Stellenzicht The Ratio Sauvignon Blanc Semillon 2015 Stellenbosch, Western Cape, South Africa 75cl

Stellenzicht is a Stellenbosch estate on the Helderberg, between the town and Somerset West, with a reputation for characterful, terroir-driven wines. The Ratio is one of its more original ideas, a white blend named for the Golden Ratio, the 1 to 1.618 proportion found throughout nature.

The concept is more than a name. The wine follows that ratio in the vineyard, at roughly 68 percent Sauvignon Blanc to 32 percent Semillon, and the two varieties are picked together, crushed together and fermented together, so the blend is made in grape form rather than assembled later as finished wine. The Sauvignon brings tropical fruit and freshness, the Semillon weight and a creamy, lanolin texture.

This is the maiden release, from the excellent 2015 vintage, a dry, concentrated year that gave the Cape some of its finest wines of the decade and lends this white real substance and staying power.

The result is a quiet, complex wine with a lot of character. Expect tropical and citrus fruit lifted by fresh acidity, with a creamy, textured mid-palate and a long, savoury finish. It has the weight to partner food well, from grilled fish and roast chicken to creamy pasta or a soft, washed-rind cheese.

If you appreciate white Bordeaux or a serious Sauvignon-Semillon blend, The Ratio offers that style with a distinctly South African stamp. It is a wine for curious drinkers who enjoy a good story in the glass as much as what is in it, and a rewarding, textural white to sit and think over.