DeWaal Top of the Hill 2006

Has it really been that long? Last Top of the Hill I tasted was the 2004 vintage when I visited the winery in 2007. Then I found the 2004 an “older style Pinotage, with firm firm dry tannins, less approachable fruit, and crisp acidity.”

This 2006 is a different beast being very approachable and well balanced with tannins well restrained on opening and an ideal wine with enough body to match food. The wine opens up in the glass showing ripe cherry flavours. The Top of The Hill is made for aging, and I think I’ll put away my remaining bottle to see how it develops, as the few dregs of this bottle were showing intriguing spices and plums when I emptied them the following day.

A well deserved Top 10 winner in 2008.


I must admit though my total puzzlement at the labelling. The front label does not mention the grape variety. The rear label has a vague all purpose waffle about “the diversity of soil and vineyard sites on this Stellenbosch Kloof Estate enable judicious partnering of classic varietals with ideal terroir.”

What relevance does the diversity of vineyard sites on the farm have to with this specific wine? It is a single vineyard wine from a named vineyard which happens to be on the top of a hill, not in a ravine as kloof implies. Not only that, but the historic Top of the Hill vineyard is planted with the world’s oldest Pinotage vines. I’d have thought that was worthy of mention.

Pinotage -- South Africa's Home-Grown Identity

“Pinotage is not merely a European grape transplanted to a new hemisphere. It's a native [which] could establish South Africa not only as a major winegrowing region but also as a region with a home-grown identity,” says Lolis Eric Elie in New Orlean’s ‘Times-Picayune’, adding “If only the grape could make good wine consistently.”

On a recent trip to South Africa, Elie “did a blind tasting of several bottles of Pinotage and one Pinotage blend. I tried to include all of the versions of Pinotage available in New Orleans these days. There are not many.”

Zonnebloem 1997 Pinotage was the favourite. “The nose was very much like what you'd expect in an Amarone: prunes and old leather. The fruit had all but subsided, leaving a hint of red berries, but mostly dark, dried flavors and slight petroleum perfume. This wine demonstrates how better Pinotage can age for a decade or so, but even by the end of the tasting this wine was losing its structure, leaving behind bright, almost sour flavors. At 12.5 percent alcohol, it exemplifies the taste of Pinotage made in the Old World, European style.”

Morkel's 2005 Bellevue Estate “exemplifies the other, newer approach to Pinotage. The wine spends 12 months in American oak barrels. From this wood, it gets an eggnog scent on the nose. It is well balanced with ripe tannins and a little acidity. Though it's 14.5% alcohol, the flavors are so integrated as to not be overpowering.”

Elie remarks on the differing styles found in the tasting – “there's another dichotomy besides the Old World vs. New World, austere vs. powerful debate. The grape can produce highly tannic, acidic wines that taste sharp and harsh, like a bad Sangiovese. But it also can produce light, berrylike wines that resemble nothing so much as a Beaujolais. Those two wines have nothing in common and, it would seem, the two visions of Pinotage they parallel have little in common from a flavor perspective also.”

Graham Beck’s 2007 Pinno from “has 14.5% alcohol, but it is not a big, powerful wine. It's full of strawberries and driven more by acidity than tannins. It's a good, crowd-pleasing party wine,” and Uiterwyk's DeWaal 2005 Pinotage “parallels the nutmeg and Beaujolais flavors of the Pinno. It has nice, soft tannins, with tart cherry flavors on the front end and a bit of tar on the finish. It has 14% alcohol.”

But Southern Right’s 2005 Pinotage got the thumbs down being “full of smoke on the nose, and every bit of its 14% alcohol level was evident from the initial whiff, turning into harsh tar on the tongue, overpowering the fruit flavours,” and Fleur du Cap’s 2006 Pinotage also failed to please because while its “combination of flavors is interesting, they were not especially tasty.”

Elie has a refreshingly positive take on Pinotage and the full article, which is online here , is well worth reading.

As Elie says -- “So much rides on the shoulders of Pinotage.”

Top of the Hill

Uiterwyk Estate claim the world's oldest Pinotage vines are planted in their 'Top of the Hill' vineyard (pictured right), which is dramatically placed - as the name suggests - at the brow of a low hill crowned with a large solitary tree whose spreading branches provide welcome shade for farm workers during their lunch breaks.

Because people like me can't pronounce Uiterwyk without making Afrikaaners wince, the Estate has been labelling their wines under the family name of DeWaal, and it is the three brothers DeWaal who make and market the wines.

I popped into the tasting room with my good friend Keith Prothero where we were poured their three Pinotages.

2004 DeWaal Pinotage.
This comes from 25-35 year old vines on the estate plus some bought in fruits, and a third gets oak aging. This is their entry level pinno and sells for a reasonable 45 rand. On the palate it shows very soft fruit, it is very approachable with well integrated tannins and a fruit acid lift on the finish.

2004 DeWaal C T DeWaal Pinotage.
This is dedicated to ancestor C T deWaal who was the first person to make a Pinotage wine. This has a dusky nose with some coffee tones and a bit of farmyard. It is dryer than the first wine, with tighter fruit, quite closed and feels it need some more time.

2002 DeWaal Top of the Hill Pinotage.
DeWaals flagship, a multi-award winning label that is made only in exceptional years. The Top of the Hill vineyard was planted in the 1940's by Daniël de Waal Sr and these ancient bush vines produce small berries with thick skins and concentrated flavours. I found this wine a more older style Pinotage, with firm firm dry tannins, less approachable fruit, and crisp acidity (the wine was aged 21 months in all new 225l French oak barrels. If this reads like a less than enthusiastic review I'd like to add that the bottle was opened especially for us (many thanks - few can resist Keith's winning ways) immediately before tasting and I reckon it needs decanting and aeration to open up show its best. It's a serious wine, from a label I have greatly enjoyed in the past, and I'd like to pair this with a decent steak.

Picture of Top of The Hill vineyard by Keith Philips and used by permission of Uiterwyck Wine Estate

Name Changes

Don't ask for Pinotage - or other wines - from Bellevue, Erica, Uiterwyk or Vlottenburg. All have changed the name on their labels.

Bellevue found it impossible to use that name in Europe, so are branding their wines 'Morkel' after the owning family. Erica Vineyards also had problems with registration and chose the name 'Raka' after owner Piet Dreyer's fishing boat.

Vlottenburg have discarded their distinctive name and chosen the anodyne and immediately forgettable 'Stellenbosch Hills' instead. Apparently they thought 'Vlottenburg' was too difficult for English speakers. I had no problem pronouncing 'Vlottenburg', unlike 'Uiterwyk'. To help people like me, and to avoid confusion with Uitwyk, Uiterwyk wines have been branded with the family name 'De Waal'.