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Painted Wolf ‘Peloton' Rouge, Coastal 2018

2.666666700 star rating 3 Reviews
A rich, smooth Mediterranean-style blend with a little pinotage adding a sprinkling of Cape spice. Enjoy it knowing that you’re making a contribution to the team's wildlife conservation efforts.
is no longer available
Code: SA15761

Wine characteristics

  • Red Wine
  • Medium-bodied
  • 13.5% Alcohol
  • oak used but not v. noticeable
  • Screwcap

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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Painted Wolf Wines

Painted Wolf was created by Emma and Jeremy Borg, who started their vinous adventure together back in 2005.

Although Jeremy had over 20 years’ experience in wineries throughout South Africa, the UK, and the USA, and Emma had experience as a wine photographer, it was in 2005 that they were first approached to make their own wine. A friend’s winery had an excess of grapes, and Emma and Jeremy couldn’t resist getting involved.

They had to bottle and cork the wine by hand, but this only fuelled their passion, and they began looking for inspiration for their own wine brand. Painted Wolf came about when Jeremy read about the endangered African wild dog (highly social and organised animals, and persistent and effective hunters). Emma and Jeremy shared the painted wolf’s appetite and keen hunting skills, although in their case this was for grapes to make their growing range of wines. The painted wolf takes pride of place on their labels, and such is their love for the species, and their dedication to wildlife preservation, that a percentage of profit made on every bottle is donated to conservation charities to help protect it.

Over the years this husband-and-wife team compiled a list of growers and winemakers they could trust, and these became the Painted Wolf ‘pack’. The vineyards chosen by the couple are low-yielding and often non-irrigated, depending on their location, from organic vineyards in the Swartland, to the cool climate of Cape South Coast. The grapes are often hand-picked ...
Painted Wolf was created by Emma and Jeremy Borg, who started their vinous adventure together back in 2005.

Although Jeremy had over 20 years’ experience in wineries throughout South Africa, the UK, and the USA, and Emma had experience as a wine photographer, it was in 2005 that they were first approached to make their own wine. A friend’s winery had an excess of grapes, and Emma and Jeremy couldn’t resist getting involved.

They had to bottle and cork the wine by hand, but this only fuelled their passion, and they began looking for inspiration for their own wine brand. Painted Wolf came about when Jeremy read about the endangered African wild dog (highly social and organised animals, and persistent and effective hunters). Emma and Jeremy shared the painted wolf’s appetite and keen hunting skills, although in their case this was for grapes to make their growing range of wines. The painted wolf takes pride of place on their labels, and such is their love for the species, and their dedication to wildlife preservation, that a percentage of profit made on every bottle is donated to conservation charities to help protect it.

Over the years this husband-and-wife team compiled a list of growers and winemakers they could trust, and these became the Painted Wolf ‘pack’. The vineyards chosen by the couple are low-yielding and often non-irrigated, depending on their location, from organic vineyards in the Swartland, to the cool climate of Cape South Coast. The grapes are often hand-picked for extra quality control, and some of the wines are aged in oak for added complexity.
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South Africa Vintage 2018

2018 saw South African growers and winemakers faced with drought, the worst in many, many years,and as a consequence yields were reduced significantly and getting the best from the vineyards was not easy. The dry conditions did, at least, concentrate the berries and there will be no shortage of intensity and concentration and cooler temperatures when harvest time came around helped a good deal.

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