Hamilton Russell Vineyards Hemel-en-Aarde Valley Pinot Noir 2001

Deep, bright garnet. Very umami and savoury with balsamic and soy sauce notes combined with dried red berries. A big, richly textural, more monumental wine with a denser, weightier concentration of tannins – architecturally, more brutalist in style. There’s a touch of bitterness and acidity on the finish and the oak shows itself in a spicy, slightly chunky way, although the percentage of new oak was only 52% and the rest second-fill. A cool, dry, cloudy vintage but one that allowed a long hang-time.