Ben says

★★ Great Wine Malbec should be generous. When you buy one you want rich, drinkable fruit with velvety tannins. Rustenberg’s 2017 is just that. Purity on the nose from ripe, rounded fruit and a hint of creaminess from malolactic fermentation is followed by a palate that’s a soft mix of fruit and cocoa. It is utterly drinkable.

Guerrieri Rizzardi '3 Cru' Amarone della Valpolicella Red Wine

KEY POINTS

Varietal Malbec with 14.0% abv. Grapes are destemmed and then crushed, with regular pumping over during fermentation in stainless steel tanks. It is aged in French oak barriques for 15 months (10% new, 90% 2nd, 3rd and 4th fill) and fined with egg whites before bottling. This sample was bottled in 2018 and cellared for 6 years.

Grown in: Stellenbosch, SOUTH AFRICA.

Food Pairing

The classic: Malbec and steak. The softness in this wine makes it a good option with rump or fillet, as well as the preferable ribeye. It would also pair with grilled aubergine or a meaty lasagne.

Disclosure & Price

Tasted blind during a study session. Find in the UK for circa £9.99 from Waitrose, today £11.99 for the 2022 Vintage.

Reviewed and tasted: 15/01/2025

Ben Franks Wine Tasting Note Producer Profile

About the Producer

Rustenberg was founded in 1652 as a family vineyard in the foothills of the Simonsberg Mountain. In the early 1800s, the farms were split into two separate estates, Rustenberg and Schoongezicht. Wine has been bottled at Rustenberg’s cellars every year since 1892 when Sir Jacob Barry and and his brother in law John X Merriman saved Rustenberg and Schoongezicht respectively from bankruptcy. The split estate was merged once again under the Rustenberg name when Peter and Pamela Barlow purchased both farms in 1941. Simon Barlow and his son Murray are today’s generation owners, continuing over 80 years of Barlow history at Rustenberg.