Pinotage terroir study collapses from apathy

A study by Winetech to decide whether “Pinotage established on a specific soil regularly produced winning wines” has been abandoned halfway through the project with almost a quarter of a million rand spent. On paper, it sounded like a good idea. Information was extracted from the Pinotage Association and from the internet on 320 winners and finalists from the Absa Top Ten Pinotage Competition between 1997 and 2009.

The frustrated researchers reported “questionnaires were sent to all of these winners and finalist to obtain more information about the wines, block statistics, soil etc. Many of the cellars were personally visited to obtain the necessary information. The co-operation and feedback from these cellars were extremely poor and very little information was supplied. Another problem was that some of the winning wine’s grapes came from more than one block and even different farms. This was a clear indication that the hypotheses that Pinotage established on a specific soil regularly produced winning wines were not true. Taking this and the lack of response from the winners Winetech terminated the project halfway through the financial year.”

Pinotage Association sponsor Absa, which ensures Pinotage is the best funded cultivar in SA, will no doubt be furious at this apathy shown by producers and some hard questions need to be asked and answered.

The author is a judge at the Absa Top Ten Pinotage Competition 2011. Judging takes place this week in Stellenbosch.