What do top Winemakers Drink?

Discover the international wine producers who inspire South Africa's top winemakers

At Radford Dale Imports, we love how our winemaker friends in the Cape enjoy the wines of our international buddies - almost as much as we do! Read on to see which imported wines from our portfolio some of SA's most respected winemakers are regularly pouring. 

PLUS, give us your details HERE and you will unlock a special 10% discount off all Radford Dale Imported wines (valid 'til 31 Dec 2025)

"The team at Radford Dale Imports are true vinophiles, curating a selection of wines that reflects global relevance and perspective." Eben Sadie, Sadie Family Wines

The Winemaker: Bruwer Raats, Raats Family Wines 

Bruwer has single-handedly put Cape Cabernet Franc on the map, and has been at the forefront of the rebirth of Chenin Blanc, the most important development in fine Cape wine this generation. 

Whilst interest in the Cabernet Franc has shot up among the industry, Raats remain the pinnacle for the varietal across price tiers. The recent addition of the single vineyard, ‘Vlag’, among our favourite expressions.

There is a strong Burgundian influence in the approach of Raats, in wines like ‘Vlag’ and the ‘Eden’ series, highlighting place and the approach of planting the right vines and clones, to the right site. A ‘vineyard by design’ as Bruwer puts it.

Bruwer’s Top Pick

In picking out wines from our international selections, Burgundy gets the nod. Château de Chamirey in Mercurey (where Alex Dale used to work in the early nineties before moving to SA), for the value to style and a more regular pour. 

"A monopole vineyard bottling from Mercurey. It's my every day Burgundy & just stunning for the price." Bruwer Raats

And for that special bottle, Domaine Jacques Prieur Gevrey-Chambertin Premier Cru “This is a Grand Cru wine in a Premier Cru Bottle. Delicious.” Bruwer Raats

Read More and unlock your 10% discount HERE

The Winemaker: Pieter ‘Bubbles’ Ferreira, Pieter Ferreira Cap Classique 

Cape Winemaker’s Guild member, Pieter Ferreira (aka Mr Bubbles) is one of the leading sparkling wine specialists of the Cape, taking on several vintages in Champagne in the late 80s, before joining Graham Beck in 1990. Along with his wife Ann, they produce an exhilarating set of Cap Classique under the Pieter Ferreira range. 

Pieter’s Top Pick

“Jean-Pierre from Vazart Coquart has been a longstanding friend to us. I also introduced Vazart Coquart to the Radford Dale Team. Their unique terroir in Chouilly, Grand Cru status, has the ability to express Chardonnay in a classic way and will always be a benchmark for our Blanc de Blancs.

Beautiful brioche notes with roasted almond, gingerbread and touch of salted butter and apricot on the nose. It’s creamy and silky on the palate with soft bubbles and a fantastic energy on the palate and seaweed finish.” Pieter Ferreira

Read More and unlock your 10% discount HERE

The Winemaker: Niels Verburg, Luddite Wines

Niels and Penny Verburg founded Luddite wines in 1999, establishing the homestead, winery and vineyards from the ground up. They’ve an enviable reputation for their knockout estate Shiraz. An exciting, tense Chenin Blanc soon joined the portfolio, as well as the individual and brilliantly put together Saboteur range.

Steadfastly traditional and transparent wines, their daughter Alice now produces the wines alongside Niels and is a name to watch.

Real life bon vivants, and always stunning hosts in Bot Rivier, their love of wine has taken them to top addresses all over the world and allowed them to curate a terrific private cellar. Predominant interests lay in the classics of the Rhone, Burgundy and Champagne. Whilst always keen to explore Australia, New Zealand, Austria, England and California.

Niels’ Top Pick

“The Syrah icons of the Northern Rhone - Clape, Graillot, Jamet & Cuilleron - aside, Penny and I are big fans of the Burgundy selection at Radford Dale Imports. They’ve highlighted several insider appellations, the kind of wines you’ll see the locals drink. Look out for Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs of Domaine Jacqueson in Rully.” Niels Verburg

Domaine Jacqueson is based in Rully, at the north of the Côte Chalonnaise. Situated just 10km south of the famous appellations of Puligny-Montrachet and Chassagne-Montrachet, Rully is home to excellent geology. Political reasons of old have however, largely seen the appellation overlooked. 

