Ep 536: Cinsault Master Alex Milner of Natte Valleij - A winning breakaway for South African Wine

Wine for Normal People

In this show I host Alex Milner from Natte Valleij. He is my first South African guest and the first Cinsault-focused producer I've had on the show. Photo: Alex Milner. Credit: Natte Valleij Instagram

I first learned about Natte Valleij from a local importer who presented the wine as an option for a wine dinner I put together with a restaurant partner. Among all the wines I tasted that day, the Cinsault from this South African producer stood out and it performed beautifully with the food at the dinner, as well.

The wine inspired me to do a Grape Miniseries show on Cinsault (episode 525), and the interest among the Patrons in this grape was very high, so I knew I had to have Alex Milner on the show to discuss his wines and his Cinsault passion.

Alex is doing something unusual in South Africa and he is a bit of a wine adventurer, finding old vineyards through is other passion -- cycling! He is energetic, funny, cool, smart, and determined. By pursuing this unsung hero of a grape, Alex has created a small movement of Cinsault rediscovery in South Africa. To use cycling parlance, he has staged the winning breakaway in South African wines: Cinsault!

We discuss the importance of Stellenbosch University in the South African wine industry, the history of Cinsault, the differences between the vineyards Alex sources from, and his beautiful Natte Valleij wines.

Photo: Natte Valleij Wines Credit: Natte Valleij Instagram

Seek out these wines! They are terrific, as is Alex!! (PS -- the show is marked explicit because Alex drops an F bomb, but it's necessary to his point...)

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