The fuss about fizz

Well, I hate to burst the black friar’s bubble, but he would be spoilt for choice in the Cape winelands today. Leading Cape sparkling wine cellars offer tours and tastings in scenic settings that enhance every bottle of bubbly.

Simonsig, an old family wine estate run by the three Malan brothers on the outskirts of Stellenbosch is a good place to start — or end — your sparkling winelands tour.

This innovative cellar pioneered the first Cap Classique in 1971, drawing on the classic winemaking traditions of Champagne to produce the Cape’s first bottle-fermented bubbly. Three decades later, Simonsig Kaapse Vonkel (meaning Cape Sparkle) won Wine magazine's inaugural Cap Classique Challenge in 2002.

The fame of Cap Classique has spread well beyond South Africa’s shores since then. Simonsig Kaapse Vonkel was judged the best sparkling wine in the world at the International Wine Challenge in London. Under an agreement on geographical trademarks negotiated with the European Union, Cape producers use the term Méthode Cap Classique (MCC) — and not Champagne — to describe the Cape version of the French original. Similarly, the term port may only be used if made in Portugal.

Champagne vs Cap Classique

"'What's the difference between Champagne and Cap Classique?' That’s the most often asked question on the tour" says Melanie van der Merwe, winemaker at JC Le Roux.

Champagne, she explains, is only made in its home region in France. Sparkling wine is carbonated in tanks and bottles, a much cheaper and quicker way of making bubbly. Méthode Cap Classique is a way of making sparkling wine in the Cape by using classic French methods. You can call all three of these wines bubbly. So far, so good.

You’ll learn all about the complexities of bubbly on a cellar tour. The members of the Cap Classique Association guarantee quality by sourcing specific white and red grape varieties and by using traditional techniques like whole-bunch pressing.

Only the first pressing — called the cuvée — is used to make the base wines which undergo secondary fermentation on the yeast in the bottle over twelve months or longer (the over-pressure produces the bubbles). In the romantic tradition of 'remuage', each bottle is turned and tilted on a lath at frequent intervals before the wine is disgorged, dosed and corked. After maturing in the cellar for a few months, your bubbly is finally ready.

An idiot's guide to Cap Classique

Bubbly has its very own form of wine-speak. After talking terminology over a few bottles in the cellar, you should be able to wax knowledgeably about the bead, mousse, bouquet, dosage and style.

The French call it art de vivre — the art of understanding, serving and appreciating sparkling wine.

• Dosage: why not match the sugar levels of the bubbly with the sweetness of your lover’s temperament. Look out for Brut (dry), Demi-Sec (medium), Sec (Semi-Sweet) and Doux (voluptuously sweet).
• Vintage: NV on the label means Non-vintage. Vintage indicates the year in which the wine was made. Vintage bubbly is matured for up to 10 years. The older the more mature — like relationships.
• Cork: you don’t need a corkscrew. Connoisseurs open bubbly by holding the cork in one hand and rotating the punt (the indentation in the bottle base) with the other — or by striking the cork along the glass seam with a sabre. If you weren’t in the cavalry, simply pry the wire loose and pop the cork gently!
• Sound: nothing beats the frisky pop of a cork and the fizz in his/her flute (a narrow-necked glass).
• The bead: a fancy name for bubbles. The finer and smaller the bubbles, the more lively and light the effervescence.
• Mousse: the creamy foam. Don’t just swallow. Swirl it in your mouth and feel the texture.
• Appearance: the spectrum ranges from light straw and green apple to golden and salmon pink.
• Bouquet: think of a bakery. Try yeast, biscuit, bread, brioche and toast. Is it a 'shy nose'?
• Flavour: try feel-good memory associations. What do the flavours remind you of? Typically, bubbly has flavours of citrus fruits, green apples, strawberries, almonds, butterscotch and red berries.
• Style: in the Cape, bubbly is made from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes (which contributes a pink 'blush' to the wine) — and sometimes Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinotage and even Shiraz.
• Finish: is it all foreplay — a quickie — or a long lingering finish which has you coming back for more?

Now for a frisky tasting with a little fizz. Take a tour of the specialist sparkling wine cellars in the winelands — Cabrière, Graham Beck (Robertson) and JC Le Roux — or test and tempt your tastebuds at any of the 30 Cape cellars which make Cap Classique. Here are some of the best...

Graham Beck; Robertson Wine Valley — www.grahambeckwines.com
Pieter 'Bubbles’ Ferreira won Diner's Club Winemaker of the Year 2004 for his Brut Blanc de Blancs — a sensual, creamy bubbly with a lingering finish. Beck’s Rosé would make Casanova blush in the pink.

Bon Courage; Robertson Wine Valley — www.boncourage.co.za
While you’re in the bubbly zone, pop in for a tasting of Jacques Bruère Brut Reserve 2000, a forceful Russell Crowe of a wine with a toasty texture and nutty notes which won Wine’s Cap Classique Challenge in 2004.

Weltevrede; Robertson Wine Valley — www.weltevrede.com
Philip Jonker Brut completes the trio of bubblies from the big boytjies of Robertson. The winemaker of the same name won Wine’s Cap Classique Challenge with the seductive maiden bubbly made for ‘his barefoot bride’.

Twee Jonge Gezellen; Tulbagh — www.tjwines.co.za
While you’re still oor die berg (over the mountain), turn on the lights and savour Krone Borealis Brut, the bubbly which won Nicky Krone Diner’s Club Winemaker of the Year in 1995. Great over breakfast in bed — as buttery and blonde as brioche.

Cabrière; Franschhoek — www.cabriere.co.za
Achim von Arnim, also known as Baron Bubbly, makes five sparkling wines in his legendary Pierre Jourdan range. Watch the art of sabrage when he pops open the bubbly with a sabre — and flirts with as much charm as his Cuvée Belle Rosé.

Môreson; Franschhoek — www.moreson.co.za
Their Brut Non Vintage is a playful mouthful of crisp bubbles with flavours of apples which would entice Adam and Eve into the orchards of the wine estate. The new Cuvée Cape, a luscious mix of Pinotage and Chenin, is all soft, red berries.

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Courtesy CAPE etc magazine.

Villiera; Stellenbosch — www.villiera.com
Marilyn Monroe inspired passionate winemaker Jeff Grier to name one of his many sparkling wines Monro Brut — a wine made with lots of skin contact. His traditional range of bubbly will spice up your sex-life from Brut to Rosé to Natural.

JC Le Roux; Stellenbosch — www.jcleroux.co.za
Melanie van der Merwe, the cellar mistress of Cap Classique, makes six sensuous varieties of bubbly at the Cape’s specialist sparkling winery. Don’t miss the tour which ends in a tasting of Pongracz, Scintilla, Pinot Noir, Rosé and the rest.

Laborie; Paarl — www.kwv-international.com
Their Blanc de Blanc Brut was the surprise winner of Wine’s Cap Classique Challenge 2005. After spending three years on its lees, this bubbly might bring you to your knees. Simply irresistible with oysters — like Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.