Buying guide: Pinotage

THE STORY SO FAR
Convinced as we all were that indigenous variety Pinotage would take the wine-drinking world by storm post political transformation, WINE magazine instituted the Pinotage Champion of the Year award in 1997. It was intended to draw attention to the best examples of the variety and was followed by the producer-driven Pinotage Association undertaking its own promotional effort by way of the Absa Top 10 competition, launched in the same year.

As time went by, however, we became increasingly doubtful that we should accord Pinotage favoured status. Granted, there were some very fine wines from the likes of L'Avenir and Kanonkop during the late 1990s but generally the variety seemed to turn out rather inelegant, rustic stuff despite the industry's best efforts.

In 2003, Tukulu 2001 was the seventh Pinotage Champion of the Year, but there were only three other wines out of 85 that rated as well. Taking a cue from readers who seemed increasingly disenchanted with the variety, we then decided to suspend the award.

The next few years saw very few wines of excellence emerging and Pinotage suffered a sharp decline in relevance among most wine enthusiasts.

 

PANEL TASTING 2007
Good news for Pinotage loyalists, however, is that the variety enjoyed its best showing in a long while at this year's review of the 2005 vintage, supplemented with 2004s in the case of producers who choose to release their wines later.

Kanonkop in the Simonsberg ward of Stellenbosch has long had a reputation for quality Pinotage and the 2004 vintage made by Abrie Beeslaar, who succeeded maestro of the grape Beyers Truter in 2002, fulfils the highest expectations, picking up 4½ Stars. In addition, a further eight wines out of the 76 assessed received a 4 Star rating and there is every indication that Pinotage, at least at the top end, has turned some kind of corner.

How to explain this? Subsequent to South Africa's re-entry into international markets, there were many who were all too ready to exploit the unique sales proposition that Pinotage provided without fully understanding what they were working with. Ask any of the more recognised Pinotage producers and they will confirm that it is a grape possessing plenty of quirks. A period of research and development was required and it just may be that we are starting to see this pay off in the form of wines of greater sophistication.

Among the wineries that now seem to have a real handle on the variety is Simonsig in Stellenbosch, which has received 4 Star ratings for three consecutive vintages of its Red Hill Pinotage (2003, 2004 and 2005). In addition, Hermanus producer Southern Right, which got 4 Stars for its 2004 vintage in 2006, scored the same for its 2005 this year, while Pulpit Rock outside Riebeek-West collected 4 Stars for its first-label 2004 a year ago and for its Brink Family 2005 this time round.

NO MIDDLE GROUND
Before anyone gets over-excited, however, it must be said that there are still some unacceptable versions around with six wines failing to achieve even 1 Star.

Flagstone winemaker Bruce Jack made the observation that a tasting of Pinot Noir in Beaune, Burgundy, would have produced a similar sort of fall-out rate. The point is, in the case of wines that did not deliver, one should question where the grapes were grown, the particular vintage conditions as well as winemaking technique. "There will always be gems and dogs," as he put it.

THE PANEL'S COMMENTS
There were three tiers of quality apparent. The highest of these included wines with dark plummy fruit and fine tannins. These typically had the concentration and structure to reward some ageing.

Colin Frith of wine retailer Picardi pointed out that historically the best Pinotage had a reputation for being very long-lived, but speculated that since the latest releases were generally made in a more modern, fruit-driven style, they might not possess quite the same potential to improve with age. Time will tell.

Then there were wines that showed red fruit and were less full-bodied. While these were appealing, they were less complex and mostly intended for early-drinking.

Lastly, there were the also-rans: wines with tart acid and astringent tannins. Occasionally, these also showed technical problems like oxidation or micro-bacterial spoilage.

Discussing some of the idiosyncrasies of the grape, Jack confirmed that it did tend to have a pH (a notation regarding effective acid in the wine) that was not as low as other red varieties, requiring a greater acid correction. This explained why some of the wines appeared unduly sharp-tasting.

Jack also observed that quite a few of the higher-scoring wines appeared a touch sweet, and proffered that winemakers were using a little residual sugar (R.S.) to counter the aggressive and bitter tannins that Pinotage was notorious for. He explained that "some R.S. broadens the palate and gives the sensation of fruit" and argued that this was not at all to the detriment of the product. "Insisting that wines should be bone-dry is very Eurocentric. Pinotage is after all an African variety."

In conclusion, then, some really exciting, interesting examples at the top end but still some very disappointing wines at the bottom end. The garrulous Jack inevitably had the last word: "Pinotage separates the men from the boys. It's a real challenge and should be celebrated for that."

Best value - Top 10
Wines recommended as particularly good value on the basis of their quality: price ratio in the context of the average price (R73) of all the wines assessed

Are you getting what you pay for?

