The FNB Sauvignon Blanc SA Top 10 has announced 20 finalists from 159 entries submitted by 95 producers, as the competition marks its 20th year.
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The finalists include 11 wines from the 2025 competition, seven from 2026 and two from 2024, reflecting the breadth of styles and vintages being considered in the country’s Sauvignon Blanc category.
Half of the finalists are wooded, ranging from wines with a more pronounced barrel component to those that are predominantly tank-fermented with smaller portions of older oak.
Dr Carien Coetzee, who convened the judging panel, says the leading wines showed balance, concentration and varietal expression.
“The panel was particularly impressed with the balance, concentration and varietal expression across the leading wines, as well as the
increasingly restrained and considered use of oak," says Coetzee. "The strongest wooded wines used oak to build structure and dimension without masking the character of the cultivar.”
The judges also noted the ageing potential of several wines, as well as the range of vintages and regions represented among the finalists.
The 20 finalists
The finalists, listed alphabetically, are:
1. Carmen Stevens Sauvignon Blanc 2025 (wooded) – Cape Town
2. De Grendel Koetshuis Sauvignon Blanc 2025 (wooded) – Cape West Coast
3. Diemersdal The Journal Sauvignon Blanc 2025 (wooded) – Durbanville
4. Escape Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2024 (wooded) – Walker Bay
5. Fryer’s Cove Sauvignon Blanc 2026 (unwooded) – Cape Coastal Region
6. Goedverwacht Great Expectations Sauvignon Blanc 2026 (unwooded) – Robertson Valley
7. Groote Post Seasalter Sauvignon Blanc 2026 (wooded) – Darling
8. Groot Phesantekraal Marizanne 2024 (wooded) – Cape Town
9. Groot Phesantekraal Marizanne 2025 (wooded) – Cape Town
10. Iona Elgin Highlands Sauvignon Blanc 2026 (unwooded) – Elgin
11. Kleine Zalze Vineyard Selection Sauvignon Blanc 2026 (unwooded) – Cape Coastal Region
12. La Motte Pierneef Sauvignon Blanc 2025 (wooded) – Cape South Coast
13. Le Grand Domaine Grand Vin de Stellenbosch Sauvignon Blanc 2025 (unwooded) – Stellenbosch
14. Lomond Seven Rows Ben Nevis Sauvignon Blanc 2025 (wooded) – Cape Agulhas
15. Merwida Sauvignon Blanc 2026 (unwooded) – Breedekloof
16. Quoin Rock Nicobar Sauvignon Blanc 2025 (wooded) – Western Cape
17. Rietvallei Sauvignon Blanc 2026 (unwooded) – Robertson Valley
18. Steenberg Black Swan 2025 (unwooded) – Constantia
19. Tokara Reserve Collection Sauvignon Blanc 2025 (unwooded) – Elgin
20. Wildeberg Terroirs Sauvignon Blanc 2025 (unwooded) – Stellenbosch
Judging combines wine expertise and data
The judging panel was convened by Coetzee and included Dr Winifred Bowman, a Cape Wine Master and international judge; Anton Swarts, Cape Wine Master, procurement manager and senior winemaker at Spier Wine Estate; Morgan Steyn, winemaker at De Grendel Wine Estate and a Sauvignon Blanc SA committee member; and Johann Fourie, cellarmaster at Benguela Cove Lagoon Wine Estate.
Cape Winemakers Guild protégés Reneilwe Senosha and Marché Hendricks also participated as guest judges.
For the second year, Sauvignon Blanc SA partnered with French company Winespace to use the TASTEE judging platform, supported by bronze partner Tonnellerie Sylvain. The platform enables real-time scoring and data tracking, while generating sensory profiles from judges’ tasting notes and confidential data-driven insights.
The Sauvignon Blanc Aroma Wheel, developed in 2025 by Stellenbosch University’s South African Grape and Wine Research Institute (SAGWRI) and Sauvignon Blanc SA with South African Wine and local and international industry experts, was also used during judging.
Top 10 winners to be announced in October
The Top 10 wines will be announced at the FNB Sauvignon Blanc SA Top 10 awards on 14 October 2026, with the results also published on the Sauvignon Blanc SA website and social media channels.
Elunda Basson says the 20-year history of the competition provides a record of changes in South African Sauvignon Blanc.
“Twenty years of the Top 10 gives us a valuable record of how South African Sauvignon Blanc has evolved. We are proud to celebrate the producers who continue to push the category forward, and grateful to our long-standing Title Partner FNB, Platinum Partner Ever Solutions SA and all our partners for their continued support.”
The competition will also feature The Story of Sauvignon Blanc at Toyota Stellenbosch Woordfees on 8 October, led by RJ Botha, cellarmaster at Kleine Zalze Wines. The Sauvignon Blanc SA Seminar and AGM will take place on 11 November, focusing on cultivar-specific insights, technical tastings and industry developments.
