Van Hunks MCC rosé brut sparkling wine – Wine Wednesday

Van Hunks is a London-based, South African-made, sparkling wine and mead (an alcoholic drink created by fermenting honey with water and yeast) brand that prides itself on exploration and sharing something new with anyone who’s looking to explore. Through their unique range of wines, Van Hunks offers a sense of freedom through new tastes and experiences. Van Hunks initially started back in 2020 with a core range of two alcoholic drinks: a Sparkling Mead Brut and a Sparkling Brut Rosé – the latter of which I’ll be talking you through today.

So, what does MCC stand for? You might ask. The answer? Method Cap Classique. MCC is essentially the South African term to indicate that a sparkling wine is made using the traditional method (AKA the same way as Champagne). From seeing MCC alone, I was excited to give this bottle of fizz a go.

On the palette it was dry with light red fruit flavours – much lighter than what I’m used to when it comes to bubbly. Although, a few sips in and I managed to get stronger red fruit flavours. The overwhelming flavour, initially, was an earthiness (which I assume comes from the 30% pinotage). However, the fruity flavours soon came through and balanced out the earthy quality. All of the flavours were evident on the nose as well, although they were much lighter overall.

This bottle really grew on me as I continued trying it out and it became clear why it sits at a £20 price point. It’s unexpected in its dryness and earthiness, and feels completely unique to other bottles on the market. If you’re searching for a new bottle of bubbly to leave you feeling surprised and delighted, this could be it.

This week’s wine is covered, but what bottle will you be pouring next week? Take a look through my full catalogue of Wine Wednesday reviews to find your next bottle of wine.