COLUMN: Summer is for Sauvi

As much as the wine world promotes other varieties and predicts their rise to be the next grape on everybody's lips, the love affair with sauvignon blanc shows no sign of waning. If anything, the flame burns brighter than ever.

Think of a social braai and the white wines that find their way there will most likely be sauvi. I myself, when in doubt, will pick a sauvi.

Why sauvi then? Well because we prefer our everyday wines the same way as we do medical checkups, without surprises, so besides the guarantee of freshness and fruit, the style in which it is made is pretty consistent and even if the wine label is foreign, the contents will likely have familiar flavours.

There is however much to discover if you are willing to venture beyond the familiar and the holidays are the perfect time, because while on leave (or to soften the racket of kids at home) a glass over lunch is perfectly acceptable. Over season I have multiple open bottles of wine in my fridge without the risk of spoilage. Open fridge wine change and develop positively for three to four days easily.

Here are some sauvis that are worthy of your precious holiday fridge space.

Starting in warmer Robertson, Bon Courage gooseberry bush sauvi is tropical with naturally lower acidity and drinks easy without making you think too much. It's made to be enjoyed youthful within two years of harvest. Think poolside.

Going to the West Coast, Darling cellars make sauvi from mostly bush vines and benefit from ocean cooling, resulting in a fresh sauvi showing both herby and tropical notes - your everyday sauvi.

Still on the West Coast, Neil Ellis makes a wonderfully balanced sauvi in the cool Groenekloof ward - its pineapple-like acidity with passion fruit and mixed herbs never disappoints.

Durbanville has a lot to do with South Africa's love of the grape since the variety really does well there. Wines from Durbanville are usually very aromatic and "jump" out of the glass when sniffed. Nitida makes a superb example using multiple sauvi clones picked at different stages of ripening to showcase the varieties' different qualities. Mineralic, tropical, herbaceous with integrated natural acidity. A sauvi that stands up to food varying from sweet to spicy, a true all-rounder. Nitida also does oak-matured sauvi which adds a layer of richness, depth and length on the palate.

Delheim sauvi from heartland Stellenbosch provides tropical and citrus notes with fig and lime on the palate and pairs well with baked pumpkin and linefish. The fig really next-levels this wine.

Travelling to the cold climate of Upper Hemel and Aarde valley, Bosman shows the herbaceous side of sauvi supported by kiwi, lime and hints of fynbos. I personally pick up some blackcurrant as well and love it for that reason.

Ending on a light note, we find ourselves at Shannon in very cool Elgin, sipping their ever-so-delicate sauvignon blanc with flint, minerals, fresh asparagus, capsicum and whiffs of wild flowers. Sip, taste and think while having a bite of something refined. I feel like a glass of wine now.

Conrad de Wet sells wine for a living, which came about as a very convenient consequence of him constantly tasting his way towards the next great wine discovery and then thinking and talking about it until no mystery regarding its greatness remains. He opens a bottle of wine with the same enthusiasm as pre-schoolers do their birthday presents. Conrad de Wet, 082 683 4193, dewet.wine@gmail.com, instagram: winebynature.

Conrad de Wet