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#417 Klein Amoskuil Tarentaal Kwaal Mourvedre

Video chapter index

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00:00 – Mourvedre Fact File

01:52 – Learn about Charl du Plessi and Charles Back

02:50 – The History of Klein Amoskuil

03:20 – Info on the full Klein Amoskuil wine range

04:16 – Tasting Notes for the Klein Amoskuil Tarentaal Kwaal Mourvedre

06:17 – Video links for more content on influential Swartland winemakers

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Today’s curious wine is a bushvine Mourvèdre from the Swartland wine district. That shouldn’t be too surprising—of the roughly 500 hectares planted in South Africa, nearly half are in the Swartland. And for good reason. Originally Spanish, Mourvèdre made its name in the Southern Rhône, but it thrives in hot, low-rainfall zones—especially when grown bushvine-style: close to the earth, stress-hardened, and sun-soaked. It’s Mourvèdre’s dojo.

If you have yet to sign up for your Monthly HanDrinksSolo Wine Subscription then you’ll have to hunt this wine down in your own to be able to connect the info to the wine in the bottle. But until then, I’ve left you some tasting notes and technical specs.

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TASTING NOTES

On the nose: Straight from the bottle: smoked game, dried herbs, and a savory depth that’s all Mourvèdre—not oak. Swartland’s dryland bush vines and lean soils amp up those earthy garrigue notes. But give it 20–30 minutes, and the script flips: black cherry, mulberry, and even some lifted violet and crushed rose petal. Not sweet. Not Turkish delight. Just wild and real.

Taste: The mid-palate is full theatre: bitter licorice root, blackcurrant chew, mulberry flesh, and a hit of cherry sourness. Mourvèdre can be a beast, but this one’s civil—likely thanks to partial whole-bunch fermentation and gentle extraction. Just as the fruit settles in, the spice kicks in: violet florals, red rose, and a subtle lift of orange peel and clove.