WoTM 2010 Meerendal Estate Pinotage Single Vineyard 'The Heritage Block'

My Wine of the Month for October is  2010 Meerendal Estate Pinotage Single Vineyard 'The Heritage Block' (WO Durbanville).

I opened this 11 year old wine for International Pinotage Day  2021 on Saturday 9 October.

This was browning and offered soft sweet succulent, albeit aged, fruit. Tannins had softened to invisibility. I loved this wine.

Some wine was saved to sip during a two hour Zoom ‘Celebration of Pinotage’ organised by Gerhard Perold of Perold Wine Cellar. Gerhard is the great-grandson of Pinotage’s creator, A I Perold.

Meerendal Estate were one of the first to plant Pinotage, but their first and second vineyards, planted in 1953 and 1954 are no more, and this comes from their 6 ha 1955 vineyard - the first in South Africa to be registered as a Single Vineyard.

I visited Meerendal in 2018 to see the vineyard; my  report is here.