Lanzerac Wine Estate (Whites)

Zia van Rooyen du Toit, the export manager for Lanzerac Wine Estate in South Africa joined John Sporing, the founder of A Life Well Drunk for a virtual tasting on June 11th, 2020.

Did you miss the live virtual tasting? No worries, watch it here:

There will be two tastings of Lanzerac wines, the first will be the rosé and whites, the second will be reds.

In the first tasting we sipped and discussed three wines:

Lanzerac Pinotage Rosé

Lanzerac Sauvignon Blanc

Lanzerac Mrs English (chardonnay)

For those of you that traveled with us to South Africa in 2019, you will remember the beautiful Estate and the great wines. If you were not able to make that trip, this will give you the opportunity to try some great South African wines, as well as give you a preview of our upcoming 2021 tour.

Wines may still be ordered directly from Lanzerac.

About Lanzerac Wine Estate

Steeped in history dating back to 1692, Lanzerac is a historic landmark and Stellenbosch icon. The grande dame is synonymous with old-world charm and rich Cape heritage. Positioned in the idyllic Jonkershoek Valley on the outskirts of the historical town of Stellenbosch, the Estate boasts views of dramatic mountain ranges, endless rows of lush vineyards and hectares of gardens shaded by giant Oak trees.

In 1925, Professor Abraham Izak Perold, the first Professor of Viticulture at the University of Stellenbosch, successfully crossed two grape varietals, Pinot Noir and Hermitage (Cinsaut), to create South Africa’s first unique and indigenous wine grape variety – Pinotage. The first wines made from Pinotage vines had an attractive and more intense color than those of both parent varietals, frequently displaying a distinctive character, which was found to be very pleasing and intriguing.

Several years later, Lanzerac, under the ownership of the former Stellenbosch Farmer’s Winery (SFW), became the first winery in the world to use ‘Pinotage’ on their label when they marketed the 1959 vintage under the name ‘Lanzerac’. This visionary release marked the birth of Pinotage as a unique variety from South Africa.

In 1959 the iconic Lanzerac Rosé, in the famous teardrop bottle, was released. This Rosé has become the longest-standing wine in the Lanzerac range and is still being produced today.