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My Kind of Wine by John Platter
Pawpaw Publishing
224 pages
R340 at takealot.com
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John Platter is internationally acknowledged as Africa’s Mr Wine. The New York Times called him “controversial and witty”. Hugh Johnson (the world’s bestselling wine writer) praised his “brimming enthusiasm”.
In 2001, Platter and his wife, Erica, won the uberprestigious Glenfiddich Food and Drink Award for their book Africa Uncorked, which described and evaluated the vineyards of Africa from Algeria to Zimbabwe.
Here at home, his name will forever be associated with South Africa’s first wine guide (John Platter’s SA Wine Guide), which he launched in 1979 and subsequently sold in 1999.
Having grown vines, and made wine in Franschhoek and Stellenbosch (Delaire 1984 to 1987, Clos du Ciel from 1988 to 1995), he knows wine from the ground up – which is why it is so exciting that he recently came out of retirement with his brilliant book My Kind of Wine (Pawpaw Publishing).
Platter may be prestigious, but he is never pompous.
His discussions on wine and wine making are clear, informative and accessible. Less experienced wine writers often offer too much information and consequently overwhelm readers.
Platter doesn’t simply regurgitate lists and facts about every wine made, he selects and describes about 250 of his favourite South African wines across all major grape varietals, styles and price points.
Accessible explanations of wine processes take readers on an educational journey through the relative merits of diverse topics such as blind versus sighted tastings; corks versus screw caps; why dry-land vines reflect vintage so strongly; and the differences between organic and biodynamic farming.
There is also a discussion of Platter’s preferred international and local wine books and websites. The edifying information is presented in such a relaxed and graceful manner that readers are drawn into what feels like a friendly chat with a knowledgeable and insightful friend.
Each of his wine choices is explained in terms of taste and smell, but also as a product of the places and people that formed it. The world of wine can be intimidatingly elitist, but Platter’s vignettes of individuals in the business convey intimacy rather than cliquishness.
Each description of a meal shared or a glass sipped in the company of a wine maker gives the reader a sense that they have enjoyed a lingering lunch with, and experienced first-hand, the wine maker’s intentions, hopes and dreams.
Occasionally, there are recipes and food-wine pairing suggestions for the meals. Every event is beautifully photographed by Clinton Friedman.
Platter is as comfortable with, and insightful about, young wine makers (whose revolutionary ideas and practices are shaking up the South African industry) as he is of iconic old-school producers.
Ancient vineyards and heritage vines are explored, and links are made across time and space to 21st-century bearded hipsters making wine in Cape Town garages.
He outlines the ways in which the new wave of wine makers has challenged long-standing assumptions and how old masters have risen to the challenge.
Those reading the book will be imbued with the joyful sense that old and new Cape wines are not only a cause of great current global excitement, but a source of national pride to be treasured and enjoyed by all.
The beauty of Platter’s book is that it provides readers with the knowledge, enthusiasm, pride and confidence to find their own kind of wine.
Whether you want to invest in fine wine or savour an easy-drinking glass on a sunny afternoon, John Platter’s My Kind of Wine will be your kind of book.
