Beyerskloof Pinotage Reserve 2019

4 days in open fermenters with the cap punched through by hand every two hours. Fermentation temperature was between 25-28°C. After malolactic fermentation the wine matured in 20% new and 80% second/third fill barrels for 14 months.

Despite good rainfall, the region was still affected by the preceding drought and realised a much smaller crop for the second year in a row. The start of the harvest was more normal and the early cultivars ripened well. The late cultivars ripened more unevenly and later. The quality of the wines so far looks really good.

Enjoy upon release but can also develop well for up to 10 years.

Pinotage

This wine will pair well with lamb chops on the braai, ostrich medallions, and slow-cooked lamb shank.

One of South Africa’s top red wine cellars, the Stellenbosch producer is unrivalled as a Pinotage specialist. With 150 hectare of vineyards based in the premium wine district of Stellenbosch, Beyerskloof ensures the growth of their quality-driven, oak matured, hand-pressed premium range of wines. It was 30 years back that the brand which has become synonymous with Pinotage was ‘born’ when the first vineyard was planted at the small home farm off the Koelenhof road, bought in 1988. Following the 1997 acquisition of 100 hectares in the Bottelary Winelands of Stellenbosch, the landholding increased again in 2018 with the purchase of a 50 hectares spread of vineyards known as Kriekbult between the winery and the Simonsberg as viewed from the deck of the bistro at Beyerskloof. Marvelling at growth and development during the 30 years since Beyers thrust his hands into the soil and planted the first vines on home soil, it’s exciting to contemplate what the next 30 years might hold as Anri and the Beyerskloof family push the envelope viticulturally and in the cellar. Might there even be one more expression of Pinotage in the making?