Muratie George Paul Canitz Pinot Noir 2010

Heady combination of liquorice, aniseed, black and red berries on the nose, 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 grated cloves and sandalwood. A fresh lively acidity provides balance to the supply 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.

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variety : Pinot Noir [ 100% Pinot Noir ]

winery : Muratie Wine Estate

winemaker : Francois Conradie

wine of origin : Western Cape

analysis : alc : 14.34 % vol rs : 3.8 g/l pH : 3.64 ta : 6.5 g/l

type : Red

pack : Bottle closure : Cork

ageing : Enjoyable now, but the patient few will be doubly rewarded in 4 - 8 years time.

in the vineyard : George Paul Canitz (who owned Muratie from 1927 to 1958) had two great passions in life: painting and Pinot Noir. In the mornings he'd mix colours on his palettes, in the afternoons sample grapes. 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. With a delicate, long finish, hint of strawberries, fresh cherries and French Oak, the George Paul Canitz Pinot Noir salutes the artist... and his palate for Pinot.

The Pinot Noir vines are planted at 300m above sea level on North West 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 on Richter 99 and 110 rootstock. The vine's age varies from 9 to 19 years. Perold trellising system is being used.

about the harvest: The grapes were hand sorted.

in the cellar : The grapes were 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 litre French oak barrels. Here it underwent malolactic fermentation. The wine spent 18 months maturing in French oak before being bottled.

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