WTN: 2007 Long Mountain Reserve Pinotage

One of the recent releases at Vintages; $13.95.

14% alc/vol. Clear garnet with a ruby hue. Simple nose with some banana fruit and just a tinge of strawberry; not complex like many Pinotages. Big and alcoholic on the entry; simple, hot and sweet; vague flavours - certainly nothing like the Pinotages of just a few years ago. Totally internationalized. Big alcohol and quite sweet on the finish.

If anyone calls me a curmudgeon for preferring the old leathery Pinotages, it will be a badge that I'll wear with tremendous honour.

One of the recent releases at Vintages; $13.95.

14% alc/vol. Clear garnet with a ruby hue. Simple nose with some banana fruit and just a tinge of strawberry; not complex like many Pinotages. Big and alcoholic on the entry; simple, hot and sweet; vague flavours - certainly nothing like the Pinotages of just a few years ago. Totally internationalized. Big alcohol and quite sweet on the finish.

If anyone calls me a curmudgeon for preferring the old leathery Pinotages, it will be a badge that I'll wear with tremendous honour.

I'm pretty ignorant of these, Paul. Is this one from South Africa?

Yes, Bob, most commercially available Pinotage - and all that's available in Ontario - certainly is.

I love Pinotage; it's my favourite red vinifera grape. But what's happening to it of late has me wanting to cry. The wines are sweet and inoffensive; completely internationalized with no complexity, high alcohol and lots of R.S. on the finish. And the prices are steadily rising.

I really miss my $13 Zonnebloem, and my $8 Libertas. Oh, the glorious late 90s and Pinotage ...

DAY TWO ...

Alrigthy, here we are on day two. As usual, these young wines do benefit from a day's aeration. Frankly, today the wine is much better than it was yesterday upon opening: the banana and wood-spice aromas are better integrated and, while the wine is still sweet and alcoholic on the mid-palate, the oak spice has really woken up, adding some welcome complexity.

Gee, I never would have thought years ago that I'd be looking to the oak to add complexity to Pinotage!! Oh, how I lament the loss of the cherished old style.

Tut Tut, Paul B. Just wait till Peter May gets here after his trip!

Paul, what is the WO of that wine?

Long Mountain is a brand of Pernod Ricard. I don't think I have encountered it, and having looked at what is currently available at LCBO, it would not be my first choice.

I'd be interested in what you think of the Cafe Culture Pinotage, new to LCBO

Peter, I am curious too about the Cafe Culture one, but with the new-wave name and label, I am already uneasy. I just hope that the label doesn't mean it's another one made in an uninteresting / politically-correct style.

Frankly, the one wine available at the LCBO nowadays that reminds me more of old-style Pinotage than any current Pinotage is the Obikwa Shiraz - it has not shed its lovely South African smokiness. Funny - I never thought I'd be looking to Shiraz to get my Pinotage fix ...

I can guarantee that it is not made

in an uninteresting / politically-correct style.

Just looking at the August release and scrolling through the Pinotages, I am tempted to say that this one looks a bit more up my alley:

TUKULU PINOTAGE 2005
WO Darling

TASTING NOTE: Seriously weighted 2005 shows massive tannin grip, with classy cassis, nutmeg & wild mushroom replacing 2004's plump, jammy fruit and soft tannins. Cranberry tartness contrasts with vanilla (from 45% American oak) to balance ripeness. Score - (out of 5). (Roland Peens, John Platter South African Wines, 2008) (XD) 750 mL $21.95

Thing is, Tukulu is a name I've heard for some time now, but it's not a producer that I know for having made traditional Pinotage. I still miss my Zonnebloem and Libertas ...

it has not shed its lovely South African smokiness. Funny - I never thought I'd be looking to Shiraz to get my Pinotage fix ...

If you want brett and VA, why not just stock up on Musar? Very reliable in every vintage

If you want brett and VA, why not just stock up on Musar? Very reliable in every vintage

You don't say? Well, given that I could get leathery/band-aid brett (don't much care for VA) in Libertas Pinotage for a mere $7.95 back in 1999, I don't think Musar's much in the running