Hamilton Russell Southern Right Pinotage

A beautiful, refined Pinotage. Dark red, fragrant, and flavorful. Fresh yet sultry. With berries and blackberries, dried plums, and a hint of spicy tobacco. Full-bodied yet elegant. Soft and full-bodied. A rich wine, but certainly not heavy. And balanced. Tim Hamilton Russell is the founder of the South African winery Hamilton Russell, which has been producing top-quality terroir wines since 1975. It is one of the southernmost wine estates in Africa, just behind the old fishing village of Hermanus. He selected two grape varieties that he expected would yield top quality in the cool Walker Bay region. This is diametrically opposed to the choices of most other New World wine producers. His Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are now world-renowned. His son, Anthony Hamilton Russell, founded Southern Right in 1994, aiming to produce a serious, century-old Pinotage that combines distinctive South African fruit and flavor expression with classic refinement. Anthony is convinced that Pinotage, as an early-ripening grape, is best suited to cooler regions. He chose stony, high-clay, shaly soils for his vineyards, which he believed were best suited to creating the more classic style he aspired to.

Red wine from the Heaven and Earth Valley

The Hemel-en-Aarde Valley lies in Walker Bay, about three kilometers from the Atlantic Ocean. The vineyards in this gentle, hilly region benefit from the cooling sea breezes. Pinotage is planted in the clay-rich, rocky parts of the valley. The name Southern Right refers to the eponymous, rare whale that visits Walker Bay between May and December.

The taste of Southern Right Pinotage

This dark red wine is packed with complex berry fruit, beautiful tannins, and subtle woody spice. The cooler vineyards give the wine full ripeness. This is combined with the complex, more classic fruit aromas and structure that emerge from the clay-rich soil. These aspects make this a truly unique South African wine. It pairs perfectly with roasted meats, stews, game, and cheeses.