Five Pinot Noirs were tasted over the
duration of the evening and the vintage of all of the wines were from 2012. The
wines tasted were Newton Johnson’s Family Vineyards Pinot Noir, Storm Wines’
Moya and Vrede Pinot Noir, Sumaridge Pinot Noir 2012 and Bouchard Finlayson’s
Galpin Peak Pinot Noir. Of the wines, three were from the Upper Hemel en Aarde
Valley, while the last two were from the Hemel an Aarde Valley itself. The
distance between the two areas is not large but the differences in the soil
allows for different characteristics of the wine to be showcased.
The 2012 year was one of the best in terms
of weather as it was dry and moderately warm throughout the ripening period as
it allowed for the grapes to ripen slowly. “Pinot Noir need a few years to
reach optimal drinking time, but we drink it when the wines are too young, but
it is very hard to keep wines for four to five years due to financial
constraints or popularity,” states Hannes.
Newton Johnson Family Vineyards Pinot Noir
is made in the classic style with a European feel to the wine. The colour of
the wine is slightly more garnet than the rest of the wine tasted and the nose
of the wine has notes of mushroom. The vines are situated in the Upper Hemel en
Aarde Valley, where it is cooler than the Valley below them, which causes the
harvest to lag for about 2 weeks than their neighbours in the Hemel en Aarde
Valley.
The Sumaridge Pinot Noir 2012 is unreleased
as of this moment and the wine was presented from unlabelled bottles. The vines
are in the Upper Hemel en Aarde Valley and are situated close to the Onrus
River on unique decompressed granite soil which allows for more feminine
characteristics of the Pinot Noir to be showcased. The Pinot Noir makes use of
16 year old vine material, which adds intensity to the wine. There is grunt
strength tannin structure in the wine which allows for a bigger style of Pinot
Noir to be produced. Dark cherries are a predominant characteristic of the
Sumaridge Pinot Noir.
The Storm Wines are interesting in the
sense that no yeast is added to the wine and it is not filtrated. The Moya and
the Vrede were handpicked and destemmed and the bottles were labelled on the
same day as the tasting. There were only 25 cases made of the Moya 2012 and
Hannes tries to stay as close as organic as he can by using soft chemicals on
the vineyards and no intervention to the wine itself. The Moya is “fine and
perfumy” with rose petals and violets on the nose. There are big pebbles on the
topsoil which is unique and allows for the fruit to yield differently. “There
is good balance and don’t need 14% alcohol,” is Hannes’ answer to the lower
alcohol of the Moya Pinot Noir.
Bouchard Finlayson Galpin Peak Pinot Noir’s
vineyards are situated in the Hemel en Aarde Valley and have firm tannins which
are brought on by prolonged skin contact. The vines are densely planted
with7000-8000 vines per hectare, almost double of the standard 4000-45000 vines
per hectare. This allows for a dense root system. The wine is stored in medium
toasted barrels and is a very robust wine. There is coriander on the nose and
is more spicy and dusty on the palette of the other Pinot Noirs.
Storm Vrede Pinot Noir 2012 has a
simplistic label and is the maiden vintage of the vineyard. The vines face to
the north and the soil is shallow shale and clay based and is only 1, 5
hectares. The harvest of the grapes took place January 26 and was in barrels by
mid-February, earlier than most Pinot Noirs. The wine has been described that
it “speaks of purity” with a linear and fruit focus with violets and rose
petals on the nose. Hannes was able to have special toasting added to the
French oak barrels. There is 25% new oak and the perfume is in the background.
The wine is a dark plum colour and as with the Moya Pinot Noir, no yeast was
added and is unfiltered. The alcohol is 13, 8% which is lower than most of the
other producers’. The wine is well balanced and fruit driven with a chalky end.
The maiden vintage produced 250 cases of 12, of which 75% is accounted for
export to America.
Five Pinot Noirs, each with different
predominant characteristics of the varietal, made for an interesting and
informative evening. Pinot Noir is one of the most difficult wines to make and
the best approach to the wine is as Hannes states, “Treat Pinot Noir with an iron
fist with a silk glove.” The Wine Village Wine Club meets the first Tuesday of
each month and guests are more than welcome.
