2009 Vintage is the Best

Judging for the 2011 Top 10 Competition has been taking place this week. Neil Pendock is judging again and he blogs "In several years judging the ABSA competition, these 2009 wines are the best I’ve ever tasted."

He was less impressed with the previous days wines from 2006, 7, 8, 10 and 11 vintages.

The judges are photographed in what looks like an attic and there is no sign of the sophisticated desktop scoring computers introduced some years ago when I last judged.

I don't have much 2009 myself except for a case of the Fairview 2009 that was a Top 10 winner last year which I ordered from the winery.

Top Ten Pinotages - 2010

The Top Ten Pinotages 2010 are, in alphabetical order:

• Altydgedacht Pinotage 2009 (Durbanville)
• Anura Reserve Pinotage 2008 (Paarl)
• Fairvew Pinotage 2009 (Coastal)
• Flagstone Writer’s Block Pinotage 2008 (Worcester vineyards)
• Kaapzicht Steytler Pinotage 2007 (Stellenbosch)
• Lyngrove Platinum Pinotage 2008 (Stellenbosch)
• Rijk’s Reserve Pinotage 2006 (Tulbagh)
• Welbedacht Estate Pinotage 2008 (Wellington)
• Die Laan Pinotage 2008 (Stellenbosch) from the Welgevallen Kelder
• Wildekrans Barrel Selection 2008 (Botrivier)

I find it regreshing to see so many new names in the winners list but of course they take the place of some well loved familiar names.

Neil Pendock called it Changing the Guards at Pinotage Palace noting that the Pinotage's traditional terroir this time only supplied two of Top 10.

Interestingly the Die Laan is made by students studying winemaking at the Stellenbosch University in the small cellar adjoining the house that Abraham Perold lived in while serving as the University's first Professor of Viniculture and Oenology.

Does the influx of new names mean that the mystery of making great wines from the challenging Pinotage variety is no secret any more? If so, the Pinotage Association must be congratulated on their work in research and disseminating their findings.

Top 10 2010 Entries Invited

If you make Pinotage then enter now for the 2010 Top 10 Competition sponsored bt ABSA and organised by the Pinotage Association. Deadline for entries is 15 July 2010 and winners will be announced on 9 September 2010.

While Pinotage is made in many styles this competition is restricted to dry red Pinotages and international entries are welcome. In previous years wineries in California and New Zealand have participated.

The competition is unusual in that there are 10 equal winners in order to be able to reflect the many different interpretations of this intriguing variety.

The competition rules are available here and the entry form is here

138 Entries for 2009 Pinotage Top 10

138 wines have been entered into this years Top 10 Pinotage Competition; that's two fewer than last years record entry.

But there are a record 14 brands entering the competition for the first time. And three of them are from the north island of New Zealand!

There are 74 wines from the 2007 vintage, 30 from 2008 and 25 from 2006. The two oldest wines are from 2004 and the youngest (very) is a 2009 vintage.

Judging of the competition will take place from Wednesday 15 to Friday 17 July 2009 which is a three months earlier than previous years.

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Truter's Two Times Top 10 Triumph !

History was made today when Beyerskloof’s owner and winemaker Beyers Truter accepted the Top 10 prize twice. For the first time in the competition’s history two wines entered from the same winery had both been selected for the ABSA Pinotage Top 10 Competition.


Truter stepped up to accept two winner's awards at a ceremony held earlier today, 27 August, at Neethlingshof Estate near Stellenbosch.


The 2008 winning wines are :-

Anura Pinotage 2007
Beyerskloof Diesel Pinotage 2006
Beyerskloof Reserve Pinotage 2006
Cloof Pinotage 2005
DeWaal Top of the Hill Pinotage 2006
Fairview Primo Pinotage 2007
Rijk’s Private Cellar Pinotage 2004
Simonsig Red Hill Pinotage 2006
Stellenzicht Cellarmaster’s Release Pinotage 2005
Tukulu Pinotage 2006


All but three of this years winners had won previously. "We have seen the quality of wines in the Absa Top 10 Pinotage Competition improve year-on-year and what is more encouraging is that new winemakers are continuously joining the competition. Experience, consistency, commitment and focus can however never be replaced and this year we have seen a number of the more experienced winemakers come out on top,” said Robert Emslie, Executive Director with sponsor Absa Corporate & Business Bank at the awards ceremony on 27 August 2008.

