that bright, coastal energy.
The Winemaking
The approach here is refreshingly hands-off. Wild yeasts do the fermenting rather than cultured strains, no acid corrections get slipped in, and the grapes arrive already carrying their own natural balance. Time on the lees builds a creamy weight underneath the citrus, softening the edges without dulling the freshness. At this price, that kind of low-intervention winemaking is almost unheard of. It's a wine made by trusting the fruit, not by rescuing it in the cellar.
About the Producer
False Bay
False Bay Vineyards is the more accessible sibling to Waterkloof, the celebrated biodynamic estate on the Schapenberg slopes. Both belong to Paul Boutinot, a winemaker who came south chasing a simple idea: that genuinely characterful wine shouldn't cost a fortune. False Bay was built to prove the point. Working with mature, naturally balanced vineyards along the cool Cape coast, the team can let the grapes do most of the talking, fermenting with wild yeasts, intervening only when absolutely necessary. The wines are made by Waterkloof's cellarmaster Nadia Barnard, whose deft hand keeps everything precise and honest. It's old-school craft at an unusually friendly price.