red grape · regional staple
Pinotage
Stellenbosch, South Africa
Say it
pee·noh·tahzh
Final syllable rhymes with 'garage'; the -age is French, not English
On the palate
black plumblackberryblack cherrysmokechocolateearth
How you spot it blind: smoke-tinged dark fruit with a breed-specific tarry or rubbery undercurrent
The story
First written down · 1924, Stellenbosch, South Africa
Prof. Abraham Izak Perold crossed Pinot Noir with Cinsaut (locally called Hermitage) at Stellenbosch University on 17 November 1924; seedlings were rescued from an overgrown garden after his 1927 departure, and the first wine was produced in 1941 by C. T. de Waal.
Family tree: Pinot Noir × Cinsaut
Where it lives
Stellenbosch · Swartland · Paarl · Robertson
Shows up as
still redrosésparklingfortifiedCape Blend