Freestyle RSA
Beyerskloof Synergy Reserve and Mas Nicolas
Beyerskloof Synergy Reserve and Mas Nicolas are two local wines that aren't made according to any conventional template. Christian Eedes found out more about them.
With South Africa's re-emergence onto the global wine scene post apartheid, there were many who thought Pinotage would become the country's signature red wine variety.
A cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsaut achieved at the University of Stellenbosch during the 1920s, it potentially provided international wine enthusiasts with welcome relief from yet more wines featuring the classic French varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Shiraz.
However, while a gap in the market undoubtedly existed at the beginning of the 1990s for something particular from South Africa, it quickly transpired that full-blown Pinotage wines, at least how they were put across back then, might be a bit more robust than was required.
How to retain the unique selling proposition that Pinotage provided but make it acceptable to the delicate palates of the UK, Europe and the US? Suddenly the notion of the "Cape Blend" was born.
The thinking was that if Pinotage was blended with more conventional red varieties, then a wine might be obtained that had a sufficient point of difference from the global competition but wasn't so outlandish as to leave the uninitiated totally bemused. Tuscany has Super Tuscans (wines featuring the local Sangiovese blended with classic French varieties) to complement traditional Chianti so why not a "Cape Blend" as an entrée to Pinotage?
Needless to say, opinion remains divided to this day. On the one hand, there are a number of accomplished Pinotage blends (see panel) but there are also a good few examples of other blends that, while not specifically referencing any other region of the world, do not contain Pinotage. Most wine enthusiasts would surely agree that the almost-iconic Rust en Vrede (a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Shiraz) is very much of the Cape even if some would deny it "Cape Blend" status.
Synergy and Synergy Reserve from Stellenbosch farm Beyerskloof are two wines that are very pointedly Pinotage blends - not surprising, as the winemaker is Beyers Truter, who was incumbent at Kanonkop from 1981 to 2003 and led the way in proving that serious wine could be made from Pinotage. (Thanks to Truter, Kanonkop Pinotage has won the trophy for best in class at the prestigious International Wine & Spirit Competition on numerous occasions, the 1998 vintage taking honours this year.)
Beyerskloof dates from 1988, with Truter today owning 50% of it. The farm currently produces just over 100 000 cases a year, of which 95 000 cases are the standard so-called "White Label" Pinotage. Added to this are 350 cases of "Black Label" Pinotage Reserve, 5 000 cases of "White Label" Synergy and 350 cases of "Black Label" Synergy Reserve.
Both the standard and reserve labels of Synergy involve a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Pinotage. The concept is a fairly recent development, with the maiden vintage of both having been 2001.
The current release Synergy Reserve 2002 picked up double gold at this year's Veritas awards along with a 3 Star rating from WINE in this issue (see page 100). Released in November, it sells for R107 a bottle from the farm.
When asked to specify the percentages of the component parts, Truter initially can't remember. "I'm in a very experimental phase, which is the exciting part." But
it turns out that the breakdown is 36% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Pinotage and 28% Merlot (compared to 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Pinotage and 8% Merlot in 2001).
However impressive Synergy Reserve may be to date, it is still very much work in progress. Truter, who certainly is no rookie, comments that Pinotage is "difficult to work with but then so is Merlot, which is not to say Cab is easy".
So what does he see each variety contributing to the blend? Cabernet Sauvignon for him brings berry flavours and structure, while Merlot fills out the mid-palate. When it comes to Pinotage, he reckons that in addition to providing plummy fruit, it fulfils some kind of x-factor role, linking all the components together.
His observation about the role of Pinotage in his blend is fascinating because it is widely accepted that Pinotage can very often be a discordant note in a blend, a small percentage standing out disproportionately. Nevertheless, when it comes to Synergy, he does indeed seem to have tamed the beast.
Both Synergy and Synergy Reserve quite noticeably carry text on their labels that single them out as "Cape Blends". What position does Truter take in the debate concerning the issue?
"Blends from Pinotage should have their own name," he argues, before adding proudly that Beyerskloof was one of the first to include the "Cape Blend" designation on its labels.
He continues by saying that when a wine drinker encounters a wine that incorporates only the Bordeaux varieties, the wine will always and necessarily be measured against the best of that region. How to come up with a wine that unequivocally evokes the Cape?
There are those that argue a wine should contain a minimum component of Pinotage before it qualifies as a "Cape Blend" but Truter doesn't want the wine industry to become "rule-bound". He feels it necessary to persist with the idea that a "Cape Blend" should contain "some Pinotage" but is reluctant to be more prescriptive than that.
