ShowMe Hermanus Wine Club – Storm Wines

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Pinot

A Love For Pinot…

The theme of the third Wine Village Wine Club was Pinot Noir and was presented by Hannes Storm where he introduced the two wines from his own label, Storm Wines. Hannes has been the winemaker at Hamilton Russell for the last 10 years and has been with the farm for 13 years. He has a history with Pinot Noir as the subject of his final year seminar at university. His brother is also a wine maker but is situated in California, where he also focuses on Pinot Noir and created the label in 2006.

Hannes Storm Five Pinot Noirs were tasted over the duration of the evening and the vintage of all of the wines were from 2012. The wines tasted were Newton Johnson’s Family Vineyards Pinot Noir, Storm Wines’ Moya and Vrede Pinot Noir, Sumaridge Pinot Noir 2012 and Bouchard Finlayson’s Galpin Peak Pinot Noir. Of the wines, three were from the Upper Hemel en Aarde Valley, while the last two were from the Hemel an Aarde Valley itself. The distance between the two areas is not large but the differences in the soil allows for different characteristics of the wine to be showcased.

Storm Wines The 2012 year was one of the best in terms of weather as it was dry and moderately warm throughout the ripening period as it allowed for the grapes to ripen slowly. “Pinot Noir needs a few years to reach optimal drinking time, but we drink it when the wines are too young, it is very hard to keep wines for four to five years due to financial constraints or popularity,” states Hannes.

The Storm Wines are interesting in the sense that no yeast is added to the wine and it is not filtrated. The Moya and the Vrede were handpicked and destemmed and the bottles were Storm Moya labelled on the same day as the tasting. There were only 25 cases made of the Moya 2012 and Hannes tries to stay as close to organic as he can by using soft chemicals on the vineyards and no intervention to the wine itself. The Moya is “fine and perfumy” with rose petals and violets on the nose. There are big pebbles on the topsoil which is unique and allows for the fruit to yield differently.

Storm Vrede Pinot Noir 2012 has a simplistic label and is the maiden vintage of the vineyard. The harvest of the grapes took place January 26 and were in barrels by mid-February, Vrede earlier than most Pinot Noirs. The wine has been described that it “speaks of purity” with a linear and fruit focus with violets and rose petals on the nose. Hannes was able to have special toasting added to the French oak barrels.

Five Pinot Noirs, each with different predominant characteristics of the varietal, made for an interesting and informative evening.

Pinot Noir is one of the most difficult wines to make and the best approach to the wine is as Hannes states, “Treat Pinot Noir with an iron fist with a silk glove.”

The Perfect Pair…

Pinot Noir is one of the most food friendly red wines and brings flavours of cherry, spice and strawberry to the glass. It is however its acidity, smooth tannins and noticeable body that makes it one of the finest wines to pair with an array of eats and treats.

Delicious pairings are:

Bacon stuffed mushrooms
Mushroom sauce
Duck
Roast beef
Chocolate coated strawberries

Wine Club Choices…

Newton Johnson Family Reserve 2012, R206.50 – Fragrant and silky smooth
Storm Wines Moya’s Pinot Noir 2013, R300 – Fine and “perfummy”
Storm Wines Vrede Pinot Noir 2012, R300 – Fruit focused with violets and rose petals
Summaridge Pinot Noir 2012, R188.00 – Ripe and savoury
Bouchard Finlayson Galpin Peak 2012, R245.00 – Velvety with rich fruit

PLEASE NOTE: All these wines are available at the Wine Village in Hermanus

Source: Cathy du Toit, Wine Village Hermanus, Stacy Slinkard – About.Com