James Suckling (96/100)
This intriguing, aromatic red has aromas of smoked paprika, black currants, bell peppers, licorice, rosemary and Sichuan peppercorns. Some prickly pear, too. It’s vibrant, exotic and crunchy, medium- to full-bodied, with tight and fine tannins. Wild, spicy and powerful, but refined. A field blend of 12 co-planted varietals from a vineyard planted in 2019. The first bottling of this forward-looking wine.
R. Parker (95+/100)
A maiden vintage, The Sadie Family 2024 Swartland Die Distriksreeks Sonvang, or "sun catch," is wild, exotic and deeply savory, showing blood orange, fynbos, sage and subtle metallic-granite notes within an intentionally unpolished, expressive frame. Built from a complex co-planted field blend of Mediterranean varieties at roughly equal proportions, the wine emphasizes viticulture and site harmony over cellar manipulation. The grapes used are Alicante Bouschet, Agiorgitiko, Pontac, Bastardo do Castillo, Trincadeira, Tinta Barroca, Lledoner Pelut, Grenache Noir, Pinotage, Cinsault, Counoise and Carignan (with 30% whole-cluster fruit used in fermentation). From Paardeberg granite soils and shaped by years of careful vineyard design, Sonvang represents Eben Sadie’s vision for a distinctly African field-blend red. This wine represents 20 years of work. "The goal was to plant the blend, not make the blend," he explains.
Eben Sadie has repositioned The Sadie Family’s former “Old Vine Series” under the new "Die Distriksreeks" (The District Series), shifting the focus from vine age to a clearer expression of place and viticulture. While the historic old vineyards remain central, Eben Sadie has increasingly emphasized farming precision and site identity over cellar technique. The evolving range—now including two new bottlings, the Twiswind white and Sonvang red—reflects his long-term ambition to formulate an "African" wine aesthetic.
Tim Atkin (95/100)
Sonvang is a new wine from Eben Sadie, a Mediterranean-meets-the-Cape field blend of ten
varieties that's part of his answer to climate change. The vines are still young at five years of
age, but the promise is already exciting. This has fynbos and garrigue aromas, lots of Atlantic
Ocean freshness and minerality, plum, redcurrant and wild cherry flavours and refined,
sinewy tannins.