"Pound for pound, this must be South Africa’s best-value ‘premium’ Chenin Blanc"

 "Alex Milner has a gift. Something special shared by only a few, and for now I am selfishly grateful that his wines have not become as iconic as those of, say, Eben Sadie or Alheit. God knows they should be."
- JancisRobinson.com

Axle Chenin Blanc, Darling, South Africa 2022

“This takes dry Chenin into a new dimension. Surely this cannot be £20?!"
- Jancis Robinson.com, 18 points, VVGV (referring to the previous vintage)

Recent vintages of Alex Milner’s Axle Chenin Blanc have caused quite the stir with reviewers and customers alike (see scores and reactions further down in the email) and having just visited Alex at his estate, I was extremely eager to crack open a bottle of the 2022, which we placed our order for a couple of months back. Let’s just say I was not disappointed…

We’ve known Alex for 5 years now, but this is the first time either myself or James has actually made it out to his historic farm house, Natte Valleij (pictured below). Alex studied as a winemaker at Stellenbosch University and took over the reins of this 3rd generation farm in 2005 and he was determined to return the estate to its winemaking roots (a 300 year old winery that hadn't produced wine for more than 50 years) and raise it to the epitome of South African wine. Although it’s his reputation as a ‘Master of Cinsault’ that established him as one of South Africa’s most exciting young winemakers, right from his debut vintage of Axle Chenin Blanc (an anagram of his name, Alex), heads were turning. They now seem to be on permanent rotation. To our minds, pound for pound, this must be South Africa’s best-value ‘premium’ Chenin Blancs.

This wine just gets better and better each year and, pound for pound, must be South Africa’s best-value ‘premium’ Chenin Blanc. Alex Milner, an avid cyclist, who cycles around The Cape searching for forgotten vineyards that he can bring back to life, has hit the bullseye once again with this outstanding release from the adorably-named region of Darling. It seduces the eye with its appealing straw-gold colour, suggesting that there’s no over-ripeness here, as does the alcohol content of 13% abv. Beautiful aromas of honeydew melon and white nectarine and that lovely summery scent of honeysuckle on a warm breeze. It’s sweetly succulent as it introduces itself to the palate, but the acidity immediately brings a whiplash of excitement and keeps the wine tense and dry and full of energy, showing sour mango, white peach and lemon. There’s a comforting silky texture that holds the wine together, being neither too viscous nor too thin, and helps spread the flavours evenly across the palate. Chris Alheit’s ‘Flotsam and Jetsam’ used to be the best value ‘premium’ Chenin Blanc from The Cape, but that came to an end when Chris realised that he was seriously undervaluing the fruit and diverted it all into his more expensive ‘Cartology’, so this Chenin Blanc now wears the crown! 13% alc. Sourced from certified heritage vineyards. Basket-pressed into barrel for 9 months. Drink now-2028.

NB The bottle has a soft wax seal. Simply insert your corkscrew through the wax and extract the cork as normal and the wax will come away with the cork. If you feel the need to start a Twitter feud about the merits of wax seals, please pour yourself a glass of this first, take a moment, and then see how you feel.

In its 4 releases to date, the Axle Chenin Blanc has notched up quite a résumé:

2021
18 points, JancisRobinson.com
94 points, Greg Sherwood MW
92 points, Tim Atkin MW

2020
18 points, JancisRobinson.com

2019
17.5 points, JancisRobinson.com
John Platter, Five Star accolade

2018 (maiden vintage)
17 points, JancisRobinson.com
John Platter, Five Star accolade

And it’s also become a firm favourite with our customers. Here are some of the reactions we’ve had to it:

“Love the Axle Chenin!” - Mr. J.M.
“It’s excellent stuff.” - Mr. D.O
“Tried the Chenin last night - it’s great!” - Mr. F. L.
“Wine received. Two have already disappeared! It's great!”-Mr. M. D.
“Do you have anymore of the Axle Chenin? Just opened a bottle, wow, I'd like to buy some more...” - Mr D.L.
“This is awesome. Really lovely SA Chenin.” - Mr. V. S.

"Alex Milner has a gift. Something special shared by only a few, and for now I am selfishly grateful that his wines have not become as iconic as those of, say, Eben Sadie or Alheit. God knows they should be. These are wines that should be cult wines, but I hope (Alex, please forgive me) they never do become that, because part of their beauty lies in their accessibility and Milner's modesty."
- Tamlyn Currin, JancisRobinson.com

"Wonderfully characterful old vine Chenin Blanc", Greg Sherwood MW

How the Axle Chenin Blanc came about
The story of Axle is a short but happy one... Alex Milner decided to make his own Chenin Blanc to satiate his wife's predilection for the varietal (and possibly because he was fed up of buying other winemakers’ Chenin). Being the chap that he is he didn't just knock up any old Chenin, he found an old vine (37+ years), dry farmed, ocean-facing vineyard in Darling and promptly began to guide beautiful Chenin Blanc grapes into this outstanding wine, which has delighted customers and critics alike. Now that is what I call a win-win situation. How does the saying go? Happy wife, happy life.

Winemaking
“To achieve our desired goals, extreme care is taken to pick these grapes at the optimal ripeness, this happens in late January. Harvested by hand and then further sorted in the cellar, to ensure only the best fruit is used. Grapes are whole bunch pressed in our basket press, this juice is cooled and allowed to settle. The skins from the press are then put into a tank and left overnight to be lightly pressed again the following day. This is our skin contact component and adds a perfect depth to the final wine. The clean juice is then racked to seasoned barrels, some fine lees is added. Fermentation begins slowly after 2-3 days. malolactic fermentation also occurs naturally. Post fermentation baronage occurs fort-nightly for 2 months. Wines are left sur lie for 10 months in their barrels, after which it is racked and bottled. Made with minimal interference and pretence - preserving the intrinsic link between bottle and grape.”