Old Pinotage in Cape Town

My chums at The Wine Cellar in Cape Town have just held a tasting of old wines sourced from a private collector. Among them were threee Pinotages:

- Zonnebloem Pinotage 1974
- Simonsig Pinotage 1974
- Lanzarac Pinotage 1966

I couldn't be there (coz, amongst other reasons, I was in Tampa, Florida) but fellow bloggers The Cru Master and Harry Reginald Haddon were. The Cru at thecru.co.za has an attractive sepia photo of the tasting cellar and says Special mention must be made of the aged Pinotage's - sensational stuff but Harry at wineandi.wordpress.com has detailed tasting notes.

Interesting reading.


While you are at Wine & I have a look at the menu tabs at the top. Harry is campaigning against the practise of restaurants charging fees to list wines and he's going further by naming (allegedly) guilty parties.

P & O’s Pinotage Picks

Michael Olivier and Neil Pendock (P & O) recommended 45 Pinotages in their new People’s Guide 2010. (see review posted yesterday). Four of them are singled out to receive Coup de Coeur (blow to the heart) awards. They are

Zonnebloem 2007 (under 50R) which is described as “Elegance and excitement, big yummy, coconut there too. Delicious aftertaste.” Neil adds that “there was cooing around the room when we tasted this wine.”

Beaumont 2006 (50-100R) – “Bright fresh, sweet cherry nose. Plums and vanilla – finishes dry.

Bellevue Morkel 2007 (50-100R) – “Smoky coffee. Big chewy fruit and toasty vanilla with a long and lingering finish.”

Clos Malverne Reserve 2007 (Over 100R) – “Chocolate mint crunch. Sweet chocolate, some banana and plums.”


The omissions are intriguing. No Kanonkop, Ashbourne, L’Avenir Grand Vin, or DeWaal Top of the Hill. Beyerskloof Reserve is included, but not its cheaper standard bottling, although in the book Michael calls that “one of the great wines of South Africa.” Two coffee’n’chocolate Pinotages are there – Diemersfontein and Café Culture – accompanied by swipes at the ABSA Top 10 competition for ignoring them, but Bertus Fourie’s Barista and Boland’s Cappuccino are left out. Stellenzichts second label Hill & Dale makes it but not Stellenzicht’s multi-award winning Golden Triangle.

I have just got to get that Zonnebloem to see if it makes me coo.

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A Historic Evening with Beyers Truter

Being invited to plunder Beyers Truter’s private cellar was dream come true. There is capacity for 30,000 bottles; many of the wines were made by Beyers and alongside Kanonkop and Beyerskloof are own label wines from UK supermarkets he’s made wine for. And there’s also an eclectic collection of many different South African wines and a good number of wines from other countries.

Beyers had invited me to his seaside house to join him and Francois Naude,(previously winemaker at L'Avenir Estate, now independent consultant) and Corius Visser (winemaker with Beyers at Croydon Vineyard Estate), for an evening tasting from his collection. It was a chance for the three winemakers to get a night away from the stress of vintage time. (pictured right from top: Corius, Beyers and Francois hunting elusive bottles)

Francois, Corius and I went hunting for interesting wines; Beyers had suggested we choose eight bottles but he soon joined in pulling out wines and we quickly had 11 wines. My picks were a 1982 Zonnebloem, 1996 CWG L’Avenir and a 1999 Kanonkop.

Upstairs the wines were opened. Beyers explained the format of these evenings “We pour a glass of each in turn and drink and discuss them.” There was no spittoon, we would take time to relish the wines.

The wines were

1978 Groot Contantia Superior (Constantia)
1982 Zonnebloem (Coastal)
1985 Cederberg (Cederberg)
1987 Oude Necktar
1989 Clos Malverne
1989 Simonsig CWG Reserve
1996 Paradyskloof
1996 L’Avenir CWG
1999 Kanonkop
1999 Kumkani
2006 Binyamina Teva (Israel)
2006 Muddy Water (New Zealand)

Wine of Origin Stellenbosch except where indicated

1978 Groot Constantia Superior (Constantia)
“They were one of the first Estates to make Pinotage”, Beyers remarked.
PM – “The cork is crumbly and ullage was low. Deep red colour, brown on rim, beautiful colour for a 30 year old wine. Aged sweet bouquet but no oxidation, a sweet toffee light body with touch of acid on finish”
FN = “If I tasted this blind I’d think it was an old sweet white wine, not a red. Fairly high acid which helps it to keep.”
BT – “Very typical of the area, pine needle and honey with high acid.”