Beyerskloof historic winners are Beyerskloof Diesel Pinotage 2006 and Beyerskloof Reserve Pinotage 2006. They are the third and fourth wins for the Beyerskloof label, and winemaker Beyers Truter eighth and ninth Top 10 wines, having previously won seven times when winemaker at Kanonkop.

Guy Webber’s Stellenzicht wins for the fourth consecutive year with his sixth Top 10 wine.

Daniël de Waal of Uiterwyk Estate gains his sixth win with the Top of the Hill, the world oldest Pinotage vineyard, after a break of four years.

It is a fifth Top 10 win in nine years for Tukulu, the flagship black empowerment brand, this time with winemaker Samuel Viljoen

Simonsig Estate have a second consecutive wine with their Red Hill Pinotage 2006. It is their fourth winning wine in eight years.

Pierre Wahl at Rijk’s Private Cellar produced their fourth winning wine in eight years.

First time winners are

Anura 2007, with winemakers Carla Pauw and Johnnie Calitz

Cloof 2005 whose winemaker is Christopher van Dieren

Fairview Primo 2007 with winemaker Anthony de Jager.


Five of the 2008 Absa Top 10 Pinotage winners are from the 2006 vintage, two from the 2007 vintage, two from the 2005 vintage and one from the 2004 vintage. Five of the winning wines are from the Stellenbosch district, two from Darling and one each from Paarl, Tulbagh and the Coastal region. It is only the second time that wines from more than 3 vintages reached the Top 10.




The 10 runners up are
Conradie Barrel Selection Reserve 2007
Deetlefs Oak Matured 2007
Groot Constantia 2006
Môreson 2007
Raka 2007
Roland’s Reserve 2006
Spier Private Collection 2005
Wamakersvallei La Cave 2006
Welbedacht 2006
Windmeul Reserve 2007


Presentation packages of the 2008 Absa Top 10 Pinotage wines will soon be available for sale in South Africa from the Wine-of-the-Month-Club.

Tel. 021-6578100.
E-mail: wineclub@wineofthemonth.co.za





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Pinotage Top 10 -- The Finalists

The 20 finalists for the 2008 Pinotage Top 10 competition are:

• Anura 2007 WO Paarl
• Beyerskloof Diesel 2006 WO Stellenbosch
• Beyerskloof Reserve 2006 WO Stellenbosch
• Cathedral Cellar 2005 WO Coastal Region
• Cloof 2005 WO Darling
• Conradie Barrel Selection Reserve 2007 WO Nuy
• Deetlefs Oak Matured 2007 WO Breedekloof
• DeWaal Top of the Hill 2006 WO Stellenbosch
• Fairview Primo 2007 WO Paarl
• Groot Constantia 2006 WO Constantia
• Môreson 2007 WO Coastal Region
• Raka 2007 WO Western Cape
• Rijk's Private Cellar 2004 WO Tulbagh
• Seidelberg Estate Roland's Reserve 2006 WO Paarl
• Simonsig Redhill 2006 WO Stellenbosch
• Spier Private Collection 2005 WO Stellenbosch
• Stellenzicht Cellarmaster's Release 2006 WO Stellenbosch
• Tukulu 2006 WO Darling
• Wamakersvallei La Cave 2006 WO Wellington
• Welbedacht 2006 WO Wellington

From these twenty the Top 10 will be selected and it is going to be tough. There are some famous names and great winemakers in the running and they cannot all be in the Top 10.

The second wine on the list is a new one to me. Apparently it is a prestige bottling from Beyers Truter retailing at 250R, more than twice the cost of the Reserve. The wine is named after Beyers' sadly missed dog, Diesel .

The 10 winners will be announced on 27 August.

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Top 10 Panel Tastes 138 Wines

Last week the 2008 Pinotage Top 10 Judging Panel tasted 136 wines, including eleven first time entries, over three days. This year’s judges, pictured above, (front row from left) were Graham Nash, Wendy Burridge and David Biggs ( back row from left ) Gert Boerssen, Francois Naudé,. Duimpie Bayly CWM (convenor), and Chris Roux.

