It was a vintage that gave you the chance to show what you were made of,’ says Chris Alheit of the ‘middling 2022 growing season’. It certainly did. This is a brilliant cuvée of Chenin Blanc with 8% Semillon, sourced from ten different vineyards. Showing lots of energy from early picked grapes on granite soils, it has fennel, fynbos and lanolin aromas, citrus, green herb and wet stone flavours, and good ageing potential, despite the heat of the vintage. 2024-30.

Mostly Chenin Blanc with 8% Sémillon, the 2022 Cartology Bush Vines instantly impresses with fantastic balance and weight, offering succulent aromas of lemon, almonds and dusty citrus blossoms. Medium-bodied and with 13% alcohol, the palate is fresh, clean and mineral driven with a subtly spiced chassis before displaying a food-friendly finish that will benefit from another year in the bottle. Just over 27,000 bottles were produced after resting in a mix of cement eggs, old foudre and old barrels.

The 2022 Cartology is whole bunch pressed with no sulfur added until mid-winter with five months in tank on the fine lees. It has a very pure bouquet with yellow plum, egg whites and candle wax. This unfolds beautifully in the glass. The palate is well-balanced with a lively opening, citrus-fresh with orange rind and lime. Alheit mentioned how difficult it was to obtain the acidity, but I think he achieved it here. Excellent, even if I don't consider it the best Cartology ever made. Drinking Window: 2024-2035.