George Paul Canitz Pinot Noir 2020
R370.00
George Paul Canitz (who owned Muratie from 1927 to 1958) had two great passions in life: painting and Pinot Noir. Painting into his 70s he earned fame both locally and internationally – he could hardly keep up as art lovers streamed to Muratie to buy his paintings which even adorned the walls of his private pub (or “kneipzimmer”).
But as the first ever Pinot Noir grower in the country, what would eventually earn him the greatest renown was his palate for Pinot.
Tasting Notes
VINEYARD
The Pinot Noir vines were planted in 2002 at 300 m above sea level on Northwest facing slopes. The Table Mountain sandstone soil is rich in its moisture retaining potential, hence the dryland vineyards. The vines are a combination of 113, 115
and 777 clones, grafted onto Richter 99 and 110 rootstocks.
VINIFICATION
The grapes were hand sorted, destalked, and crushed before being pumped into classic open fermenters. The grapes were cold soaked for a day and manual plunging and pump overs were done at the required intervals. After fermentation, the skins were gently pressed. The wine was put into 500 L French Oak barrels. Here it underwent malolactic fermentation. The wine spent 16 months maturing in French Oak before being bottled.
WINEMAKER’S COMMENTS
Heady combination of strawberries, cherries, plums, and aniseed, all underpinned by hints of truffle, exotic mushrooms and spice. Smooth, velvety entry opens into an elegant mouthful of fruits – preserved raspberries and cherries – surrounded by oak-induced spice flavours of cinnamon and sandalwood. A fresh lively acidity provides balance to the supple and juicy tannins and the finish is lengthy, changing from fruit through to satisfying truffles and earthiness. A rich and warming wine, best enjoyed with game meats or a robust mushroom risotto.
ANALYSIS
Alcohol 13.79 %
Residual Sugar 2.8 g/l
Total acid 5.1 g/l
pH 3.58
