Boplaas has achieved a hat trick at the National Wine Challenge (NWC/Top 100 Wines) with three of its wines achieving top honours.
The competition, now in its 15th year, named Boplaas Cape Tawny Colheita 2005 as Grand Cru National Champion Best in Class for Sweet Wine, which incorporates fortifieds.
In addition, the Cape Vintage Reserve 2023 – another port-style wine – and the red blend Boplaas Family Reserve Ring of Rocks 2022, each received Double Platinum and inclusion in the competition’s list of the year’s Top 100 wines.
Apart from these three wines the Boplaas Cape Vintage and Touriga National Family Reserve, netted Double Gold in their respective categories.
“The Challenge ranks amongst South Africa’s most esteemed competitions, which makes this achievement especially gratifying,” says Daniel Nel, co-marketing head at Boplaas. He adds that Boplaas first planted Portuguese wine grape varieties in the 1970s and has spent decades working with them and studying the craft of these wines, particularly port.
Boplaas made its first port in the 1980s. Breaking away from the local industry’s traditional sweeter fortifieds, Boplaas pioneered a drier style more in line with the wines from their spiritual home of Portugal.
The awards which have been piling up over the years are testament to the lifelong study the Nels have invested in crafting wines of world class standard.
At the NWC/Top 100 this year the wines from Boplaas again competed against hundreds of entries from across South Africa. They are adjudicated by a panel comprising international and local-experienced specialists.
All wines are assessed blind. The highest sco-ring wines with Double Platinum are included in the list of Top 100
In 2024, the NWC/Top 100 judges awarded Boplaas the Best in Class title to the 2021 Boplaas Cape Vintage Reserve and in 2023 it was joint-winner as South Africa’s Best Port for the Cape Tawny Colheita 2007.
Boplaas receives three top national awards
