The Daily Telegraph

South African wines have never really been JONATHAN RAY's thing - I've usually found that the reds taste of burnt rubber and the whites of acid drops.'

A visit to Stellenbosch, however, prompts a change of view and Chenin Blanc is the first grape to make an impression. I'm on my second glass of 2005 Raats Wooded Chenin Blanc and I'm loving every drop.'

A Pinotage dinner is next on the itinerary and Ray is unenthused about the prospect of spending the evening with his least favourite of all red grapes'. But he's pleasantly surprised once again, saying: I am completely won over. Pinotage is South Africa's USP.'