Kanonkop, Estate Pinotage 2022

Description

In 1924, while heading up Oenology and Viticulture at the University of Stellenbosch, Professor Abraham Perold made a crossing of two grape varieties that today forms the South African wine industry’s unique selling point. Pinot Noir and Cinsaut (once known as Hermitage in South Africa) became Pinotage, a red-blooded South African grape variety.

One of the world’s finest examples of Pinotage, a variety first planted on Kanonkop in 1941. Deep garnet with a purple hue, this wine offers plush plum and cherry flavours with an evocative hint of spice. As the wine ages in the bottle, it gains an earthy, forest-floor character and a delectable cassis-like, sweet-fruited core.

TASTING NOTE
Opaque purple red colour. Bold plums, blackberries, mulberries, rich vanilla, layers of smoke, and roasted nut the nose. Followed by a palate packed with plums, cherries, black figs, pomegranate, dark chocolate, blackberries and spicy oak, The beautifully integrated plush, creamy tannins teams with satisfying acidity resulting in a wonderfully balanced wine with and a long finish, promising a great maturation potential.

AGEING POTENTIAL
10 to 15 years from vintage

VINTAGE CONDITIONS
2022 was the latest vintage in the past 25 years, about 2 weeks later than normal. We had a proper cold winter with enough rain, that resulted in budbreak that was 2 weeks late. The earlier part of the season was quite cool, with December showing lower maximum and minimum temperatures. January was more moderate with a couple of hot days. We had slow ripening conditions that resulted in concentrated fruit development and palate weight.

VINIFICATION DETAILS
Fermented in open top concrete fermenters at 28°C. The floating skins were punched down by hand, every 2 hours during fermentation. The juice was drawn off the skins after 3 days. After malolactic fermentation the wine was matured for 18 months in 80% new and 20% second fill 225L French Nevers oak barrels.

TECHNICAL DETAILS
WINEMAKER Abrie Beeslaar
COMPOSITION 100% Pinotage
ORIGIN Simonsberg, Stellenbosch
AGE OF VINES 33- to 68-year-old bush vines
IRRIGATION None – dry land vineyards
SOIL TYPE Decomposed Granite and Hutton
YIELD 5 tons per hectare
PRODUCTION VOLUME 13 000 cases (6 x 750ml)
ALC 14.64% | RS 3.1 g/l | TA 5.7 g/l | pH 3.75 | FREE SO2 40 mg/l | TOTAL SO2 98 mg/l | VA 0.57 g/l

Additional information

Pairs well with spicy Asian-style dishes, aromatic curries, peppered squid with wasabi, all types of venison meat, seared game fish and duck