1982 Zonnebloem (Coastal)
BT - “The fruit for this came from Kanonkop and Bellevue”
PM – “Dark clear colour, nose of forest floor, lively bright exciting red berry flavours, sweet, lots of life. A beautiful elegant lady of a wine”
BT – “Like water running over a burnt forest floor.”


1985 Cederberg (Cederberg)
PM – “Deep red colour, smells sweet, old and oxidised with a hint of pine toilet cleaner. Sherry taste, sweet like a dessert wine, acids developing in glass.”
BT –“ Not completely gone, over extracted, like syrup.”
FN – “Heavy wine from a light vintage, quite black, too concentrated. I wouldn’t expect this wine from this vintage and area.”
There was some discussion about concentrating this wine to use as a marinade or for drizzling over Christmas cake.

1987 Oude Necktar
BT – “The fruit came from the same block used by Neil Ellis for ‘Swan Song’”
PM –“Sweet and short, light boded and short finish.”
CV –“Fynbos-like nose.”
FN: Blue gum, mint, herbaceousness. Spicy nose offers more than taste does.”
BT –“Acids are too high for the fruit”
FN – “ I think the grapes were picked unripe which explains the high acids.”

1989 Clos Malverne
PM –“Pale light red, luminous, not much nose. Ripe sweet fig flavours, light bodied”
FN – “Beautiful nose, just too acidic”
BT – “ Too high acid. All this wines plus points can’t overcome the acids”
CV – “Too high acid”


1989 Simonsig CWG Reserve
BT – “Very good colour. This is the first one showing more oak and blackberry. Very well balanced, classic blackberry and oak. Was made for CWG, had more oak and will
last 30-40 years.”
FN – “Excellent colour, herby herbaceous flavours, fruity acid, nice tannins makes it nice and firm.”
PM –“Delightful; sweet blackberry and spices.”

1996 Paradyskloof
PM – “Smells old, light bodied, thin red currant short finish”
BT – “ Bit of burnt coal and smoke”
FN – “Lesser vintage, little green. The wine is still too young and the tannins still green. Give it some age and let tannins soften. This is a 2nd label wine; not bad but too young.”

1996 L’Avenir CWG
BT – “Excellent colour, farmyard nose, wood and mushroom. Interesting: it tastes the same. Very complex”
PM – “Isn’t ‘farmyard’ an indication of brett?”
BT –“Lots of people say farmyard equals brett, but that is just Simonsberg. It’s a Simonsberg characteristic.”
FN – “Very forest floor nose. Always had a farm-yardy characteristic – which is what I like and often find in Bordeaux. Nice and full.”
PM – “Beautiful: complex and ripe. Lots going on.



1999 Kanonkop
PM – “Incredible rich black red colour – superb balance. Concentrated dense fruit, great complexity and it is just so drinkable.” I selected this wine because I’d been so impressed with it when I tasted it last year at a tasting at Kanonkop; I wanted to taste it again and I wasn’t disappointed.
FN – “Bit of farmyard, black cherry, tobacco, red cherry.”
BT – “Blackberry – cherry flavoured cigar.”

1999 Kumkani
FN – “Lacks complexity of previous; after nose it under delivers on the palate.”
BT – “Bit of farmyard but not enough depth to carry it.”
PM – “Light bright, not very interesting.

2006 Binyamina Teva (Israel)
I was surprised to see this in Beyer’s cellar but I’d introduced him to the MD of winery last year at the London trade fair and Beyers is keen to visit them in Israel.
BT – “Yes – raspberry and tea. There’s not enough oak in this. Medicinal flavour will be removed with oak. With a bit of oak it would make a fantastic wine.
FN – Dense raspberry. There’s a bit of oak on this; it tastes like crushed raspberries. Ideal to do malo in barrel (or use staves) to tone it down. Very nice acidity.

2006 Muddy Water (New Zealand)
This was the twelfth wine which I had brought from New Zealand. It was winner of our blind tasting of NZ Pinotages and I was keen to hear what the South Africans thought of it.
FN: - Quite a light colour, good nose, good varietal character. Nice fruit; I like this
BT: - Very Pinot Noir, I’d love to taste this older.
FN: I’d never have guessed the alcohol level was 15%, colour is very light, concentration of wine should be more to handle wood, but it matches. If I was consulting there I’d work the wine harder in fermentation to get more extraction. It’s a bit light; needs more density in flavour profile and more colour. Very nice fruit, I’d just like more intensity”

By now it was quite late; Beyers got braai going and cooked meats which we ate with more glasses of the opened wines, and so to bed. The amount left in the bottles next morning indicated our favourite three were Kanonkop, Simonsig and L'Avenir.

