{"product_id":"southern-right-pinotage-2023","title":"Southern Right Pinotage 2023","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Land\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePinotage is South Africa's own grape, a crossing of Pinot Noir and Cinsault, and it has a reputation problem: made carelessly it can taste of burnt rubber and paint. Southern Right exists to prove the opposite. The winery sits in the cool, wind-scoured Hemel-en-Aarde Valley near Hermanus, just a few kilometers from the Atlantic at Walker Bay, on some of the oldest, stoniest, clay-rich shale soils in the Cape. Anthony Hamilton-Russell's bet was that Pinotage, an early ripener, would show its best in a cool maritime climate that slows ripening and builds structure and complexity rather than heat and jam. The name is a nod to the southern right whales that gather in the bay each winter.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Wine\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePinotage grown mostly on cool, clay-rich sites in the Walker Bay and Hemel-en-Aarde area, with a portion from the warmer Swartland for depth. The low-vigor, stony clay soils are the key: they slow the vine down and give the wine its structure and its more classic, less rustic fruit profile. Aged in French oak, it shows dark plum, black cherry, blackberry, a little baking spice, and a savory, earthy undertone, with fine, ripe tannins and a fresh, structured finish that owes everything to those cool sites. This is Pinotage made with a straight face, built to age. 2023 was a well-regarded vintage in the Cape.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe People\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSouthern Right was founded in 1994 by Anthony Hamilton-Russell, whose family estate, Hamilton Russell Vineyards, is one of the southernmost and most respected wineries in Africa. He created Southern Right as a specialist project with one conviction: that Pinotage, farmed in the right cool, clay-rich sites, could be a genuinely world-class, distinctly South African wine. The team farms low-vigor shale soils and picks by site rather than by convenience. A share of the winery's proceeds has long supported marine conservation, in keeping with the whale on the label.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFood Pairing\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis is a red with the structure and savory edge for hearty, smoky food. Pour it with a braai or grilled lamb, with a beef or venison stew, with barbecued ribs, or with a mushroom and lentil dish. Its dark fruit and spice also stand up to a spiced sausage or a burger off the grill. Serve it at cool room temperature. The kind of bottle that changes minds about what Pinotage can be.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Classic","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50540718031071,"sku":null,"price":37.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0439\/7436\/1248\/files\/P7080654.jpg?v=1783568437","url":"https:\/\/denverwinemerchant.com\/products\/southern-right-pinotage-2023","provider":"Denver Wine Merchant","version":"1.0","type":"link"}