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£11.99
£15.99 per litre · incl. 20% VAT
In Stock — 6 bottles available
Coastal Stellenbosch Cabernet at a price that almost feels like a misprint. Sourced from the wind-cooled Helderberg and Schapenberg slopes, wild-fermented and raised in old French oak, this is a juicy, leafy-cassis Cab with the elegance of wines costing twice as much. Perfect for a midweek roast or a Sunday lamb.
Not for sale to persons under 18. Adult signature required on delivery.
We taste a lot of sub-£15 Cabernet from South Africa, and most of it tries to compensate for warm-climate fruit with oak and extract. This does the opposite. Wild yeast, old oak, coastal fruit from the Helderberg and Schapenberg, it's effectively a baby Waterkloof, made with the same low-intervention philosophy at a fraction of the price. We list it for the customer who wants a serious, characterful weekday red without the weekday compromise. If you usually drink Bordeaux at this price point, give this an evening, we think it'll surprise you.
Cassis and ripe black fruit lead the nose, edged with a leafy freshness and an intriguing wisp of star anise that hints at the wild-yeast ferment behind the wine. The palate carries real length for the price, dark berry richness balanced by a coastal brightness, never heavy or jammy. Tannins are firm but finely drawn, giving structure without grip, and the finish stays bright and savoury rather than sweet. Approachable, but quietly serious.
Classic Cabernet blackcurrant lifted by a fresh, leafy edge, the signature of cool, coastal Stellenbosch fruit rather than baked inland ripeness.
A subtle savoury spice note drifts across the nose, a quiet thumbprint of spontaneous wild-yeast fermentation in open wooden vats.
Black plum and mulberry give the mid-palate its generous core, sun-ripened but kept honest by coastal breezes off False Bay.
Old French oak softens the structure, leaving tannins that grip just enough to frame the fruit without ever drying the finish.
Here's the thing about coastal Stellenbosch Cabernet: it doesn't shout. It whispers, layers, lingers. And this is exactly that wine, at a price that lets you discover it without a second thought.
The grapes come from the Helderberg and Schapenberg, two windswept hills rising above False Bay, where the southerly breezes slow ripening to a crawl and yields drop naturally. That's the secret behind the elegance in the glass: leafy cassis, ripe dark plum, a flicker of star anise, and tannins that are firm without ever clamping down. The palate has genuine length, finishing rich but bright.
The winemaking is the real story. Hand-picked fruit, spontaneous wild-yeast fermentation in open wooden vats, ageing in old French oak so the wood whispers rather than shouts, and a light filtration before bottling. No additions beyond sulphur. It's the kind of low-intervention approach you'd expect from a wine three times the price, made possible because a portion of the fruit comes from Waterkloof's certified biodynamic vineyard on the Schapenberg, alongside parcels from neighbouring growers in one of South Africa's most biodiverse winegrowing corners.
It's vegan-friendly too, and brilliant with a Sunday roast, a slow-braised beef ragu over pappardelle, or a wedge of mature Cheddar. Delivered across the UK, this is a midweek hero that punches well above its weight, and a low-risk way to introduce a curious friend to what coastal Cape Cabernet really tastes like.
This is a proper midweek Cabernet, happy with a herby ragù tossed through pappardelle, brilliant alongside a rare ribeye or a Sunday roast of beef with horseradish. The leafy cassis edge also makes it a smart match for hard, nutty cheeses. Try it with a mature Cheddar, a wedge of aged Gouda, or a slab of Parmesan with quince paste.
Cool room temperature, about 16-18°C. In a warm kitchen, twenty minutes in the fridge before pouring keeps the freshness intact.
Not essential, but rewarding. Half an hour in a decanter opens up the cassis aromatics and softens the firm tannins, letting that wild-yeast spice note step forward rather than hide behind the fruit.
A medium-to-large Bordeaux glass, the taller bowl directs the cassis and anise lift straight to the nose.
Lay bottles on their side somewhere cool, dark and steady around 12-14°C. No need to rush, but no reason to hold beyond five years either.
Built to drink now and over the next three to five years. The fruit is generous and accessible from the off, but the fine tannin structure and coastal acidity mean a few years in a cool cupboard will let the cassis settle and the savoury, anise-tinged complexity deepen.
The cool maritime breath of False Bay, combined with the altitude of the Helderberg and Schapenberg, keeps yields low and ripening unhurried. The result is fruit with concentration but also tension, the kind of slow-grown Cabernet that arrives at the cellar with elegant tannins already built in, before the winemaker has done a thing.
Wild yeast does the heavy lifting here. Hand-picked grapes are de-stemmed, sorted, and left to ferment spontaneously in open-top wooden vessels, no commercial yeast, no shortcuts, just the natural microflora of the vineyard doing what it's done for centuries. Ageing follows in old French oak, chosen specifically because it's old: enough to round the edges and add subtle spice, never enough to mask the fruit. A light filtration, sulphur as the only addition, into bottle. Vegan friendly, and unmistakably the work of a low-intervention hand.
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.