Newton Johnson, Hemel-en-Aarde, South Africa

Newton Johnson was founded in the mid-1990s by Cape Wine Master, Dave Johnson and his wife, Felicity (Née Newton). Over the past twenty years, the winery has built a reputation for producing some of the Cape’s finest Pinot Noir’s. This is not a massive surprise since Dave’s CWM thesis was on the variety.

Add to that one of the smartest Chardonnay’s in the country plus, more recently, a pair of outstanding Rhône style wines. The result? Well, three Patter Five Stars in the 2016 guide is a good benchmark to start with.

The first vintage was released in 1997 and all vinified from bought-in fruit. That was in a cellar located above the already established vineyards of Hamilton Russell and Bouchard Finlayson, both of whom had pioneered the Hemel-en-Aarde valley through the 1980s and 1990s, proving that this was a credible place to plant Pinot Noir and Chardonnay