2021 Beaumont "Hope Marguerite" Chenin Blanc, Bot River, Western Cape, South Africa

ABOUT THIS WINE

Named after Hope Marguerite Beaumont, the matriarch of the Beaumont family, this iconic Chenin Blanc is sourced from the estate’s oldest vineyards, planted in the 1970s on decomposed granite soils in Bot River—a cool subregion of the Walker Bay known for its maritime influence and freshness-retaining terroir.

The 2021 vintage was cool and relatively long, allowing for slow, even ripening and resulting in wines of heightened aromatic clarity and natural acidity. Grapes for Hope Marguerite are hand-harvested at optimal ripeness, then whole-bunch pressed and naturally fermented with indigenous yeasts in 400L and 500L French oak barrels (none new), where the wine undergoes élevage on fine lees for approximately 10 months.

No malolactic fermentation is encouraged, preserving the wine’s crisp edge and purity. The wine is bottled unfiltered and with minimal intervention, showcasing the varietal’s ability to express texture and minerality over overt richness.

In the glass, the 2021 vintage offers notes of green pear, lemon zest, wet stone, and chamomile. It is medium-bodied and quietly intense, with a fine interplay between fruit, acidity, and phenolic grip. Drink now for its precision or cellar 8–12 years for added complexity and evolution toward honeyed, nutty tones.

ABOUT THIS PRODUCER

Beaumont Family Wines is a historic, family-owned estate located in Bot River, in South Africa’s Overberg region. Established in the 1970s on the site of one of the Cape’s oldest wine cellars (originally built in the 1700s), the farm is today run by Sebastian Beaumont, who has become one of the Cape’s leading champions of Chenin Blanc.

The estate farms organically and sustainably across 34 hectares of vineyards, focusing on dry farming and biodiversity. Beaumont was one of the first producers in South Africa to treat Chenin Blanc with the reverence and low-intervention approach more typically reserved for fine Chardonnay or Riesling, and Hope Marguerite, first released in 1997, remains a reference point for the variety.

Sebastian’s winemaking style is thoughtful and non-intrusive—native ferments, minimal sulfur, neutral oak, and an emphasis on site expression. Through this approach, Hope Marguerite has become a standard-bearer for South African white wine, exemplifying the elegance, structure, and longevity that old-vine Chenin can achieve in the Cape’s cooler coastal zones.