Chenin Blanc, Babylonstoren, Simonsberg-Paarl, ZA, 2025

Professional rating highlights

Wine Enthusiast (Buying Guide)

• Score: 90 points (Excellent)
• Reviewer: Jesica Vargas
• Style notes: Blind tasted, part of the official Buying Guide
• Tasting profile:
  • Leafy citrus-driven nose
  • Floral and herbal palate character
  • Lime, lemon zest, and soft herbal notes on the finish
  • Medium body with fresh acidity

Takeaway: This is a critically “excellent” entry-level premium Chenin, with emphasis on freshness and varietal purity rather than oak or power.

Additional professional tasting notes (trade / critic sources)

Wine trade / critic consensus (multiple published notes)

Across trade reviewers and distributor notes (CurryWines, Babylonstoren technical sheets, importers), the 2025 vintage is consistently described as:

• Fruit profile:
  • White peach, pineapple, guava, winter melon
  • Citrus zest (lemon, lime)
• Structure:
  • Crisp acidity (≈6.5 g/L TA typical spec)
  • Medium-bodied, dry style
• Texture:
  • Smooth, slightly silky mid-palate from lees + partial amphora/cement egg aging
• Style impression:
  • Clean, fresh, fruit-forward modern South African Chenin

Key professional consensus:
A fresh, high-acid, fruit-driven Chenin with subtle textural complexity but no heavy oak influence.

Sommelier / critic-style qualitative evaluation

Stefan Metzner (tasting note publication)

• Describes it as:
  • “Balanced, varietal wine above average quality”
  • Medium body, crisp acidity, citrus + orchard fruit core
  • Moderately long, acidity-driven finish

Winemaker Notes:   Pale yellow color. On the nose, intriguing white peach and ripe pineapple fragrance with underlying lemon curd, which makes this wine hard to resist. A silky smooth entrance reveals many layers of supple fruit handled with care to retain the intrinsic chenin personality at its best. Beautifully balanced with a delicious streak of acidity which brings freshness and focus to the palate, making this ideal for summer drinking.