16 October 2004

What a Mistake to Make!

Nitida won a Double Gold award at Veritas for their 2003 Pinotage. I visited Nitida winery (the name comes from a local protea flower) on low rolling hills outside Durbanville.

"We are amazed and delighted," winemaker Jacus Marais told me. "We didn't expect it as we don't make Pinotage in a big wooded style, and never felt Pinotage is one of our strengths. We had a hectare of Pinotage but have just replaced half of them with Cabernet Sauvignon. Our Pinotage style is medium bodied with a minerally edge and we didn't bother entering the Top 10 Competition because we didn't think we had a chance."

The Nitida 2003 Pinotage was aged for 10-11 months in 2nd/3rd/4th fill French oak barrels from five different coopers, and costs 50R from the winery.

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