4 ½ Stars 2023 John Platter’s South African Wine Guide Hand sorting of grapes for 17 (94 pts) & 18 months in barrel, 30% new. Cab (64%) with 3 Bordeaux varieties plus 15% syrah – not the expected Left Bank blend but works supremely well. Plush dark fruit, meaty notes, cigarbox threaded throughout, & compact tannins to guarantee a distinguished future.94 pts Tim Atkin MW 2023 Glenelly’s superb Estate Red is a South African take on the Bordeaux Hermitagé style of old, marrying Cabernet Sauvignon with 36% of Merlot, Syrah, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. Almost a second wine to Lady May, it’s textured, aromatic and lightly spicy, with bramble, cassis and raspberry fruit and lovely cinnamon oak. 2023-3090 pts Wine Spectator March 2025 Savory hints of game, iron and smoke underscore the baked currant and plum fruit flavors in this chewy red. Lively and medium-bodied, with mocha and tobacco notes lingering on the finish. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. Drink now through 2030.90 pts Vinous Sept 2022 The 2017 Estate Reserve Red is Glenelly’s version of an old school claret with a proportion of Syrah, raised in 31% new French oak for 18 months. It has quite an intense nose that has more detail and focus than the previous vintage. Blackberry, cigar humidor and light loamy scents emerge in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, fresh on the entry and showing a little more elegance than the 2016; there’s tobacco infused black fruit here, though it closes down on the finish. Fine. Drinking range: 2025 – 2045