International judge Graham Nash is product development manager and wine trader for UK supermarket Tesco and Thresher wine stores. His main task is to evaluate the quality of wines and he focuses on France, Germany and South Africa.

"I am very impressed with the Pinotage wines we judged. Most of the wines show a classic balance of fruit and wood treatment, as well as a good combination of complexity and elegance,” said Graham. “There are many rich, full-bodied wines that are also accessible. These Pinotage wines show a red cultivar with personality and distinctive characteristics. It can be compared with the highest quality wines of all the international wine cultivars. I have been tasting South African wines for quite a while now and Pinotage is showing more constant quality, year after year."

Duimpie Bayly said that the majority of the entries showed the best style and structure since he has been involved as a Top 10 Pinotage judge.

"It seems as if the 2006 and 2007 vintages delivered most of the top wines, with excellent balance and versatility, wines that will complement various dishes. These are not blockbuster wines and most of them can compete internationally,” said Duimpie."The flavours of mulberry, ripe plums and hints of tropical fruit stood out as typical of the cultivar. There was consensus about the wines that reached the finals and the wines that received the highest ranking. The wines were obviously tasted blind and we are looking forward to the results."

Winning wines will be announced on 27 August, during a lunch time ceremony at Neethlingshof Estate near Stellenbosch.

Top 10 Cut-off is 9 July

Entries for the annual Pinotage Top 10 Competition must be in by 9 July.

The competition, organised by the Pinotage Association and sponsored by Absa Bank, is open to all Pinotage wines no matter where in the world they are produced.

The competition is unusual in that ten equal winners are chosen. This is to recognise that there are many different ways to interpret the Pinotage variety and to give a chance to them all.

Every competition so far at least one first time entrant has been a winner.

Rules and entry forms may be found at the Pinotage Association website here.

2007 Pinotage Top 10 Winners Announced - Exclusive

The results of the Pinotage Top 10 Competition were announced today at the award ceremony.
There are six first time winners:

Bon Courage Pinotage 2006
Robertson Wine of Origin and first-time Top 10 winner
Winemaker Jacques Bruwer
Judges' notes: "Ripe plum nose with vanilla and spice. Rich, succulent mouth with layers of berry flavour".


Fantail Pinotage 2006
Stellenbosch Wine of Origin and first-time Top 10 winner
Winemaker Jacques Cilliers.
Judges' notes: "Warm spices, hints of mint. Firm yet fine grained tannins".

Fleur du Cap Pinotage 2005
Coastal Region Wine of Origin and first-time Top 10 winner
Winemaker Justin Corrans.
Judges' notes: "Black cherries and milk chocolate Very well structured tannins balancing acidity".

Four Paws Pinotage 2006
Piekenierskloof Wine of Origin and first-time Top 10 winner.
Winemaker Anne Jakubiec.
Judges' notes: "Brambles with a hint of grapefruit. Fresh acidity, lively expression on the palate".


Marianne Pinotage 2004
Paarl Wine of Origin and first-time Top 10 winner.
Winemaker Stephan du Toit
Judges' notes: "Ripe plum, chocolate, mint and cherry on the nose with a hint of vanilla. Sweet fruited mouth".


Windmeul Reserve Pinotage
2006 Paarl Wine of Origin and first-time Top 10 winner
Winemaker Francois van Niekerk
Judges' notes: "Ripe full ripe plum and cherry on the nose with same flavours in the mouth".

Môreson Pinotage 2006
Coastal Region Wine of Origin and third-time Top 10 winner
Winemaker Hannes Meye
Judges' notes: "Aromas leap from the glass! Rich, full fruit with chocolate and cherry. Supple tannins".

Pulpit Rock Pinotage 2005
Swartland Wine of Origin and second consecutive year as a Top 10 winner
Winemaker Piet Kleinhans
Judges' notes: "Ripe black fruit with minty notes. Delicate yet firm tannins with balanced acidity"

Simonsig Redhill Pinotage 2005
Stellenbosch Wine of Origin and third-time Top 10 winner
Winemaker Debbie Burden
Judges' notes: "Ripe plum nose with cherry and vanilla. Big and full in the mouth with great oak support".


Stellenzicht Golden Triangle Pinotage 2006
Winemaker Guy Webber
Stellenbosch Wine of Origin and fourth Top 10 win all in the past five years
Judges' notes: "Rich, ripe plum, full fruited, well rounded mouth with developing complexity".