This is great news for fans of Burgundy, as Rully produces outstanding Chardonnay and Pinot Noir at village and premier cru tier, and some of the best bang for buck remaining in Burgundy. As Niels points out, these are very much the wines you’ll see the locals drinking and avoid the premium tariffs of the tourist appellations.

Led by siblings Paul and Marie Jacqueson, this domaine is resolutely geared to raising the profile of the appellation. They are the reference point.

Read More and unlock your 10% discount HERE

The Winemaker: Lukas Van Loggerenberg, Van Loggerenberg Wines

Epitomising the wealth of talent to emerge over the last decade in SA is Lukas Van Loggerenberg, with a set of site specific wines that deftly strum intricacy & freshness. The hard to get 'Breton' Cabernet Franc a case in point. Hard graft & travel to the world's great wine regions motivated a leap of faith, a 'geronimo' moment to go it alone.

Lukas’ Top Pick

"I think for me a dead given on your portfolio is Thierry Germain at Domaine des Roches Neuves, especially one of my favourite Cabernet Francs in the world, the 'Les Mémoires’.
I think just the rawness of the wine, the age of the vineyards, that is one of the wines that I try, that inspires me to make 'Breton' Cabernet Franc.

Then also his 'L'Insolite' Chenin Blanc I think is world class. There's plenty more on your portfolio, but if I have an odd R2000 to spend on wines it would probably be Thierry Germain." Lukas Van Loggerenberg

Thierry Germain’s vigneron lineage is Bordeaux, but in pursuing pure, varietal Cabernet Franc, he would eventually land in Saumur-Champigny. A pioneer of biodynamic farming & ever philosophical in approach, the domaine oversees an arsenal of exceptional old vineyard parcels.

'Les Memoires' comes in from a deep rooted Cabernet Franc site, planted in 1904 on pre-phylloxera rootstock on Saumur's signature limestone. Ethereal juice.
Read More and unlock your 10% discount HERE

The Winemaker: Reenen Borman, Boschkloof Wines

Boschkloof have long produced a stellar set of wines. Reenen’s gradual taking of the reins from his father Jacques, continued the form of the estate. Among the leading crop of Cape producing talent to emerge from the 2010s and significantly raise the profile of Cape wines internationally.

Last year, their flagship 'Epilogue' 2021 received 'overall red wine of the year' and 100 points at Tim Atkin MW's South Africa Report. It's a score that reflects both a great vintage release and years of top-level consistency. 

Reenan’s Top Pick

In keeping with the theme of hard-to-get Syrah, Reenen has picked out the Domaine Jamet Côte Rôtie. A producer who casts real influence in the world of Syrah, Loïc Jamet did a vintage at Radford Dale in 2016, before officially joining the family business, on his return home. Famously, after working a vintage at Jamet, Callie Louw of Porseleinberg would begin employing the submerged cap method in his fermentation, with the launch of the 2018 vintage. Another top Cape Syrah that would receive 100 points from Tim Atkin MW and mark a new, more finessed style of Porseleinberg. Porseleinberg 2.0.

"Still one of my favourite wines. It’s always been a wine of inspiration for me, because it’s one of those Syrah’s that's stylistically never changed. It’s always pure and true to what the Jamet style is. They’re not trying to copy any new popular style, they stick to what they do best.

It’s a concentrated, yet elegant style of Syrah, with loads of interesting aromatics and texture in the best vintages. We actually had a 10-year vertical of the Jamet recently and it was spectacular.” Reenen Borman

From the “roasted hillside” of the Northern Rhône, Jamet are the reference point, producing expressions of beguiling aromatics and flesh. They are attractive in youth, but with a reputation for incredible longevity. 

If you’re not in the market for the Côte Rôtie at circa R 2,500, well you’re not alone. Check out the Côtes du Rhône Rouge from Jamet at R720. It expresses all the points of difference in Northern Rhône Syrah. Delicious.

