Le Riche Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon has a great nose of the Cabernet family’s typical tomato leafiness over nuances of crushed rocks and warm sand. The palate is initially firm but relents to a wine of great purity and subtlety with notes of tomato, cocoa powder, hazelnut chocolate and star anise. Overall, a heady concoction somehow assembled into a seamless red of phenomenal quality.

The Producer:
Le Riche is a family run estate founded by Etienne Le Riche in 1996. Situated close to the historic town of Stellenbosch, the winery is perched on the slopes of the Heldeberg Mountain and surrounded by the majestic Hottentots Holland Mountain range. Le Riche are known as Cabernet Masters - selecting grapes from the best possible Stellenbosch terroirs to craft top quality Cabernets with superb cellaring potential. Their wines are elegant and classy with fine grained tannins and subtle oak integration. Although not aiming to be Bordeaux replicas, they do have much in common with the balance and poise sometimes found in top Margaux. Tim Atkin’s Cape Classification currently ranks this estate as 2nd Growth level. Production is 8000×6 cases a year, with the Reserve range consisting of only 1000 cases. With most of their wines sold domestically, these wines are rare but worth sourcing.

Food Pairing:
Rich meat dishes such as fillet steak, paired with a rich and creamy peppercorn sauce. Bolder styled stews, for example boeuf bourguignon, oxtail or pot roast would also be well matched.