He argues his position well, but the scepticism concerning Pinotage and blends incorporating the variety isn't going to be easily shrugged off. Cabernet Sauvignon is a red variety that local producers seem to do particularly well, while Shiraz is showing promise. What of blends from these two red grapes?
According to Truter, such blends were "perfected" by the Australians and local versions will make wine drinkers "immediately think" of that country.
Nico van der Merwe would beg to differ. Winemaker at Stellenbosch property Saxenburg since 1991, he has also made his own wines since 1999. His flagship is a red blend named Mas Nicolas, consisting of Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz, and though it very definitely does not contain Pinotage, the word "Cape" appears in prominent fashion on the label.
What Van der Merwe is attempting to achieve with Mas Nicolas is a wine that best expresses the Cape according to his interpretation. "It's my personal contribution to the effort to make truly distinctive wine from this part of the world," he comments before adding, "Everyone's Cape Blend should be different."
It is not that Van der Merwe is anti-Pinotage (he makes a version that falls under the Saxenburg Private Collection label) but he is of the camp that contends that the variety is not particularly useful when appearing in a blend, tending to have "too much influence". Instead, he feels the variety should be judged on its own terms.
Mas Nicolas became particularly worthy of scrutiny when the 2000 vintage was awarded 5 Stars in the 2003 edition of the Platter guide. Limited stocks of the 2001 vintage are still currently available for R200 a bottle while Van der Merwe advises that the 2002 vintage will be de-classified (and down-priced), as he is not happy with the quality.
The Mas Nicolas 2003 set to be released in April next year gets 3½ Stars in this issue. It is a blend of 45% Cabernet Sauvignon and 55% Shiraz but Van der Merwe explains that he wants it to be viewed as a non-varietal wine.
The fruit comes from two different parts of Stellenbosch, with the Cabernet Sauvignon coming from a 15-year-old Simonsberg vineyard and the Shiraz coming from a 27-year-old Kuilsriver vineyard - so very much a regional rather than an estate or site-specific wine.
According to Van der Merwe, the Cabernet Sauvignon lends the wine fine tannins and a dry finish, while the Shiraz provides concentrated fruit, a product of coming from particularly old vines. He feels that the wine shows the "perfect interplay" between fruit and tannins, something facilitated by sourcing grapes from different areas.
At one point, he considered the use of a third variety in the blend (either Grenache or Mourvèdre) but he has now dispensed with this notion. "Why fine tune something that is running smoothly?" he asks rhetorically.
Van der Merwe explains that he intends Mas Nicolas to have a "Mediterranean feel" and that it should be "fresh but not too fresh". The wine spends 14 months in entirely French oak, the Cabernet Sauvignon going into new barrels and the Shiraz into second-fill.
This maturation regime is crucial to soften the tannins of especially the Cab and arrive at a suitably generous mouth-feel. Any vintage of Mas Nicolas then spends a minimum two years in the bottle before release.
What does Van der Merwe say to the criticism that Mas Nicolas merely borrows a style that is essentially the property of Australia? He replies that the Aussie Cabernet Sauvignon-Shiraz blends tend to be "big and fat" and hopes Mas Nicolas is significantly more elegant.
He further argues that the Aussie blends are in danger of being a passing fad and he would never have conceived his flagship wine to capitalise on a trend that might not be enduring.
Rather than the Aussie Cab-Shiraz blends, he draws inspiration from the spate of wines emerging out of Europe that see traditional varieties blended with Cabernet Sauvignon. "Add Cab to something like Sangiovese and you get more finesse, quality and enjoyment," he comments.
As for choosing Shiraz as a partner for Cabernet Sauvignon, Van der Merwe explains that this was a function of his extended experience of working with it at Saxenburg. "I'm very comfortable with the two varieties. They're both established and aren't just about image."
Put Beyerskloof Synergy Reserve up against Mas Nicolas and it seems that South Africa certainly can make classic and collectible wines that do not refer stylistically to those of more established wine regions.
As to whether or not Pinotage should be included in such wines seems entirely academic. Those examples that don't include the variety are surely just as legitimate as those that do as long as they are made with respect for their origins. What we should be celebrating most of all is wines made with imagination regardless of their component parts.
Pintoge blends of note
Beyerskloof Synergy Reserve
Clos Malverne Auret
Limited Release
De Waal Cape Blend
Grangehurst Nikela
Kaapzicht Steytler Vision
Meinert Synchronicity
Remhoogte Bonne Nouvelle
Simonsig Frans Malan
Vriesenhof Enthopio
Warwick Three Cape Ladies
(These recommendations based on deputy editor Christian Eedes' own opinion.)
