The story started with a man called Professor Abraham Izak Perold. Being a scientific academic, speaking five languages, well-travelled and appointed as the first professor in Viticulture and Oenology at Stellenbosch University, he had a vision to create a wine grape varietal that is unique to our motherland, South Africa. This followed his mission to scout difference grape varietals to bring back to South Africa. Perhaps he did not find the ideal cultivar amongst the 177 varietals he found? The question remains unanswered.
It was in 1925 that he finally, successfully crossed the French superstar, Pinot Noir with a humbler variety called Cinsaut (known as Hermitage during that time). The strange combination of these two varietals that generally deliver lighter coloured wines, resulted in grapes that ripened early, achieved ripeness easily enough while maintaining growth vigour throughout and attained a colour that was much more intense and deeper. The name Pinotage was the obvious choice for this new-born.
He planted a few seeds in his back garden at his university house in Welgevallen. His friend and successor at the University had his garden cleaned up and the Pinotage plants that came up were nearly cleared with the rest of the shrubbery. The plants only just made it safely in the hands of Prof. Charl Theron de Waal to Elsenburg Agricultural College where they were further cultivated.
The first barrel of Pinotage was made in 1941 from these plantings by Prof Charl de Waal.
Prof Perold, sadly, did not live to see this day. De Waal was the bridge between Perold’s dream and the future of Pinotage.
On the other side of that bridge was a man by the name of P.K. Morkel who started farming at Bellevue on the Bottelary road outside of Stellenbosch. In 1953 he was recommended to plant this unknown, locally crossed Pinotage, as the experimental wines from this varietal showed exceptional fragrance, a deep colour yet firm tannins and flourished in even sandy soils.
This brave step resulted in what was the first success story of Pinotage as a varietal with commercial value. In 1959 Morkel entered the handcrafted wine of his seemingly risky project into the Cape Wine Show, – and triumphed as the 1959 vintage of Pinotage was awarded as the best wine at the show.
The very name of Pinotage was printed for the first time on a wine label to go into bottle under the Lanzerac label of SWF in 1961. It was a moment in time that sparked the future trade in Pinotage across the globe. The 1959 Lanzerac Pinotage was the start of it all.
The correlation between Lanzerac and Pinotage is inimitable, a sign of the significant strides each party has taken together in the global wine market, showcasing resilience and strength as they continue to strive for excellence.
Find out more or buy their Pinotage here.
Also See: Milk tart éclair trifle with pinotage jelly and naartjie syrup
Milk tart éclair trifle with pinotage jelly and naartjie syrup