PINOTAGE


Kanonkop 2004
CELLAR PRICE: R130
Brooding nose of oak and dark fruit. Palate is full and round with good fruit concentration, fresh acid and firm but elegant tannins. Well balanced. Lots of potential. Keep for 2 to 10 years.
DH 17 CF 16 CE 16.5 EP 16 BJ 18

Pulpit Rock Brink Family 2005
CELLAR PRICE: R33
Cherry, plums and spice on the nose. Palate is medium bodied with red fruit and elegant tannins. Drink now or over next 2 years.
DH 16.5 CF 16 CE 16 EP 15 BJ 17

Hidden Valley 2004
CELLAR PRICE: R60
Very ripe fruit on nose. Full bodied on palate with dark fruit and firm but not astringent tannins on palate. Long, dry finish. Keep for up to 5 years.
DH 16 CF 16.5 CE 16.5 EP 15 BJ 17.5

Groot Constantia 2005
CELLAR PRICE: R72
Nose shows ripe fruit and smoky notes. Rich and full on the palate with juicy dark fruit and sleek tannins. Long finish. Keep for 2 to 5 years.
DH 16.5 CF 16 CE 14 EP 16 BJ 17

Compagnies Wijn 2005
oude compagnies post PRICE: R95
Black fruit and oak on nose. Palate is big, rich and bold. Shows good concentration and heavy tannins. Keep for up to 5 years.
DH 17 CF 16 CE 14 EP 17 BJ 17

Deetlefs Oak Matured 2005
CELLAR PRICE: R95
Red cherry, plum and banana on the nose. Juicy fruit and soft tannins. Very approachable. Drink now or over next 2 years.
DH 15.5 CF 16 CE 15 EP 16.5 BJ 17.5

Simonsig Redhill 2005
CELLAR PRICE: R96.50
Berry fruit, spice and vanilla on nose. Very well balanced with cherries and plums, bright acid and soft, supple tannins. Keep for 2 to 5 years.
DH 16 CF 16 CE 16 EP 16 BJ 16

Southern Right 2005
CELLAR PRICE: SO R100
Dark fruit and smoky oak on the palate. Full bodied, with ripe dark fruit, fresh acid and elegant, supple tannins. Well balanced and long finish. Keep for up to 5 years.
DH 17.5 CF 15.5 CE 16 EP 16 CF 15

Allée Bleue 2005
CELLAR PRICE: R110
Dark fruit and some herbal notes on the nose. Juicy fruit, spicy tannins and fresh acid on the palate. Full bodied with good structure and layers of flavour. Very attractive now.
DH 17 CF 16 CE 16 EP 15.5 BJ 15.5

Groot Eiland 2005 SO R34.50
Thelema 2004 R45
Longridge 2004 R83
Tukulu 2004 ARP R86.43
Laroche L'Avenir Grand Vin 2005 R210
Ashbourne 2004 (Southern Right) R250

Drostdy-Hof 2005 SO R33.40
Viljoensdrift River Grandeur 2005 R52
Altydgedacht 2005 R55
Sumaridge 2005 SO R55
Stellenzicht Golden Triangle 2005 R60
Jackson's Limited Release 2005 (Stanford Hills) R68.40
Morkel 2005 (Bellevue) R70
Laibach 2005 SO R70
Clos Malverne Reserve 2004 ARP R74
Môreson 2005 R74
Seidelberg Roland's Reserve 2005 R98
Laroche L'Avenir 2005 R105
Spier Private Collection 2004 SO ARP108

Bovlei 2005 R24
Rooiberg 2005 R25
Five's Reserve 2005 (Van Loveren) R31
Du Toitskloof 2005 R31.50
Boland Winemakers Selection 2005 R32
DC Old Block 2005 (Darling Cellars) R39
Pinehurst 2005 (Môreson) R39
De Waal 2004 R45
Nederburg 2004 R46.60
Pulpit Rock 2005 R49
Fleur du Cap 2005 (Bergkelder) ARP R51
Clos Malverne 2004 ARP R54
Anura 2005 R55
Durbanville Hills 2005 R55
Middelvlei 2005 R67.50
Marianne 2005 R68
Beyerskloof Reserve 2005 R85
CT De Waal 2004 R95
Diemersfontein Carpe Diem 2005 R99
Fairview Primo 2004 R110
Stormhoek The Guava 2004 R135.66
Meerendal The Heritage Block 2005 R250

Eagle's Cliff 2005 R18.75
Simonsvlei 2005 R27.99
Welmoed 2005 R28.50
Landskroon 2005 R31.50
Bellingham Our Founder's 2005 ARP R41
Kumkani 2005* R53.38
Seidelberg 2005 R59
Graham Beck 2005 R64
Anthony Smook 2005 R68
Lanzerac 2005 R89
Cloof 2005 R120

Goudini 2005 R26
Cloof Dusty Road 2005* R35
Simonsig 2004 R43
Knorhoek 2005 R49
Fairview 2005* SO R50
Bon Cap 2005 R50
Robertson Phanto Ridge 2005 R51.05
Camberley 2005 R100
Kaapzicht Steytler 2004 R160

also tasted
Diemersdal 2005 R50
Mountain Oaks 2005 R55
La Cave 2005 (Wamakersvallei) R80
Beaumont 2004 R80
PK Morkel 2004 (Bellevue) R95

corked
Van Loveren 2005 SO R30

PRICES: wines in each quality grouping listed in order of ascending price - all ex-cellar unless otherwise stipulated
ARP Approximate retail price
SO Sold out ex-cellar
* Bottled under screwcap

Wine tasters: Honorary members of the Institute of Cape Wine Masters Dave Hughes (DH) (chair) and Colin Frith of Picardi (CF), WINE magazine deputy editor Christian Eedes (CE) with Cape Wine Master Elsie Pels (EP) and Flagstone winemaker Bruce Jack (BJ).