Magna Carta Wines Ubuhle Bendoda Izinkomo 2019

Mphumi Ndlangisa's wines are special. He is one the few Zulu winemakers that exists in South Africa, and his approach to his winemaking has always been in the 'natural' vein. Low intervention, organic fruit, with very little (if any) additives.

This Muscat will have you fooled. Forget that highly aromatic, floral expressions. There is a touch of skin-contact here for texture, but this is no orange wine. This is classic, white wine territory. Tasting it blind, I'd probably try peg it as a really posh Chenin Blanc. The fruit for this cuvée is picked in Stellenbosch, and the wine is then aged in old oak barrels, adding a layer of complexity that balances out the aromatic profile beautifully. So although there is a richness to it, there is still an incredible freshness in the wine.

In Zulu culture, a man's wealth was often measured by the number of cows he owned (a dowry, called Lobola, was traditionally paid to the bride's father in exchange for the hand in marriage.) This is Mphumi's top white wine, and so the label dons the face of a cow.