Durbanville Hills Pinotage 2021

COLOUR Deep red NOSE Concentration of sweet red fruit like cherry, raspberry, strawberry and plums. Sweet wood spice with undertones of vanilla. TASTE This medium bodied wine evokes a sweet sensation on the palate with hints of red cherries and plums. It is well balanced with silky tannins and lingering flavors of sweet wood spice.

A selection of different Pinotage blocks throughout the Durbanville wine valley was selected for this wine, demonstrating the rich diversity in the landscape of the area. The grapes were picked by hand during mid-February and mid-March at sugar levels between 24° and 26° Balling. Great care was taken to ensure that the pips and skins were fully ripe.

We approach the making of our Pinotage with the greatest care, gently handling the grapes with the utmost tenderness. The must was fermented on the skins in closed stainless steel tanks until almost dry (50g per litre of sugar left). At this stage the wine and skins were separated to allow fermentation to finish in stainless steel tanks.

Maximum fruit, colour and tannin extraction from the skins was made possible through continuous timer-regulated pump-over cycles. After malolactic fermentation, the wine was oak matured for 12 months using predominantly French oak, utilising a small percentage of new oak together with older wood as well as wood alternatives. This is done to prevent over wooding and by doing so preserving the elegance of our cool climate fruit.