The Amandelboord Pinotage presents a beautiful intense, deep purple colour with a magenta meniscus. Maraschino cherries, black plums, prunes and banana-flavoured Wilson toffee aromas are depicted on the nose, followed by medium acidity and medium alcohol. The palate presents young tannins that will soften with age and aeration. A slight toastiness is detected on the mid-palate followed by sweet, stewed prunes.
Technical Tasting Sheets:
Amandelboord Pinotage 2019 - PDF
Amandelboord Pinotage 2018 - PDF
Amandelboord Pinotage 2017 - PDF
Serve slightly chilled with pepper-crusted seared tuna steaks, grilled aubergines stuffed with a tomato compote, a rack of Karoo lamb straight from the grill, or char-grilled sticky beef short ribs on a bed of soft polenta.
The 2019 vintage will be remembered as one that followed the most severe drought in South Africa during 2018. In the second half of 2018, supporting rainfall ensured good soil moisture with cool and moderate ripening and harvesting conditions for 60% of the intake of the 2019 vintage. The 2019 crop was medium sized, resulting in some excellent wines.
Grapes were hand-picked just before dawn, then crushed and open-fermented while undergoing pneumatic punch-downs four times a day. The wine was basket-pressed and transferred to tanks for malolactic fermentation. On completion of MLF, the wine was racked and transferred to 225 litre barrels to mature for 12 months in a combination of French and American Oak of which 12% was new oak.
2017
- Michelangelo International Wine Awards 2019 Double Gold
- The Sommeliers Selection 2019: Reds - Voluptuous & Rich
2016
- China Wine & Spirits Awards 2018 Gold
- IWSC 2018 Gold
- Old Mutual Trophy Wine Show 2018 - Best Pinotage Trophy
2015
- Tim Atkin SA Report 2017 91 Points