What’s in a name? We’ve taken Pinotage and broken it up into new components—so we thought we’d do the same with the name.
It's a new red blend led by Pinotage, with Grenache Noir and Cinsaut in supporting roles.
“My aim for the wine was to create a Pinotage blend that was not aggressive or “grippy” in its youth,” says winemaker Clayton Reabow. “The palate needed to be seamless and powerful enough to make you want more. The real hero of the wine had to be Pinotage and there was strict control on not detracting away too much from this. The Cinsaut can dominate very quickly so care was taken to restrain its power.”
The Pinotage is a selection of Môreson Pinotage barrels that are lighter and fruitier in style. There is a large portion of older oak used in the blend with only 15% new oak.
The Cinsaut is produced from a vineyard block planted in 1956. It is a dryland vineyard yielding only 3 ton/ha in a good year. The Cinsaut is very savoury and spicy and provides a wine with alcohol potential of 13%.
The Grenache Noir, although picked very late is very subtle and soft. The purpose of its inclusion is to soften the tannins of the Pinotage and make the wine more approachable.
“With all three cultivars, the approach in the winemaking was soft or gentle with minimum extraction during winemaking. The components are vinified and matured separately until blending.”
Aroma: raspberries, strawberries, cherry, cinnamon, vanilla, cloves, fudge, toffee, truffle
Palate: medium bodied, spicy, elegant, good harmony and balance between acid, fruit and oak.
The blend is 50% Pinotage, 30% Cinsaut and 20% Grenache Noir