Hamilton Russell Pinot Noir, Walker Bay 2019 is no longer available

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Hamilton Russell Pinot Noir, Walker Bay 2019

5.000000000 star rating 1 Reviews
A South African wine born of exceptional circumstances, this fine Hamilton Russell pinot is made from fruit sourced from friends and colleagues in the wider Walker Bay region, given all the care and attention in the cellar as the estate fruit normally receives. It has the typical fresh herbal notes common to Hamilton Russell wines, with a touch of Cape fynbos, bright red fruits, and silky texture.
is no longer available
Code: SA16711

Wine characteristics

  • Red Wine
  • Medium-bodied
  • Pinot Noir
  • Now to 2028
  • 13.5% Alcohol
  • oak used but not v. noticeable
  • Cork, natural

South Africa

South Africa is undoubtedly one of the world's most dynamic wine producers. Established winemakers re-emerged onto the international scene in the early 1990s, following the demise of the apartheid era, and new wines, wineries, highly qualified winemakers, and even new regions have appeared steadily ever since. This makes South Africa more exciting than ever, but more complicated, too.

Most South African wines are varietally labelled - a key factor in any buying decision. Styles vary of course, and our notes aim to clarify this, but you will probably already know whether you like sauvignon blanc (now among the world's best), chardonnay, riesling, syrah, pinot noir, or cabernet.

South Africa's most famous grapes - white chenin blanc and red pinotage - will be less familiar unless you are already a convert. South African chenins are quite different from those in the Loire - almost always dry, but ripe and full of flavour (often with the complexity that comes from the increasingly...
South Africa is undoubtedly one of the world's most dynamic wine producers. Established winemakers re-emerged onto the international scene in the early 1990s, following the demise of the apartheid era, and new wines, wineries, highly qualified winemakers, and even new regions have appeared steadily ever since. This makes South Africa more exciting than ever, but more complicated, too.

Most South African wines are varietally labelled - a key factor in any buying decision. Styles vary of course, and our notes aim to clarify this, but you will probably already know whether you like sauvignon blanc (now among the world's best), chardonnay, riesling, syrah, pinot noir, or cabernet.

South Africa's most famous grapes - white chenin blanc and red pinotage - will be less familiar unless you are already a convert. South African chenins are quite different from those in the Loire - almost always dry, but ripe and full of flavour (often with the complexity that comes from the increasingly sought-after old-vine fruit and the use of oak). Pinotage, a South African creation, is for many a love-it-or-hate-it grape. Pinotage's 'parents' are pinot noir, which imparts its strawberry aromas and lovely texture in young wines, and more complex, farmyard characteristics in more mature examples, and cinsault, the southern French grape, which adds spice and body. It was developed in South Africa in 1926. Shiraz is now making a name for itself in South Africa with some superb examples bottled varietally and showing characteristics that often places it between the plush New World style pioneered by Australia and classic Rhône balance and elegance.

More significant in South Africa than much of the New World (notably New Zealand and Chile) are blends, which make selection more complicated, as the style of the wine is less easy to anticipate. As in Australia and California, however, many of the best wines here are blends - a sign of maturity in the industry. Bordeaux blends were favoured initially but there are increasing numbers of Rhône and southern French influenced blends, including some eclectic mixes, many of which are among South Africa’s best wines.

The Regions

The vineyards of South Africa are at a latitude of about 35o south, with hot, dry Mediterranean-type summers tempered by oceanic influences in the south, particularly the very cold Benguela Current. Much of the country is mountainous or hilly with a multitude of terroirs for winemakers to play with. Soils are ancient and complex, and many and varied from region to region, and even vineyard to vineyard. Rainfall is very varied from one area to another, largely depending which side of a mountain or range a vineyard lies on, and in some parts irrigation is essential.

South Africa’s rigorous Wine Of Origin scheme demarcates vineyard areas, including some single vineyards, and guarantees the geographical source of the wine much like the old French appellation contrôllée system recently renamed AOP, though there are no controls on yields and grape varieties as there are in France..

Bordeaux-style blends are one of the Stellenbosch region's great strengths. Wines such as Kanonkop's Paul Sauer, Meerlust's Rubicon and Warwick's Trilogy are South African icons, produced over many years, and with proven ageing capacity. The striking Simonsberg mountain names the ward (or area) most highly sought after for these reds, but Stellenbosch produces a wide range of wine styles, from excellent chenin blancs and sauvignons to robust pinotage and Cape Blends.

Paarl is its less-well-known neighbour, also warm, and best known for its robust but smooth reds. Franschhoek is understandably one of the most-visited towns in the Cape (with lots of French Huguenot history and some of the best restaurants in the region). It has a number of famous producers, most notably Boekenhoutskloof, but most do not produce exclusively from Franschhoek fruit. Cape Chamonix is an exception we rate highly, producing a wide range of wine styles from bubbly to cabernet franc led red blend Troika.

