Crystallum Peter Max Pinot Noir 14% abv 75cl

Crystallum is one of South Africa’s most highly regarded wineries and is at the forefront of the ‘New Wave’ movement. In 2021 Peter-Allan was named Tim Atkin MW’s ‘South African Winemaker of the Year’. Each vintage he strives to make even better wines, and he is always on the lookout for new vineyards. This includes recent explorations just outside of Hemel-en-Aarde, such as Elandskloof and Shaw’s Mountain in the Overberg. The former is home to their coolest vineyard, situated at 700 metres above sea level and surrounded by some of the Cape’s highest mountains, making it a particularly exciting, late ripening site. Their south-facing site, on the shale and clay slopes of Shaw’s Mountain, also mirrors the climate and soils of the Hemel-en-Aarde while not technically falling within the region. The winemaking at Crystallum has evolved over the years, with all the wines now fermented with indigenous yeasts and the use of new oak reduced to preserve the purity of fruit.

The ‘Peter Max’ is made with fruit from five different vineyards. These include two in the Hemel-en-Aarde, one near Clay Shales, one in Elandskloof and a new, inland high-elevation site. Peter-Allan uses about 50% whole bunch and indigenous yeast fermentation, followed by a reasonably long maceration to create a wine with lifted aromatics, lovely grainy tannins, as well as excellent balance and length. The coastal 'Litigo' vineyard is found just outside the Hemel-en-Aarde Ridge. Its southerly aspect means the vines are shaded for much of the day and the site is cooler than the other Crystallum vineyards, producing a lighter expression with fresh and savoury aromatics of red plum and tomato leaf.