It is good to see new wineries win for the first time, but sad not to see some old friends. What it shows is that the Pinotage bar keeps being raised, and any winery that doesn't enter because they they don't stand a chance against the Pinotage establishment should make definite plans to compete in 2008.

Congratulations to all the winners!

I cannot wait to taste them all.

From Rusty Nail to Elegant Fruit

Articles about Pinotage all too often tell of the group of British Masters of Wine who visited South Africa in 1976 and, comparing Pinotage’s taste to "rusty nails", declared that the variety had no future.

In that group was Julian Brind MW (pictured right) , until recently head wine buyer for the UK Waitrose supermarket chain. Thirty-one years later he again tasted Pinotage in South Africa, this time as a judge at the Pinotage Top 10 Competition.

Interviewed after the judging, Julian remarked that most of the wines in the competition were of an exceptionally high quality based on international standards, and it was almost impossible to select only the top ten wines.

"I think the rest of the world must discover these wines and South Africans must be very proud of it,” he said. “The balance of fruit, elegance and good integration of tannins is an indication of the talent of South Africa's viticulturists and winemakers. They made it very difficult for us to select only the top ten."

Fellow judge South African Dave Hughes emphasised the combination of quality and diversity. "People think there is only one kind of Pinotage, but the variety of styles makes it a real tasting experience, but every wine still is a Pinotage,” he stated. “A few years ago, it was my opinion that you could only select the top five to seven out of all the entries, now it is difficult to select the top fifteen. The quality and fine balance of the wines improve year after year."

The results of the 2007 Absa Top 10 Pinotage Competition will be announced on 31 October at the Arrabella Sheraton Hotel in Cape Town.

Record Entries for 2007 Top 10 Competition

**EXCLUSIVE**

This years Pinotage Top 10 Competition has attracted a record 148 entries -19 more than last year -and it welcomes 19 brands entering the competition for the first time.

The annual competition, now in its 11th year, is run by the producers' Pinotage Association and is sponsored by ABSA Bank. The competition is unusual in choosing 10 equal winners in order to be able to recognise and reward different styles and interpretations of South Africa's Pinotage grape variety.

As usual, wines from the Stellenbosch district are in the majority, but altogether 30 different Wine of Origins are represented. The three areas with most entries are Stellenbosch with 49 wines (33 in 2006), Paarl with 16 (17 in 2006) and Western Cape with 15 (5 in 2006). There were no entries from outside South Africa.

Entries come from six different vintages, with 40% from 2006 (59 wines) and 30% from 2005 (45 wines). The oldest vintage is 2002 (one wine) and there are six from the recent 2007 vintage.

This years Judges will be Duimpie Bayly(Pinotage Association Vice Chairman & Cape Wine Master), Charles Hopkins (winemaker), Chris Roux (winemaker), Dave Hughes (wine writer, Cape Wine Master), Neil Pendock (wine writer), Michelle Cherutti-Kowal (wine lecturer in England) and Julian Brind (UK Master of Wine). They will taste all the wines, then retaste the 20 highest scoring wines to determine the final winning Top 10.

**EXCLUSIVE**

Last Call for Top 10 Entries

Closing date for this years Pinotage Competition is 15:00 Thursday 30 August 2007. The complete rules and entry forms are still available on the Association's web site at http://www.pinotage.co.za/.

The Pinotage Association have simplified the requirements and say "It has never been so easy to enter! Only 900 litres of a wine have to be produced to qualify for entry. No proof of certification, no specimens of labels; only a WSR 2A certificate of analysis is required along with the entry form."

And for the first time, the competition is open to Pinotages made outside South Africa.

If there are any queries, contact Pierre Loubser, Manager: Pinotage AssociationTel. +27 (21) 855 1128 Fax +27 086 502 9417e-mail: pierre.l@mweb.co.za

Pinotage Top 10 goes international

The annual Pinotage Top 10 Competition has been opened to all comers.

