'Off the Charts' Viognier
£15.29
£20.39 per litre · incl. 20% VAT
In Stock — 10 bottles available
Drinks International, World's Most Admired Wine Brands
If you think you know Viognier, this Swartland beauty will pleasantly surprise you. Bruce Jack coaxes ripe peach and apricot from old dry-land vines, then balances all that aromatic charm with a fresh, textured palate. It is generous without being heavy, perfect for warm evenings and lighter dishes. A confident, easy-to-love white from one of South Africa's most admired names.
Not for sale to persons under 18. Adult signature required on delivery.
Our Verdict
We rate Bruce Jack as one of the most reliable names coming out of South Africa, and this Viognier is a brilliant example of why. So many Viogniers tip into heavy and flat. This one keeps its nerve, with that gorgeous peach and apricot perfume held in check by real freshness. It is the bottle we reach for when we want to convert a sceptic, or simply enjoy something aromatic and food-friendly without overthinking it. Ideal for relaxed dinners and anyone curious to explore beyond the usual whites. Quietly one of the cleverest wines on our list at this price.
Tasting Notes
Pour this and the aromatics arrive first: ripe peach, fresh apricot, a lift of orange blossom that fills the glass. The palate follows through with that same stone-fruit generosity, but it stays bright rather than heavy, thanks to time on the fine lees that builds a soft, almost creamy texture without dulling the fruit. The neutral-oak portion adds quiet roundness, not vanilla. The finish is long, fragrant and clean, leaving you reaching for the next sip.
About This Wine
Here is a white that wins people over in one sip. Viognier can be a tricky grape, often slipping into something blowsy and oily, but in the hands of Bruce Jack it stays poised and full of life. This is the Swartland doing what it does best: turning heat and hardship into perfume and flavour. The nose is all ripe orchard fruit, white peach and apricot, with a floral lift that draws you back to the glass. On the palate it is rounded and generous but never heavy, finishing fresh and clean thanks to clever cellar work. Just under half was barrel-fermented and rested in neutral oak, while the rest stayed in tank on its fine lees, locking in vibrancy. The result is a wine with texture and aromatic energy in equal measure. It comes from old dry-land vines rooted in ancient sandstone and shale at the heart of the Swartland, hand-harvested from sustainably farmed sites. Serve it lightly chilled, around 9 to 11 degrees, so the aromatics sing rather than hide. Pour it with roast chicken and lemon, a Thai green curry, or grilled prawns on a summer evening. Delivered to your door anywhere in the UK, it is also a thoughtful gift for anyone who thinks they have white wine figured out.
Food Pairing
This wants food with a touch of fragrance and a little richness to meet its own. Try it with a Thai green chicken curry, or roast chicken with lemon and tarragon. It loves grilled prawns, and works beautifully with a soft, washed-rind cheese. For something simple, a plate of charcuterie and ripe melon on a warm evening does the job perfectly.
- —Roast chicken with lemon and tarragon
- —Thai green chicken curry
- —Grilled prawns with garlic and chilli
- —Charcuterie with ripe melon
- —Soft washed-rind cheese with crusty bread
How to Serve
Decanting
No need to decant. If serving from very cold storage, let it sit ten minutes in the glass so the floral and stone-fruit aromas open and the texture rounds out.
Behind the Wine
Swartland is a place of extremes, and the Viognier here thrives on them. Scorching, bone-dry summers follow cool, wet winters, and the vines have no irrigation to lean on. They dig deep and work for every drop. That struggle is the point: ample sunshine ripens the fruit fully while the dry-land conditions concentrate flavour, and aromatic-preserving cellar work locks it in. The result in the glass is consistent year after year, generous peach and apricot perfume with the freshness to carry it.
Ageing Potential
Drinking beautifully now for its fragrant peach and apricot character. The lees work and neutral-oak component give it a little more latitude than a simple fresh white, so it will hold and gently broaden over the next three to four years if you prefer a rounder, more honeyed style.
The Land
These vineyards sit at the heart of Swartland, ranging from 60 to 300 metres above sea level on ancient sandstone and shale. It is poor, well-drained ground, exactly what Viognier wants. With no irrigation, the vines root deep into that old rock, and the warm, sun-soaked microclimate ripens the fruit fully while the dry-land stress keeps the aromatics intense and focused.
The Winemaking
Everything here is about keeping the aromatics alive. Only the free-run juice is used, the gentlest, purest fraction, then fermentation is slow and cool to coax out every layer of fruit. From there the wine splits two ways. Just under half is barrel-fermented and rested in neutral oak for four months, adding texture and breadth without any vanilla or toast. The rest ferments in stainless steel and ages on its fine lees in tank, which builds a subtle creamy weight while keeping the fruit vivid and bright. Two textures, one balanced whole.
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
Bruce Jack
Bruce Jack runs a small, tight-knit team out of South Africa, with head winemakers Bruce himself and Marlize Beyers working side by side for more than two decades. Between them they've made wine across several continents, but the through-line has always been authenticity, wines that taste of where they come from, made by people who actually know the vineyards. The 'Off the Charts' range, which the Tumbleweed wines belong to, is their love letter to South Africa's classic grape and region pairings, with labels nodding to the Basotho blanket and the wide, untamed landscapes of the Cape. Bruce Jack has appeared four years running in Drinks International's World's Most Admired Wine Brands, recognition the team has quietly earned, bottle by bottle.