Grape Vari­ety: Pinotage

Geog­ra­phy: Home is South Africa. Recent exper­i­ments in New Zealand, Chile and Australia.

Viti­cul­ture: Thrives well in the slightly hot, dry cli­mate of the West­ern Cape.

Varietal/Blend: Pino­tage, itself, is a cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsault.

Fla­vor & Char­ac­ter: Dis­tinct, indi­vid­ual char­ac­ter with pep­pery and spicy fla­vors. Strong hint of plums, bananas and redcurrants.

Vini­fi­ca­tion: Although easy to cul­ti­vate and vinify, Pino­tage vine mate­r­ial is in short sup­ply, mainly rootstock.

Style: Styles vary from smooth to rough tex­tured. Although it ben­e­fits from matur­ing, it is not often allowed to age.

Body, Dry/Sweet: Pro­duces light red, blush and sparkling wines.

Notes: Pino­tage was cre­ated in the 1920s by Pro­fes­sor Per­old at Stel­len­bosch University.