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Cinsault Variety Comparisons - 23rd July '24

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On the 23rd of July we tasted the Cinsault\Cinsaut. We wanted to see if Cinsault should be made as a single cultivar or should it just stay as a major part of blended wines? Does Cinsault have a chance was the question? In this tasting we will tasted a few Premium Cinsault wines from a few winemaking areas within South Africa, and in a two different styles of winemaking. A big thank you to Mike Neebe for the Facts Sheet of the “Gatos”, from Axe Hill. Wine tasters were provided with a spreadsheet of where they could buy the wines in Joburg from Liquor City, Makro, Norman Goodfellows and Woolies (available upon request). In addition to this all tasters received a full set of notes detailing chemical analysis, viticulture and winemaking, as well as the winemakers comments for each wine (available upon request). The wines were tasted in one flight, at the same temperature, for comparison. Below is the order of the tasting, the comments made at the end by the tasters and the average scores for the wines.

 

1.  Lost Boy ”Wines for the Wild” Carbonic Cinsaut 2023 (made through Carbonic Maceration, from grapes that came from Paarl)

Colour- light red, with no gradation to a clear rim. Nose- bubble gum, sour cherry, red cherries and berries, nutty. Palate- crisp acidity, soft tannins, sour cherry, raspberry, black berry, nuttiness, with lingering cherry to the finish, with a slight bitterness on the finish.

 Score- 15.93.

 

2.    Axe Hill “Gatos” Cinsault 2021 (from grapes that came from Besemkop, in Calitzdorp)

Colour- light orange-red, almost onion skin, with no gradation to the rim. Nose- tea, meaty, smoky, barnyard, raspberry, stinky (?). Palate- crisp acidity, soft tannins, pepper, raspberry, sour cherry, strawberry, tea, almost Pinot Noir like (?).

Score- 15.47 (lots of discussion on this one with very mixed scores from 14 to 18).

 

3.    Landskroon, Paul De Villiers “The Heritage” Cinsault 2022 (from grapes that came from Paarl, the first Cinsault on their label was in 1974)

Colour- deep purple red, not inky, with slight gradation to a clear rim. Nose- spice, citrus, black currant and cherry, minty. Crisp acidity, soft but firm tannins, spice with cloves, cedar, black currants and cherry, Eucalyptus\mint, cranberry, with lingering black cherry to the finish.

Score- 17.133 (large range in scores from 15 to 19, well liked, interesting that when we tasted this wine with the winemaker Fanie Geyser, earlier in the year and the wine scored identically, to the last decimal point).

 

4.    Stellenbosch Reserve “Stadsaal” Cinsault 2021 (grapes came from Stellenbosch, no area given)

Colour- light red almost garnet, with no gradation to the rim. Nose- violets, tea, pencil shavings, farmyard, toffee, red cherry, raspberry. Palate- crisp acidity, soft tannins, caramel, cedar, pippy, red cherry and berries, black berries, a milky texture.

Score- 16.36 (lots of debate on this one).

 

5.    Waterkloof “Seriously Cool” Cinsault 2021 (grapes from the Helderberg, near Stellenbosch)

Colour- light red, with almost gradation to a clear rim. Nose- shy, coffee, menthol, citrus, red cherry and berry. Palate- crisp acidity, soft but firm tannins, lively minerality, caramel, menthol, smoked game meats, black pepper, red berry and cherry that linger to a slightly tannic finish.

Score- 15.80.

 

6.    Neil Ellis “Groenekloof Darling Hills” Cinsaut 2018 (grapes from Groenekloof, in the Darling Hills)

Colour- garnet red, deep in colour, but not inky, with no gradation to the rim. Nose- waxy, smoky, liquorice, Bovril, fynbos, nutmeg, prunes, cherry. Palate- crisp acidity, firm tannins but soft on the mouth feel, spices with nutmeg, dark berries and cherry, strawberry, red cherry and berries that linger to the finish.

Score- 17.133 (large score range from 14 to 19, loved for its ripe fruit).

 

All these wines had juicy ripe fruits, with little or no tanning on the mouth feel. The common consensus was that tasters wanted to see how these wines age and develop, especially after tasting the Neil Ellis. Many want to taste more of these wines in the future, to see how the winemaking styles evolve. There were many comments on whether they should they use Nubolt Eggs, also questions about more wood, or bigger wood? Over all comment, YES as a cultivar and the making of this grape as a single variety! Top wine, a tie between the Neil Ellis and the Landskroon, four years difference in vintage, both juicy and filled with ripe fruit! Second the “Stadsaal” and third the Beaujolais styled Wild Boys. Lovely tasting with lots of discussion, thanks to all who attended and made this an amazing evening and thanks to Mike for the Gatos notes!

 

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