Botanica ‘Big Flower’ Merlot 2016 Stellenbosch, Western Cape, South Africa 75cl

Botanica is the personal project of Ginny Povall, who settled in Stellenbosch to make wine and grow proteas on her Devon Valley farm. The Big Flower range takes its name from those flowers and reflects her hands-on, detail-driven approach, where small volumes and close attention are the whole point.

Merlot can be plush and generous or firm and serious, and Botanica aims for the elegant middle ground. Grown in the well-drained soils around Stellenbosch and bottled as a single variety, this is a polished, fruit-led red with real refinement rather than sheer weight, a grown-up take on a grape that is too often made simple.

The 2016 came from a hot, dry Cape season that gave ripe, concentrated reds. With time in bottle the wine has grown rounder and more harmonious, its tannins softening into the fruit and its edges smoothing out.

Aromas of plum, black cherry and dark berry lead to a plush, supple palate. Full but balanced, it carries fine, ripe tannins and a savoury undertone, finishing long and smooth. Drinking well now, it will hold comfortably for a few more years, and a short decant flatters it.

A crowd-pleasing yet serious red for roast beef, lamb or mushroom dishes. If you enjoy right-bank Bordeaux or a smooth, well-made Merlot, Botanica’s Big Flower is a graceful, refined Stellenbosch take on the grape. It is the kind of bottle that works as happily at a relaxed Sunday lunch as it does at a more considered dinner, always poised and easy to enjoy.