3 minute read
Spotlight on Pinotage
THE GRAPE THAT PRODUCES FOUR BRILLIANT WINES
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Pinotage is South Africa’s signature red grape, but there is no winery that produces four - yes, four - different wines from that one grape. We proudly present our flagship Estate Pinotage, the elegant Lady M, the fascinating Pinotage Blanc, and the award-winning Women of the World Pinotage Rosé.
inotage grapes rely extensively on the winemaker’s skills and style of winemaking, and have the potential to produce deep-coloured, fruity wines that are drinkable early on as well as with age. At Aaldering, our Pinotage grapes are treated with great respect. It starts with a careful selection process in the vineyards, to ensure that only the best grapes make it to the cellar. Inferior fruit is cut out in the months leading up to harvest. What’s left is the result of months of very precise viticulture.
One cultivar, four wines?
Winemaker Reinhard Odendaal, who learned his winemaking skills mainly from Beyers Truter, the king of Pinotage, explains the secret: “For the Aaldering Estate Pinotage grapes are crushed and destemmed. The grapes are sorted over a shaker table to remove all undesired plant material. They are then cooled down before being transferred to the tank for cold soaking. This happens for a period of two to four days and has the objective to extract the grapes’ lovely fruit-driven flavours without drawing out excessive tannins, which could result in bitterness. Fermentation is activated by raising the temperature, after which the juice is circulated two to four times daily to keep the skins wet and cool, whilst extracting colour and structure. This is done until the fermentation process is finished. The juice is then separated from the skins and drained into a stainless steel tank. A few days later, the wine is pumped into barrels, where it spends 16 months before being bottled. So, it’s not an easy wine to work with but if you put a lot of effort in it, the outcome is wonderful. And we at Aaldering really produce a topquality Pinotage. Our soil, the closeness to the sea, the weather, it all comes together here.”
PAnd the Aaldering Estate Lady M? “Whilst fermenting, the wine will only get two pump-overs per day. It is then racked from the skins, after which the remaining juice is gently pressed out. Our Lady M does not mature in wooden barrels; therefore it is an elegant unwooded red wine.”
But how do you get the flavours and colour of the Aaldering Estate Pinotage Rosé?
“After destemming, the grapes are cooled and immediately transferred into the press before fermentation. Draining the juice starts straight away, with the last remaining juice being pressed out at a very low pressure to achieve a light salmon colour. The sediment then starts to settle, after which it is separated. Fermentation is then activated and the bottling is a few months later.”
And then the secret of the Aaldering Estate Pinotage Blanc, a rarely seen Blanc de Noir?
“After harvesting, the grapes remain in the cool room overnight until their temperature has dropped to close to 5°C. In this case whole bunches go straight into the press. The juice is pressed out extremely gently, to prevent any colour release from the skins. After that, the juice is cooled down, with temperatures being kept below 10°C. This is when the sediment starts to settle. When that process is completed, the juice is racked after which the fermentation process kicks in. The Pinotage Blanc is fermented between 12°C and 14°C to preserve the wine’s lovely aromas. The wine stays on the lees for a couple of months and is then prepared for bottling.”
