Rustenberg Stellenbosch Cabernet Sauvignon 2021

If Cabernet Sauvignon’s lush blackberry, currant, plum, and heady cedary aromas and flavors whet your appetite, you will find the 2021 Rustenberg Stellenbosch Cabernet Sauvignon hard to put down. This young Cabernet Sauvignon offers bold, rich flavors and tremendous drinking pleasure without Cabernet’s too often tannic bite. Open a bottle of the 2021 Rustenberg Stellenbosch Cabernet Sauvignon, allow it a bit of aeration, and enjoy! Deeply colored, packed with flavor, and blessed with smooth ripe tannins that caress rather than bite, Rustenberg’s 2021 Stellenbosch is one luscious, fruit forward Cabernet Sauvignon, which is meant to please die-hard Cabernet fans as well as those too often shell shocked by Cabernet’s astringent tannins. While some Cabernet producers do manage to tame Cabernet’s aggressive tannins, they more often than not fail to deliver much of Cabernet’s heady flavors – not so with Rustenberg’s 2021 Stellenbosch Cabernet Sauvignon. Enjoy this wine’s wonderful rich aromas and flavors without having to pay the piper on the back end. For optimal enjoyment, we suggest serving the 2021 Rustenberg Stellenbosch Cabernet Sauvignon at cool room temperature (58°-64° F) after 15-20 minutes of aeration. Anticipated maturity: 2024-2028. Enjoy!

Rustenberg’s suave, full-flavored 2021 Stellenbosch Cabernet Sauvignon needs only a clean glass to shine. Yet, like any well-crafted Cabernet Sauvignon, Rustenberg’s 2021 Stellenbosch Cabernet performs best in the company of flavorful foods such as grilled meats and vegetables. Prime rib, loin lamb chops, venison, and all kinds of game provide superb accompaniments. Sirloin tips, served with a wild mushroom sauce; veal and shitake stuffed ravioli; and pork tenderloins, prepared with a black currant paste or a balsamic fig glaze, make splendid pairings, too. Quail and other game birds also provide mouthwatering accompaniments to a bottle of the delicious 2021 Rustenberg Stellenbosch Cabernet Sauvignon. A flavorful Mushroom Risotto and a Roasted Eggplant and Tomato Tart provide delicious meat-less pairings too. Bon Appétit!

Stellenbosch and the surrounding wine lands of South Africa’s Western Cape hardly receive the attention and excitement they deserve. No viticultural area or major wine producing region in the world presents itself more spectacularly. The sheer physical beauty of Africa’s Western Cape, paired with commanding waves of well tended hillside vines and the proliferation of centuries-old Cape Dutch architecture, makes Stellenbosch both stunningly beautiful and unique among the great wine regions of the world. And Rustenberg is one of the oldest and most influential wine estates in the majestic wine land of Stellenbosch.

Rustenberg was founded in 1682 and lies nestled in the valley of the Simonsberg, at the very heart of the Stellenbosch wine region. Rustenberg produces a full range of wines, including Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Roussanne, Syrah, and several exciting blends. This family owned property enjoys a rich heritage and an ethos that have been informed by many centuries of human influence striving to understand and work with nature to produce wines of distinct character that are true to their terroir, variety and style. Although we have enjoyed all of Rustenberg’s wines over the last several years, the estate truly excels with Bordeaux varietals, especially Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc, and more recently with truly world-class Chardonnay.

Cabernet Sauvignon reigns supreme at Rustenberg as a varietal and the basis of the estate’s John X. Merriman blend, a wine named in honor of a former owner of Rustenberg, John Xavier Merriman. Merriman bought the farm in 1892 in sympathy with farmers suffering from the phylloxera crisis. Merriman played a crucial role in revitalizing Rustenberg after the discovery of phylloxera and worked assiduously to promote tourism and the agricultural importance of Ida’s Valley, the area close to the town of Stellenbosch where Rustenberg is located. Today, the Barlow family (the proprietor of Rustenberg) carries on the tradition of John X. Merriman. The Barlows have completely revitalized the property in the post-Apartheid era and restored the vineyard and surrounding estate to its pre-phylloxera glory. And, to everyone’s delight, the Barlows began bottling a varietal Stellenbosch Cabernet Sauvignon (this month’s feature) that would make John X. Merriman proud. It is not only the best regional Stellenbosch Cabernet Sauvignon we have tasted from Rustenberg; it has also proven to be a true crowd pleaser in each and every vintage.