Angus Paul Cinsault 2023 ‘Diapsalmata’

Angus Paul Cinsault
Kleur: helderrood
Geur: open en peperig, veel rood fruit: aardbeien en frambozen, rozen, kruidig blijft het lang
Smaak: sappig, fris, zuiver, rijp rood fruit, fijne tannines
Houdbaar: op dronk, minimaal houdbaar tot eind 2028
Lekker bij: luxe BBQ, belegen kazen, lamsgerechten. kalkoen of parelhoen, Iets gekoeld drinken zo rond de 15 graden.

TASTING NOTES by Angus:
White pepper is the foremast of the aromatics, pervading & pungent it almost fills the room. On its heels come the charming signatures of Cinsault: strawberries and crushed raspberries. The tannins are a fine but firm structure around an ethereal flavour core, and the granitic soils and maritime climate show their influence in the constant, natural brightness from the nose to the tail of the wine.

WINEMAKING
Grapes are hand picked and cooled overnight. The following morning they are put into bins for maceration as complete whole bunches and are thoroughly trodden. No sulphur, yeast, acid, enzymes or water were added.
Natural fermentation took place over 10 days after which a maceration was carried out until the tannins had developed satisfactorily (about 5 more days). After draining, the remaining grapes were pressed to large old wooden barrels. A spontaneous malolactic fermentation then took place, and in early Autumn wines were sulphured for the first time. Wines were bottled in October after having spent 8 months in barrel with no racking.

TERROIR
One sight: Firgrove; one grape: Cinsault. A vineayrd that fell out of the sky. Planted in 1966 along one of the least picturesque (present day) but unsung terroirs of the Cape, whose greater area is now known as Macassar. These old vines dig deep into the coarse red granite soils, the sea a couple kilometers aways and the Helderberg looms behind them. For a good bottle, Cinsault really demands a good site, and this one has it all.

THE NAME
Diapsalmata losely translates to a ‘refrain’, which befits my introduction of Cinsault into the range, as it provides a call-back between the ‘Single Sites’ of Chenin (and potentially Pinotage). This ethereal grape, often bemaoned, is a song of the turbulent South African past, and when grown in the right spot, is a fragile voice of the Chorus between the louder titans of the grape landscape.

WineMag 92/100
From a Lower Helderberg vineyard of Cinsault planted in the 1960s. 60% whole-bunch fermentation before maturation lasting seven months in older oak. Red berries, rose, incense and white pepper on the nose while the palate has intriguing structure – juicy fruit, moderate acidity and soft tannins, the finish slightly salty.

Tim Atkin 94/100
Diapsalmata comes from a 1966 block next to the Rustenhof farm on the Sinai Hill, located on flatter, deeper red and white granite soils. Refined, floral and ethereal, it’s a Cinsault that reflects the freshness of False Bay, with aromas of Turkish Delight and rose water, some pepper spice from whole bunch fermentation, pomegranate and watermelon flavours and some underlying grip. 2024-30