What is Pinotage?
Pinotage is the signature red grape of South Africa. Pinotage is a cross between Cinsault and Pinot Noir. It’s a full-bodied, high alcohol wine with lots of dark berry fruit characteristics. Here’s a brief history, flavor profile of Pinotage, Pinotage food pairing guide, Pinotage cheese pairing for you to better enjoy South Africa’s prized grape.
Pinotage History
In 1925, Abraham Izak Perold, a South African scientist deliberately crossed the high yielding grape Cinsault with the difficult to grow grape Pinot Noir and created Pinotage. It was his hope to create a stable grape in that was heat tolerant, like Cinsault and elegant like Pinot Noir. He created the cross and apparently forgot about it. One of his colleagues, Charlie Niehaus, remembered the experiment and started grafting the new vines. Of the 4 that Perold crossed, the strongest one was propagated and baptized Pinotage.
A cross occurs when the flower of one vine is fertilized with the pollen from a different vine. Crosses happen all the time, naturally. For example, Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc crossed to make Cabernet Sauvignon.
Wine Geek Alert: A cross occurs between the same species of grapes, i.e.. both are vitis vinifera. A hybrid occurs between two different species of grapes, i.e. one vitis vinifera grape and one vitis labrusca grape.
Because of Apartheid sanctions, the rest of the world only became privy to Pinotage in the late 1990’s. Let’s just say it wasn’t a welcome reception. Pinotage had some volatile aroma compounds that made it stand out, for sure, but not in the best way. It really smelled like a used car lot had caught fire. Not the best wine description to use to sell Pinotage. However, the winemakers in South Africa have worked hard to tame their sweetheart grape and have made huge strides in the quality of Pinotage.
Pinotage Meaning
The name Pinotage comes from the parent grapes; Pinot Noir and Hermitage, which is what the South Africans called Cinsault (sometimes spelled Cinsaut). Why the South Africans called Cinsault Hermitage will always be baffling to me since Hermitage in the northern Rhone is famous for Syrah. If anyone knows the answer to this, please leave me a comment. Pinotage is grown almost exclusively in South Africa but there are some plantings in Brazil and New Zealand. It accounts for less than 10% of South Africa’s grapes under vine, so though it’s their famous grape, it’s actually quite rare.
How to Pronounce Pinotage
Pinotage is pronounced PEE-no-tahj.
What Does Pinotage Look Like?
On the vine, Pinotage has large grape bunches that are tightly packed with large blue-black berries. It’s an early ripening grape that achieves high alcohol levels. In the glass, Pinotage is often described as inky. It’s really deep in color and is nearly opaque.
What Does Pinotage Smell Like?
Okay, I’m going to be honest. Sometimes Pinotage can smell like burning rubber. This is because the grape is susceptible to some funky acetone levels. That being said, winemakers in South Africa have turned this around in the last decade. Now Pinotage smells like cherries, plum, mulberry, tobacco, and a bit like smoky barbecue. There’s still a bit of tar and smoke on the nose but it’s no longer unpleasant and adds to the complexity of the wine.
What Does Pinotage Taste Like?
Pinotage is full-bodied, much more than either parent grape. When not kept in check, it can hit very high levels of alcohol and be described as hot or tasting like cough syrup. Pinotage has medium to high tannins and moderate to low acidity.
Interested in more low acid red wines?
Pinotage Food Pairing: Meat
A protein based meal is ideal for Pinotage to combat the high tannins and alcohol. Red meat and game meat is the obvious choice for Pinotage food pairing because it the protein neutralizes the tannins and the tannins tenderize the meat. Avoid light and delicate foods because Pinotage will completely overwhelm the palate and render the food tasteless.
Pinotage matches best with meats like venison, goat, and lamb. You can also easily pair Pinotage with beef as well, though I’d recommend heavier cuts like flank steak or skirt steak. Lamb kebabs, burgers, and grilled pork chops will also pair well with Pinotage. It can handle a spicy sauce like mesquite BBQ sauce or sweet fruity sauces like plum sauce; both bring out a different character of the wine.
Pinotage Food Pairing: Vegetables
Pinotage isn’t hopeless for vegetarians. When matching Pinotage with vegetables, pick hearty veggies like eggplant, beets, peppers, and mushrooms. Grilled vegetables will pair best with Pinotage versus raw. The char and smokiness brings out a nice flavor in Pinotage.
Pinotage Cheese Pairing
Pinotage pairs best with cheeses with strong flavors like aged cheddar, manchego, camembert, and gouda. Any smoked cheese is a good match with Pinotage, too. Avoid delicate cheeses like mozzarella because Pinotage will overwhelm the flavors. Avoid salty cheeses like feta and blue cheese as well.
A Note about Pinotage Rosé
Pinotage rosé is really quite delightful. It smells like strawberries, cherries, and tropical fruits like mango and banana. Though it might be hard to come by, Pinotage rosé is a great wine to try this spring or summer. It pairs really well with spring salads, light appetizers, and charcuterie. Pinotage rose matches especially well with smoked salmon.
Serving Tips and Storage Suggestions for Pinotage
Pinotage is a wine that benefits from decanting. Use a wide bulb wine glass to bring air into the wine. Pinotage is not known to age particularly well, so drink within 5 years. For advice about ageing wine, check out my Quick and Dirty Guide to Ageing Wine.
International Pinotage Day is Celebrated the 2nd Saturday of October
This year, International Pinotage Day is October 8, 2022. Use hashtag #pinotageday.
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