Technical Analysis
Beyerskloof Diesel Pinotage a tribute to Beyers Truter's beloved Great Dane, Diesel, who features on the label.
Tasting note
A big structured wine with intense dark fruit flavours. A wine that has great depth and balance with a lasting finish.
Vintage conditions
Ideal winter conditions supplemented water reserves and contributed to even growth, which provided an excellent foundation for the 2022 crop. Following a cool run-up to the season, sudden heat peaks in December and January resulted in sunburn damage on certain vineyard blocks. At the same time, unexpected rainfall led to high disease pressure that caused challenges in minimising the effects of powdery and downy mildew. As temperatures remained moderate throughout the rest of the season, the grapes took their time to reach optimum ripeness, and the start of harvest was delayed by 10-14 days.
The 2022 crop was larger than 2021 due to ideal winter conditions.
Vinification details
Optimum ripeness for picking was at 25.8°B. Once destemmed berries go through a sorting system to minimise greenness. Fermentation took place in open casks, with punch downs done every 2 hours for 5 days. Grapes were pressed before fermentation finished, and malolactic fermentation took place in stainless steel tank. The wine went into new French oak barrels for 21 months, after which only the best barrels were selected for this wine.
AWARDS
Platter: 93 pts
Technical Analysis
Beyerskloof Diesel Pinotage a tribute to Beyers Truter's beloved Great Dane, Diesel, who features on the label.
Tasting note
Pleasant plum and blackberry aromas upfront with lovely cedar oak in the background. A big structured wine with intense dark fruit flavours. This wine has great depth and balance with a lasting finish.
Vintage conditions
It was a cool wet growing season that replenished the water reserves. Harvest started the first week of February and ended the last week of March 2021. This harvest had some challenges with covid-19 sale restrictions, lockdown, and some rain that made planning difficult. Overall the quality of the wines shows lots of promise.
Vinification details
Optimum ripeness for picking was at 26°B. Once destemmed berries go through a sorting system to minimise greenness. Fermentation took place in open casks, with punch downs done every 2 hours for 4-5 days. Grapes were pressed before fermentation finished, and malolactic fermentation took place in stainless steel tank. The wine went into new French oak barrels for 20 months, after which only the best barrels were selected for this wine.
AWARDS
Platter: 94 pts
Wine Advocate: 92+ pts