This prestigious competition enters its second decade by inviting entries from wines made outside South Africa to join in. The competition, run by the South African producers Pinotage Association and sponsored by ABSA Bank, is unusual in that it selects 10 winners, enabling different styles of Pinotage wine to be equally recognised

The first competition in 1997 had just 49 entries while last year attracted 130. ABSA is part of the Barclays group who have taken winning wines and their winemakers to London, Hong Kong and Singapore to showcase their wines to Barclays international clients, giving the wines even wider exposure.

Closing date for entries to the 2007 competition is 30 August, and rules and entry forms can be downloaded from www.pinotage.co.za/html/entry_2007.html

The judges for the competition will be Duimpie Bayly, Charles Hopkins, Chris Roux, Dave Hughes, Neil Pendock, Michelle Cherutti-Kowal (wine lecturer in England) and Julian Brind (Master of Wine from England). They will taste all the wines, then retaste the 20 highest scoring wines to find the final Top 10.

What did I learn working at LIWSF?

So what did I learn from pouring Top 10 Pinotage at the London International Wine & Spirit Fair?

• Wear comfortable shoes – I got a blister on the second day
• Anything left at the corner of the stand gets taken
• Most crackers are eaten by people who never taste the wine
• The Pinotage Aroma wheel intrigues people and is very popular
• The concept of 10 equal winners confuses many
• WoSA have a great location in the middle of the hall
• The aircon doesn’t work in the middle of the hall
• Don’t eat in the Excel restaurants
• WoSA and their staff do a tremendous job – glasses were constantly replenished.

Visitors to the stand fell into 4 distinct groups.

1. Those studying for wine certification, especially Master of Wine and the Wine & Spirit Education Trust Diploma, who tasted all 10 wines to help understand the variety and appreciated being able to do so on one stand.
2. Winemakers from other countries – especially France, Spain and eastern Europe – who were fascinated by the wines.
3. Restaurateurs, sommeliers and independent wine shop owners looking for good wines that are not available in supermarkets – being competition winners elevated the wines from the others. For those wines for which I didn’t have distributor information I took the business card of the enquirer and contacted the winery via the Pinotage Association.
4. Everyone else: those new to South Africa wines, those that liked Pinotage and wanted to taste the winners, those that thought they didn’t like Pinotage and wanted to check again, passers by – the Pinotage Association stand was on a corner of the main WoSA exhibit in the centre of the hall so almost every visitor passed it at some time.
   

Some comments:
“Which is the best”
Me “They all are – they are the Top 10 Pinotages”
“Yes, but one must be best”

“So Wellington Cellar is the cheapest?”
Me “I don’t have the retail price of the wines”
“Isn’t that why it is at the end of the row?”
Me “The wines are in alphabetical order, from Allee Bleue to Wellington”

It was tremendous fun, but hard work, pouring Pinotage for three days from 09:30 to 18:00.

I'm Pouring the Pinotage Top 10 at LIWSF

The Pinotage Association will be showing the ten winners from the latest ABSA Top Ten Pinotage Competition at the London International Wine and Spirits Fair from 22 - 24 May 2007.

I am delighted that the Association have asked me to staff their stand and pour the wines.

If you are attending the show, please do take the time to visit me at the Proudly Pinotage stall, which will be in the Wines of South Africa complex located in the centre of the hall at L40/L50.

Hope to see you.

The winning wines are:

• Allée Bleue 2005
• Boland Cellar Winemakers Selection 2004*
• Camberley 2005*
• Clos Malverne Reserve 2003
• Kanonkop 2004
• Morewag 2002*
• Pulpit Rock 2004*
• Stellenzicht Golden Triangle 2005
• Tukulu Papkuilsfontein 2004
• Wellington Cellar Reserve 2003*

* = first time winner

Pinotage Top 10 - 2006

How time flies. Last year I was one of the judges of the annual Pinotage Top 10 2005 competition.

This years judges were Guido Francque (food and wine connoisseur from Belgium and honorary member of the Pinotage Association), Janåke Johansson (Swedish wine consultant and trader), Charles Hopkins (cellar master and vice-chairman of the Pinotage Association), Neil Pendock (wine writer), Sue van Wyk (Cape Wine Master from Australia) and Dave Hughes (international wine judge/writer from South Africa).

The upward trend in the quality of Pinotage wines continues, and it is really exciting to see new names challenge the established wineries. This year, half of the Top 10 are first time winners (marked with an asterisk). The remaining five are repeat winners. Kanonkop Estates seventh win brings it level now with top winner L'Avenir Estate.

