Hamilton Russell Pinot Noir 2018

From the winery...

Our low-vigour, stony, clay-rich soil, cool maritime mesoclimate, naturally tiny yields of well under 35 hl/ha and our philosophy of expressing our terroir in our wines ? give rise to a certain tightness, tannin line and elevated length to balance the richness and generosity of our Pinot noir. Our Pinot noir is not overtly fruity, soft and "sweet" and it generally shows hints of that alluring savoury "primal" character along with a dark, spicy, complex primary fruit perfume.  

Soil Low-vigour, stony, clay-rich, shale-derived soil

Alcohol 13.46% Acid 5.50 g/l pH 3.48 Residual Sugar 2.30 g/l

Barrel Ageing 10 months

Oak 100% 228 litre French Oak Barrels Tight Grain 100%

1st fill 35% 2nd fill 47% 3rd fill 18%

Blonde Toast 31% Medium Toast 14% Medium Long Toast 55%

French Coopers: Francois Freres 100%

Hamilton Russell is the top winery of the Walker Bay region of South Africa. They are one of the southernmost wine estates in South Africa and are incredibly close to the sea. It is this cooling maritime influence, which helps to cool down their vineyards and enable their grapes to retain acidity, which provides freshness in the resulting wines. It was founded in 1975 by Tim Hamilton Russell who set up the property in the search of making South Africa's top cool-climate wines. It has since been taken over by his son Anthony and his wife Olive. They are now making highly individual, terroir-driven Pinot noir and Chardonnay, which are widely regarded as with the best in South Africa and among the finest in the New World.