“Without question, the hottest ticket in Côte-Rôtie over the last few years has been Domaine Jean-Paul, Corinne & Loïc Jamet’s wines. Prices are going through the roof on the secondary market, especially at auction.“ Vinous.com

Read More and unlock your 10% discount HERE

The Winemaker: Samantha O’Keefe, Lismore Wines

Samantha O’Keefe at Lismore is a producer we admire greatly at Radford Dale Imports. The estate is nestled in the foothills of the Riviersonderend mountain range just outside the town of Greyton, a young ward classification pioneered by Samantha.

As a result, the wines are a style all of their own with exceptional expressions across Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Syrah.

 Sam’s Top Pick

“I love exploring the Radford Dale Imports selection.  I am able to spoil myself with benchmarks from the Rhone and Burgundy, but also find new wines to explore from California, New Zealand and Australia.  My go-to Burgundian producer in the portfolio is Domaine Marc Morey.  The Rully Blanc is electric and the St. Aubin is sunshine and smiles in a glass.  Both are wines I love to share with friends.” Sam O’Keefe

 Sam has picked out the wines of Sabine Mollard at Domaine Marc Morey, who without ego has quietly established the Domaine as one of finest insider addresses of the Côte de Beaune. Based in Chassagne-Montrachet and best known for her premier cru bottlings such as En Virondot and Les Vergers, the Saint-Aubin 1er Cru Charmois is something of a hidden gem, and among the best white-Burgundy buys in our portfolio.

 Read More and unlock your 10% discount HERE

The Winemaker: Petroné Thomas, Radford Dale

Radford Dale winemaker, Petroné joined our team in 2021. In no time, working with Gamay has become a real highlight of the day to day. To learn more about the varietal at the source, we sent her on a harvest to Château de la Chaize in Beaujolais in 2024. The experience has brought some excitement and numerous ideas to our own Cape Gamay project.

“I had the privilege of joining the La Chaize team for the 2024 harvest. The property is world-class, and their commitment to shifting their entire production chain toward sustainable practices is genuinely awe-inspiring. All their vineyards are organically certified, and their goal is to become carbon neutral in the future. From the vineyard to the winery and into the office, the team is solid. One of my favorite moments was watching a middle-aged woman operate machinery the size of a house like an absolute badass.

My experience leaned more toward the cellar side, working with the winemaking team—who function like a well-oiled machine. I learned a lot about the extraction methods they use on Gamay, which honestly changed the way I think about the variety altogether.

Petroné’s Top Pick 

I’ve highlighted the Brouilly Lieu-Dit 'La Chaize' Monopole specifically because it captures the spirit of the team, the estate, and the producer as a whole. The wine is made from a parcel located near their cellar with a South-East facing view where you can see Mont Blanc on clear days. That said, you really can’t go wrong with any of their cuvées—they put the same heart and focus on parcel expression into every bottle.” Petroné Thomas

 Read More and unlock your 10% discount HERE

The Winemaker: Eben Sadie, Sadie Family Wines

Eben Sadie and the Sadie Family Wines need little introduction, so intrinsically linked to the evolution of fine Cape wine over the last 25 years, through pioneering work in the Swartland and with the Old Vine Project. Last year, Sadie recently completed works on a beautifully thought-out new winery and tasting room, whilst their ongoing work to translate the unique profiles of the Swartland and cultivate potentially suitable varietals for the future of Cape wine is nothing short of groundbreaking.

For international wines, there’s an insatiable quest to discover, learn and experience likeminded producers from elsewhere in the world.

Eben’s Top Pick

“The team at Radford Dale Imports are true vinophiles, curating a selection of wines that reflects global relevance and perspective.

For me, at the moment, Chateau Les Carmes Haut Brion is doing groundbreaking work in Bordeaux, and to be an upstart and innovative in Bordeaux at this time and age and in bringing a fresh new perspective is inspiring. The wines are sublime.”  Eben Sadie

 Read More and unlock your 10% discount HERE. DM