Deal Ken Forrester

“If you have never tried South African wine before, then I cannot think of a better place to start than here.” – Neal Martin, the Wine Advocate.

Mr Chenin Blanc

Ken Forrester is somewhat of a wine making rebel; in 1993 he famously ignored expert advice to rip up Chenin Blanc vines planted at his newly purchased Stellenbosch grape farm. Instead, he fully embraced them with a head strong vision for their destiny. Ken’s rationale for this was simply ‘sunshine’, and the fact that it is abundant in South Africa. Through time spent at Château de Fesles in the Loire Valley he understood this variety’s need to accumulate the vital sugars produced by sunlight, as this has the ability to dictate a poor year from an outstanding year. Knowing this he believed that complex, age worthy Chenin Blanc wine could be made in sundrenched Stellenbosch. He therefore persevered and enlisted the help of ex Vergelegen wine maker Martin Meinert, together they practised precision viticulture and implemented techniques such as partial wood fermentation and lees ageing. Their determination and foresight paid off, with the results perhaps surpassing even their own expectations. On achieving his goal Ken became known in the wine world as Mr Chenin Blanc, this is an impressive title as few wine makers can claim a grape to their name, especially considering the number of phenomenal Chenins produced worldwide, most notably from Vouvray in the Loire. Ken’s vision also contributed to South African Chenin Blanc becoming known for being a lot more than just the most widely planted grape. Ken’s love for food undoubtedly shaped his desire to produce a food worthy wine, Ken describes his perfect Chenin food pair of foie gras or guinea fowl cooked with Chenin and raisins, or pot-roast neck of pork marinated with vanilla pods and Chenin. Thanks in-part to Ken’s vision, South African Chenin’s today makes wines that can stand up to dishes like this.

The FMC

We are lucky enough to receive many wine makers throughout the year at Winedirect, and they are always infectiously passionate, as well as being highly knowledgeable and skilled. Therefore, the standards are set very high for each time a wine maker arrives to showcase their wines. When Ken came to the Winedirect office last week we were genuinely blown away by him, he is a real force of wisdom, energy and creativity. He talked excitedly about all areas of his profession, and described the process of harvest timing with immense detail. This involves firstly, Ken himself walking the vineyards and tasting the grapes, when he finds what he is looking for which is evidence of optimum ripeness occurring. Aerial photos of the vineyards are then taken, and NDVI imaging employed, this is essentially a technique which quantifies the number of leafs on each vine. This will indicate which vines will need to be harvested first, as vines with more leaf to fruit ratio with ripen faster. The grapes are then handpicked in several phases, which results in harmoniously balanced fruit being obtained. The individual batches of fermented juice are eventually judiciously blended by Ken and his team. This is the extensive process employed for the production of the FMC. On tasting this wine with Ken it was clear that it is justified, the wine is gloriously complex, with clearly defined stages of development within your mouth. Ken explained that people sometimes compare the wine to a white Burgundy and that it’s almost sweet on the nose but then provides rich, delicious baked apple pie, vanilla and honey flavours with a bone dry finish and vibrant acidity throughout. It is certainly the kind of wine that leaves you with a lot to say; consequently, we could not stop talking about it here in the office!

The range

The range should be viewed as having three primary levels. Starting with the Petit range which has been made for everyday drinking. We were really impressed by this range, and admire Ken’s ideology behind their creation, describing them as wines that should be unashamedly drunk and enjoyed without thinking about them too much. They are fruitful, balanced, and versatile. In fact the Ken Forrester Petit Cabernet/Merlot 2010 was awarded Best Red Wine of the year by Neal Martin of Robert Parker in his Memorable Wines of the Year 2011

The Ken Forrester range is effectively the next step up, the wines have been precisely crafted, using innovative techniques, and are expressive and complex. The Renegade SMG is yet another wonderfully rebelliously move on Kens part, whereby he has used Mediterranean Rhône varieties, Grenache, Syrah and Mouvédre, thus setting the trend for the use of these varieties in South Africa. Yet again, this has paid off. The wine is distinctly rustically Rhôneish, with a strong identity of its own, and ripeness with a saltiness on the finish. Ken explained that the cooling influence of the Helderberg mountains just a few kilometres away allows the grapes to retain their vital acidy and increases the wines complexity.

Finally the icon range which includes the Gypsy and the FMC. The Gypsy has been made using Grenache and Shiraz, the Grenache being the only vineyard in Stellenbosch, planted in 1953. Ken explains that the Gyspy personified; is as the name would suggest, somewhat wild and bohemian in character. The best barrels are selected and oak aged for a total of 24 months. This results in a wine that can only be described as Stellenbosch in a glass; flavours of rooibos tea, fennel, and black cherry, encapsulated by incredible balance and structure.