The Liberator Episode 30 Come Quickly, I Am Drinking The Stars 2014 Napier, Cape South Coast, South Africa 75cl

The Liberator is the project of Richard Kelley, a Master of Wine who knows the Cape intimately and ‘liberates’ small parcels of characterful South African wine, releasing them as numbered episodes with playful names. Episode 30 was his first sparkling, and its title nods to the (apocryphal) cry attributed to Dom Pérignon on tasting Champagne.

This is a Méthode Cap Classique, made in the same way as Champagne, from a farm near the town of Napier on the cool Cape south coast. It blends Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, the classic sparkling pairing, with roughly sixty per cent Chardonnay for finesse and citrus drive and the balance Pinot Noir for body and red-fruited depth. Napier sits well back from the coast on cool, high ground, the kind of site that gives sparkling base wine its all-important acidity.

Drawn from the 2014 harvest, it was then given several years resting on its lees before release, well beyond the minimum for the style. That extended lees ageing is where much of its character comes from, building bready, biscuity complexity around the fresh fruit, much as it would in a good vintage Champagne.

Expect a fine, persistent mousse, aromas of citrus, green apple and fresh brioche, and a creamy yet crisp palate with a dry, lively finish. Serve it well chilled as an aperitif or celebration pour, or with oysters, tempura or lighter fish dishes.

For anyone who loves grower Champagne but likes to explore, this is a serious, small-production Cape sparkling with genuine character and a good story in the glass.