Fairview Primo 2000

This is a single vineyard wine from grapes grown on a farm named Primo located near the Fairview winery. Charles Back, owner of Fairview, has written on the back label of this wine that he ‘spent a large part of my life in pursuit of locations that express the uniqueness and show stopping ability of this variety’ and that this wine is the result of such a meeting with Jan Greef who grew the grapes.

So it’s eight years old now. There is a churn of emotions when opening an old bottle which you have kept through the years gambling that it would repay the investment and deferring the guarantee of instant enjoyment with the prospect of a better drink down in the future. And when the bottle is the only example you own then you both fear that the wine will be past it or not yet reached its peak.

Fairview
Primo 2000
Pinotage
WO Coastal 14.5% abv


I couldn’t wait longer to taste the Primo. The wine will keep, but it is delicious drinking now. My first love was Claret – the red wine of Bordeaux – and I aged them but often was disappointed as they lost their fruit becoming dryly thin. Pinotage often changes character with age, losing the vibrancy and exuberance of young Pinno and taking on the mantle of an aged Claret yet retaining a fruit core. Good robust colour, nose of a mature wine, restrained Victoria plum flavours, elegant wine, delightful.