The generally warmer Swartland region has been at the forefront of the development of Rhône varietals in South Africa, led by stars such as Eben Sadie, as well as home to some of the best old chenin blanc vines. Further north, and much cooler is Citrusdal, where fresher styles are produced and chenin blanc can achieve real finesse.

The Cape peninsula, to the south of Cape Town itself, is home to Constantia, known for its cooler climate thanks to the influence of the two oceans that almost circle it. Here, sauvignon blanc and the Bordeaux grapes predominate, but there are lovely examples of aromatic varieties too, notably Klein Constantia's elegant riesling and its wonderful sweet muscat Vin de Constance, and the vibrant sauvignon blancs from Cape Point vineyards to the south. Rhône varietals are successful new additions.

Elgin, en route to Hermanus, is another very cool region, very much up-and-coming for sauvignon blanc, as is Elim, which is even further south and the source of our former Exhibition Sauvignon. Robertson is almost due north of Elim, but way inland and far hotter. A small number of family producers manage to make excellent sauvignon here, too, but it is also a good source of chardonnay, increasingly pinot noir, and elegantly styled pinotage and Rhône varietals, not forgetting the excellent fortified muskadels which are unique to the Cape.

The most important factor in deciding whether or not to buy is often the producer's name. This is easily achieved when some of the grandest 'old' names, such as Meerlust, Hamilton Russell, Kanonkop, and Klein Constantia, still rank among the country's best producers. Where it gets trickier is when the winery is new, has no track record, or the winemaker is not a household name.
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Hamilton Russell

The Hemel-en-Aarde Valley in South Africa is about as far south as you can go before you end up in the waters of the Antarctic. The cooling influence of the sea in the valley is a crucial ingredient in the making of Hamilton Russell wines from their estate behind the fishing village of Hermanus. Just 3 kilometres from the Atlantic, their pinot noir and chardonnay vines produce grapes that soak up the bright sunshine of South Africa while preserving the freshness and balance that both varieties need to make truly great wine.

Bought in 1975 and planted with vines in 1976 by advertising executive Tim Hamilton-Russell, the first vintage was a 1981 pinot noir. It was not long before a benchmark had been set for South African, indeed southern hemisphere, winemakers who wanted to make classic styles with one eye on Burgundy.

22 hectares of pinot and 30 hectares of chardonnay, grown on bokkeveld shale rich in stones and clay, are now transformed into tightly focussed wines by Emul Ross, the winemaker who came to the estate from fellow South African winery Chamonix in 2013 to replace Hannes Storm. Current owner Anthony Hamilton-Russell, who took over from his father in 1994, seeks to make expressive wines with a true sense of place and has invested in replanting with better clones of pinot noir.

The improvement has been worth the investment. Only pinot and chardonnay are used for the Hamilton Russell label. The quest for perfection even includes drying his own oak on the estate and...
The Hemel-en-Aarde Valley in South Africa is about as far south as you can go before you end up in the waters of the Antarctic. The cooling influence of the sea in the valley is a crucial ingredient in the making of Hamilton Russell wines from their estate behind the fishing village of Hermanus. Just 3 kilometres from the Atlantic, their pinot noir and chardonnay vines produce grapes that soak up the bright sunshine of South Africa while preserving the freshness and balance that both varieties need to make truly great wine.

Bought in 1975 and planted with vines in 1976 by advertising executive Tim Hamilton-Russell, the first vintage was a 1981 pinot noir. It was not long before a benchmark had been set for South African, indeed southern hemisphere, winemakers who wanted to make classic styles with one eye on Burgundy.

22 hectares of pinot and 30 hectares of chardonnay, grown on bokkeveld shale rich in stones and clay, are now transformed into tightly focussed wines by Emul Ross, the winemaker who came to the estate from fellow South African winery Chamonix in 2013 to replace Hannes Storm. Current owner Anthony Hamilton-Russell, who took over from his father in 1994, seeks to make expressive wines with a true sense of place and has invested in replanting with better clones of pinot noir.

The improvement has been worth the investment. Only pinot and chardonnay are used for the Hamilton Russell label. The quest for perfection even includes drying his own oak on the estate and shipping the timber to France to be made into barrels.

A second label, Southern Right, produces wines from other varieties such as pinotage, sauvignon blanc and chenin blanc.
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South Africa Vintage 2019

More drought condition, following the difficulties of the heat in 2018, meant that yields at harvest were again considerably smaller than usual. Winter rain, though welcome, had not significantly dented the effects of prolonged drought. Early in the growing season the weather see-sawed between warm and cold and early summer warmed up and kept warming up until it was scorching. And then, out of the blue, temperatures dropped agin, making ripening a tricky business for some red varieties. Chenin blanc, though, seems to have been a big beneficiary, with its natural acidity offsetting the fruit flavours and aromatics.

2018 vintage reviews
2017 vintage reviews

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