If you've been looking for a white that does something different to the usual Sauvignon or Chardonnay, this is your moment. Viognier is one of the most perfumed grapes in the world, and in Bruce Jack's hands it sings: peach blossom and honeysuckle on the nose, ripe apricot and nectarine on the palate, all lifted by a citrus snap that stops it ever feeling heavy.
The fruit comes from Breedekloof, tucked between two mountain ranges where Atlantic air meets warm Karoo sun. Sandy soils drain hard, push the roots deep, and give wines a freshness that you can taste from the first sip. The grapes are hand-harvested, fermented in neutral 225 to 300-litre oak barrels (no new wood here, just gentle shaping), and rested for six months before bottling. Crucially, malolactic conversion is skipped, which keeps a bright, mouth-watering line of acidity running right through the wine. Lush yet linear: that's the trick.
Pour it well-chilled with roast chicken and tarragon, a Thai green curry, or a wedge of soft-rinded cheese on a warm evening. It's also brilliant on its own as an aperitif, the kind of bottle that gets people asking what you're drinking.
Delivered to your door anywhere in the UK, and a lovely choice for the friend who thinks they've tried every white grape worth knowing.
