Chenin Blanc: born in the Loire, became the Cape's Steen

Both, in that order. It was born in the Loire Valley, where it is also called Pineau de la Loire, and there it makes Vouvray, Savennières, Montlouis and the sweet wines of the Layon. It was planted in the Cape from the very beginnings of South African winegrowing, and the country now grows more of it than France. This range reflects that balance: it is overwhelmingly South African.

For a rather unromantic reason: for a long time it served as an all-purpose grape, including for distillation and bulk whites. So it was planted everywhere, over large areas, whereas in the Loire it remains confined to a small number of appellations. Some of these vines have since been pulled up, but Chenin remains the most widely planted grape variety in South Africa, whites and reds combined.

It is the Afrikaans name for Chenin Blanc, still used in the Cape and sometimes printed on the label: Lourens Family Wines' Skuinskap Steen bears it in full. Steen and Chenin are indeed the same grape, but the South African wine industry took a long time to obtain ampelographic proof of it, which explains why the local word has survived.

Climate first: the Cape is warmer and drier, the Loire cooler and more humid. A South African dry wine is generally riper and broader, with stone fruit and candied citrus, and a saline finish. A dry Vouvray is straighter and sharper, with apple and lime blossom over a chalky background. The second difference, decisive when buying: in the Loire the vintage often decides the sugar level, and a Vouvray can be dry, off-dry or medium-sweet under the same appellation name. In the Cape, dry is the rule.

Naturally low yields, deep roots that find water on their own, and a consistency from one year to the next that young vines lack. On the Cape's decomposed granite, these unirrigated bush vines give concentrated juice without heaviness. The Old Vine Certified seal, run by South Africa's Old Vine Project, is reserved for plots over thirty-five years old and shows the planting year on the bottle. Eben Sadie's Skurfberg comes from vines around 90 years old, and Alheit's Fire by Night from plantings dating from 1972 and 1985.

The origin answers the question in almost every case. A South African Chenin is dry, unless the back label says otherwise. A Coteaux du Layon, a Bonnezeaux or a Quarts-de-Chaume are sweet by definition. It is Vouvray and Montlouis that force you to read the label, since they exist in all three versions. In this range, the only sweet wine is the Coteaux du Layon from Château de la Roulerie, at €29.50.

A tank-fermented dry wine handles the aperitif, oysters, fish starters and fresh goat's cheese. A dry old-vine wine aged in oak needs more substance opposite it: fish in cream sauce, roast poultry, sweetbreads, mild curry, and more generally spicy food where the wine takes the heat without fading. The sweet wine goes with foie gras, Roquefort and yellow-fruit tarts.

The range starts at €8.90 with The Capeography from Wildeberg & JD Rossouw, and climbs to €77 for the Eben Sadie cuvées. Under €20, you will find frank dry wines to drink within the year, such as False Bay's Slow Chenin Blanc, at €10.90 a bottle by the case of 6. Between €30 and €45 you enter the single-plot old-vine cuvées: that is where this grape variety gives the most for the price paid.

A tank-fermented dry wine is drunk within two or three years; it gains nothing from the cellar. A dry old-vine wine aged on the lees easily keeps for eight to ten years, and Sadie's Skurfberg is drunk over the decade following its harvest. The sweet Loire wine is the most patient of the three. This longevity comes entirely from the acidity of the grape, not from sugar or oak.

Between 10 and 12 °C for a tank-fermented dry wine. Between 12 and 14 °C for a dry old-vine wine aged in barrel, which seems thin and closed if it comes straight out of the fridge. Around 9 °C for a sweet wine, which would feel heavy any warmer. With the denser cuvées, half an hour in a decanter transforms the bottle.