al Pinotage 2008
“What an unforgettable harvest. Everything looked spectacular until it rained and didn’t stop leaving us with hectically low yields and a beautiful Noble Late Harvest Semillon – all this while dodging Eskom curve-balls. A harvest where teamwork and resolve were the hero’s of the day – making magic out of very difficult circumstances. We made and planted our first Riesling and and an especially lovely yummy Cabernet. To add to the fruitfulness for the year, Kerry and Chris were blessed with a small Genevieve.”
Tasting Notes
Peaty herbs and eucalyptus meet sweet violets in a compote of stewed blueberries, soft cedarwood and firm but gentle tannins.
Winemaker Comments
We regrafted most of our pinotage block to sauvignon blanc in 2005, leaving a half a hectare to satisfy our very vocal supporters for this wine, from which we can make only 400 cases. The direct south easter, lack of irrigation and location of the vineyard make for very small berries in this vigorous block - small individual grape size and fairly low yield gives intense fruit flavour of black, red and blue berries. The lovely, clean palate has a light eucalyptus character, which has become synonymous with the Nitida pinotage over the years. This year, we have blended with a small amount of wine from our neighbouring farms to round out the palate.
