Auction Crossing, Worcester, South Africa

The Auction Crossing wines are produced in the Hex River Crossing Private Cellar as a result of collaboration between De Villiers Graaff, AJ Reyneke and Leon Dippenaar. What they are striving to achieve is exactly the sort of wine which we love. The production is small and the care in viticulture and wine-making is paramount to this team. The cellar, which was originally built in 1938 and has been out of use for nearly 30 years, has been revived and once the old wine-making equipment was serviced, the first wines were produced in February 2004. The focus is currently on the Rhone varietals of Syrah and Viognier.

They don't grow their own grapes but buy them in on a very clearly defined philosposhy. They buy from growers Leon has been working with for years - De Grendel in Durbanville, Lindhorst in Paarl, Olyvenboom in Wellington and Aavalon in Stellenbosch. The grapes are kept separate in order to reveal the expression of their own terrior before blending. We think the result is really excellent and highly recommend that these wines are tried.

Wine to Watch: Syrah Viognier 2006 £11.95/bottle