Here's a wine that does cool-climate freshness the South African way: generous fruit up front, a green, savoury edge underneath, and acidity that keeps the whole thing singing. Pour it cold and the glass fills with grapefruit and passion fruit, then comes the clever part, a lift of cut grass, green fig and a faint peppery, floral perfume that stops it ever feeling simple.
The palate follows through exactly as the nose promises. Fresh, zesty and beautifully balanced, with a linear acidity that runs clean from first sip to a bright, fruity finish. It is elegant rather than aggressive, the kind of Sauvignon Blanc that wins over people who think they don't like Sauvignon Blanc.
That poise is no accident. Laborie sits at the foot of Paarl Mountain, one of South Africa's oldest wine districts, where warm days and Atlantic-cooled nights give whites their aromatic snap. The estate has been growing vines here since 1691, and three centuries of French-rooted know-how show in the precision of this glass.
It loves company at the table: think fresh oysters, grilled white fish, a goat's cheese salad or a plate of asparagus. Equally happy on its own in the garden when the British summer finally turns up. A genuine crowd-pleaser, and a lovely thing to send to a Cape-missing friend, delivered to doorsteps right across the UK.