That morning was magical. Sitting on the balcony with a coffee in the sun we watched two groups of whales to our left while a huge rainbow over the ocean on our right indicated a storm on the other side of the Hottentot Holland Mountains. Then the car was packed, the winemakers switched on their mobile phones and we headed back to Stellenbosch.

Many thanks to Beyers Truter

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.”

Paul Bulas Loves Pinotage

Paul Bulas lives in Canada and counts Pinotage as his favourite vinifera wine -- because Paul is a passionate champion of native American and hybrid varieties. Paul has contributed many tasting notes to the Pinotage Club over the years, and in this open letter to South African winemakers he tells of his own experiences and love of the variety.

My first experience with Pinotage came in 1998 - it was a 1995 Zonnebloem from Stellenbosch. I had never before tried varietal Pinotage simply because I hadn't known about it. I was immediately struck by the uniqueness of its aromas compared to those of the ubiquitous Cabernets and Merlots that I was focusing on in those days. Pinotage had its own distinctive nose typically comprising wild strawberry, banana, earth, elderberry and leather. I was fascinated by the uniqueness of this wine which, although strictly speaking was a "New World" wine, had something very serious and classical about it. I later came to more precisely identify that character as being a mix of jubilant forward fruit married to a savoury mid-palate and a stern, dry, tannic structure - all these aspects being fascinatingly intertwined into a single wine. I loved the Lapsang-Souchong-like smokiness in the finish, as well as the similarity of the finish to certain black-skinned table grapes that can have a nice tannic kick when you chew the skins. I also immediately found foods that I felt matched naturally with Pinotage, and began buying more Pinotage after that one tasting than any other red vinifera wine.

Over the years I have found that Pinotage goes really well with any food containing tomatoes, eggplant and bacon (the savoury aspect marries well to these) as well as sharp, old cheeses. Beefsteak grilled over hardwood coals is yet another sublime match; I especially enjoy oaked Pinotage with this (oaked Pinotage is actually my favourite sort in general). Cheddar cheese and potato perogies topped with fried bacon bits and onions - a well-known meal among those of Polish extraction! - is a surprising but very apt match for quality Pinotage as well. And I can't think of any better wine to serve with any food cooked outdoors over hardwood - in effect, braaied food - than Pinotage.

In recent times, it seems, the debate has heated up over whether Pinotage should even be South Africa's flagship variety - and there are voices that even call for its outright elimination from Cape Blends. I cannot ally myself with those views, since what they entail is that South Africa should simply get on the bandwagon of conformity and uniformity, and just produce more of the standby wines that are already so prevalent around the world. Now, this is not to say that South Africa's Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Shiraz aren't world class - they most certainly are - but surely Pinotage is a grape that first appeared on South African soil; it is a uniquely South African creation; there is history behind it, and the wine is unlike any other. This, and the fact that quality viticultural and winemaking techniques are available today, should be reason enough to see the value in making top-notch estate-grown Pinotage for SA wine lovers and the rest of us who love SA wine to enjoy.

This Canadian is a supporter of Pinotage who really would like all South African producers to know that they are doing something wonderful: they are adding to the diversity of the world wine tapestry by producing fine varietal Pinotage. Please continue making the finest, most classical Pinotage wines you can. Don't listen to the hype out there that would see this classic South African red grape torn out or relegated to low-quality bulk wines. Pinotage is a wine that has many admirers, and I hope that this fact will always be your strength and hope as you work in the vineyards and cellars of South Africa's winelands.

Thanks Paul, and remember that I am keeping a bottle of Zonnebloem 1994 Pinotage in my cellar for your next visit to England .

Paul's Hybrid Wine blog is at http://hybridwines.blogspot.com/

Zonnebloem Release Matured Pinotage

Unless you store them yourself, mature Pinotages are hard to find. However there is good news if you are in South Africa.

Zonnebloem have announced that they are releasing a limited amount of 10 year old Pinotage.
They have been retained for optimal maturation after the initial release of the Zonnebloem Pinotage 1997. They say this is now at its peak in terms of quality and maturity - "Made in a fruitier style, the Zonnebloem Pinotage 1997 is deep ruby red in colour with ample strawberry flavours and well-integrated wood and tannin structure. "

Zonnebloem Pinotage 1997 is available exclusively from Makro at around R54.90 which seems a remarkably reasonable price for a 10 year old wine. Based on my recent experiences, I'd try one bottle first before splashing out on a case.

Zonnebloems website at http://www.zonnebloem.co.za/ (beware, this is a tediously slow to load flash site)


(news and image courtesy of http://www.wine.co.za/)