• Allée Bleue Pinotage 2005
• Boland Cellar Winemakers Selection Pinotage 2004*
• Camberley Pinotage 2005*
• Clos Malverne Pinotage Reserve 2003
• Kanonkop Pinotage 2004
• Morewag Pinotage 2002*
• Pulpit Rock Pinotage 2004*
• Stellenzicht Golden Triangle 2005
• Tukulu Papkuilsfontein Pinotage 2004
• Wellington Cellar Pinotage Reserve 2003*

I remember being impressed with Camberley's first ever vintage, 2001, which my friend Keith Prothero had found pressed on me.

The runners up contains, despite my constant efforts, a wines I have not come across yet (Dornier) and name that I have never even heard of (Fantail). I'll haveto hunt them out next February in the Cape.

Congratulations to all of them, and also the judges. It is difficult to decide a winner when there are so many good wines now being made.

London Pinotage Tasting

The Pinotage Club tasted the 2003 Pinotage Top 10 on 9 November 2004. We were glad to welcome as co-host David Brice from Cape Town's Wine Cellar who came laden with wines he'd hand carried from South Africa. The event was fully booked with a waiting list.

As a bonus we started with a tank sample of a new wine from Fairview, a Pinotage fermented with about 4.5% of Viognier. Small amounts of white Viognier have traditionally been fermented with red grapes in the Rhone but science has only recently discovered what French vignerons instinctively knew; a reaction occurs that results in better flavour and colour extraction.

Fairview Pinotage/Viognier 2003 - A very approachable wine with a delightful
palate packed with sweet fruits, redcurrants, rounded and a good finish. This was a tank sample, the wine has not yet been released, but look out for it.

We tasted the 2003 Top 10 in alphabetical order and marked out of 7, my marks are given followed by the group average.

Allee Bleue 2002 - Opaque dense colour, fruity nose, full body, some high acids, good tannins & grip (4 - 4.5)

Bellevue Estate 2002 - Dark fruits, firm tannins and crisp acids, hint of banana (5 - 4.2)

DeWaal 2002 - Sweet berry nose, beautiful purple glass staining colour, dry and tastes duty in the middle palate. (4 - 4.3)

Graham Beck Old Road 2002 - Quite dry on front palate but opens out to reveal nice plummy fuits (4 - 4.3)

Wamakersvallei La Cave 2002 - Oh dear, oh dear. I had so much hopes for this wine which is not available in the UK and which I often enjoyed while in the Cape. But it was stinky corked. (no marks - corked)

L'Avenir Estate 2002 - Delicious ripe fruits, good depth, underpinned with soft tannins (6 - 5.2)

Rijks Private Cellar 2002 - Wonderful sweet fruits on front palate, a bit closed in the middle. (5 - 4.9)

Slaley Hunting Family 2002 - Bright clear, lovely fruits of the forest flavours and spices, long finish (5 - 4.3)

Rooiberg Reserve 2001 - Tangy crisp fruits, interesting, dollops of fruits, spicy. (6 - 4.5)

Stellenzicht Golden Triangle 2001 - Big fruity nose with spices & acids, bit dusty in middle. (5 - 5)

It's difficult to host a discussion while writing notes, hence the bevity of the notes.

Judging at Veritas and Absa Top 10

I was honoured to be invited to judge at Veritas and the Pinotage ABSA Top 10 competition. Veritas judging covered four days. On the first day I was on a panel judging Cape Blends, then Pinotage until Wednesday. The last day I judged Ruby Cabernet and 'other' red varieties, including Zinfandel, Touriga Nacional, Sangiovese, Petit Verdot, Mouvedre etc.

Judges sit in booths with a tasting sheet that names only the cultivar and vintage. Wines in groups of ten poured into ISO glasses which are brought on a tray. After tasting, the judges move to a table in another room, disclose their scores and discuss the wines. In rare cases of wide variation in scores, wines are called back for a retaste. Candidates for Gold & Double Gold are also re-tasted.

Pinotage Top 10 judging took place on the Friday of Veritas week, and followed the same process, except this time we looked for the best 20 wines out of those submitted. We then retasted all 20 finalists to make our final selection of the Top 10.

