Wine Of The Week: Mullineux Chenin Blanc Granite 2023

An elegant and expressive wine that tastes like South African sunshine.

Here’s what you’re going to do: Get on a flight to Cape Town, South Africa. Then say goodbye to the city and drive towards the wild plains of Swartland, known for wild golden hills, soaring mountains and the smell of fynbos (a South African native brush) on the breeze. While the region may be rugged, the wines of Mullineaux are absolutely not. Mullineaux was started by Andrea Mullineaux, a University of California Davis grad who moved to France, where she met her husband, Chris. They came back to his homeland of South Africa and started their own project. The wines are beautiful—precise, elegant, and expressive. Each is named after the soils that they grow in. The granite, a Chenin Blanc, is packed with ripe peaches, lime zest, hazelnuts and apples. It’s fresh, mineral, and tastes like South African sunshine. $73

Kate Dingwall is a sommelier and wine writer. Her work frequently appears in Wine Enthusiast, Eater, Forbes.com, Vogue, and Food & Wine, and she pours wine at one of Canada’s top restaurants.