I was very aware that in my glass was the result of the efforts of a lot of people over a year, and I had to be fair to them, but also fair to consumers who use competitions for their purchasing decisions.

So why wasn't there a exact match between Veritas and Top 10? There are several reasons: not all wines were entered for both competitions, judging panels were different and the wines came from different bottles. Anyone who opens multiple bottles of the same wine at the same time will have experienced bottle variation.

At no time did judges know the identity of the wines they tasted, and we had no advance notice of winners.

Pinotage Top 10 - 2004

Winners of the ABSA/Pinotage Association 'Top 10' competition were announced in Cape Town on Thursday 14 October. They are

• Bay View Pinotage 2003 (Longridge/Winecorp - Stellenbosch)
• La Cave Pinotage 2003 (Wamakersvallei Wine Cellar - Wellington)
• Laibach Pinotage 2003 (Laibach Vineyards - Stellenbosch)
• L'Avenir Pinotage 2003 (L'Avenir Estate - Stellenbosch)
• Môreson Pinotage 2003 (Môreson - Franschhoek)
• Raka Pinotage 2003 (Raka - Stanford)
• Rijk's Private Cellar Pinotage 2001 (Rijk's Private Cellar - Tulbagh)
• Sentinel Pinotage 2003 (Coppoolse Finlayson-Sentinel Winery - Stellenbosch)
• Spice Route Pinotage 2003 (Spice Route Wine Company - Swartland)
• Spier Private Collection 2002 (Spier/Winecorp - Stellenbosch)

The runners up were Altydgedacht 2001, Beaumont 2002, Beyerskloof Reserve Collection 2003, Beyerskloof Select Winemakers 2003, Diemersfontein 2003, Hill & Dale 2003, Jacobsdal 2001, Morgenhof Estate 2001, Stellenzicht Golden Triangle 2002, and Tecoma 2002.

Winemaker Francois Naudé of L'Avenir Estate holds the record with wins in seven of the eight competitions.

While it was good to see wineries showing consistency by repeating previous successes (La Cave, Rijk's, Laibach, and Môreson) it is also exciting to see new names among the winners and new areas. Raka is a new vineyard in a ward, Kleinrivier, that was only registered in August.

Dr Steve Booysen, group chief executive of Absa said "Similar to Absa, the new achievements of the Pinotage society stand on the shoulders of the previous year's successes. There seems to be a trend that on the international scene Pinotage is slowly but surely becoming the preferred South African red wine. Absa is very proud to be a sponsor of this competition and to be part of the Pinotage Association's objective to always improve continuous quality and volume. We agree with the author Elbert Hubbard who said art is the beautiful way of doing things, science is the effective way of doing things and business is the economic way of doing, and when you combine it - as is the case with fine Pinotage wines - the final product is higher in every facet. To me it is the essence of what is achieved every year."

Pinotage Association Chairman, Beyers Truter, said "There has been a tremendous growth in quality Pinotage over the past decade. I'm not saying all future Pinotages will be fault-free, but this won't be because of the cultivar but the winemaker. To make Pinotage is not easy. You have to control acid, PH and tannins and it's easy to get bacterial spoilage. But those that can make Pinotage can make any wine. We know the cultivar and we are making classic wines that can compete with the best in the world."

Beyerskloof was a runner-up with two reserves. The Beyerskloof Select Winemakers 2003 is a special bottling for South Africa's 'Wine of the Month Club' and the Beyerskloof Reserve Collection 2003 is specially blended for the UK supermarket Sainsbury. Owner/winemaker Beyers Truter told me he wasn't surprised at the success of the special blends as they "are blended to be more immediately attractive, and they have an open inviting nose." He makes his regular Reserve for ageing, with more wood and sees them reaching a peak in ten years.

He remained cheerful when his wines didn't reach the final ten, congratulating the winners and saying how pleased he was to see a new generation of young winemakers making such of a success of the cultivar he has championed over the years

The judges for the 2004 competition were Duimpie Bayly (convener), Peter May (wine writer from England and honourary member of the Pinotage Association), Neil Pendock (wine writer), Charl Theron (wine consultant and previously head of production at KWV), Mike Louw (wine consultant), Jenny Ratcliff (Cape Wine Master) and Dave Hughes (international wine judge from South Africa).