Celebrity Wines Are Not All Bad
Unlike many athletes or celebrities who lend their name to a wine brand, David Frost and his family have been in the wine business in South Africa for over 60 years. His father’s vineyard was the first place he hit balls and the pocket money he made from picking grapes, funded his first set of clubs and an on going supply of balls. In 1994 the tradition of vineyards in the family continued when David bought a 300-acre Vineyard in the Paarl wine region where he produced his first 3,000 cases of Cabernet Sauvignon in 1997.
While busy winning over 30 tournaments worldwide and recording the PGA Tour’s lowest putting total ever, his passion for wine has never been far from his heart
2017 David Frost Grand Slam Pinotage, S.A.
As a reminder, Pinotage is NOT a blend of grapes. It is a hybrid grape that was created by cross breeding Pinot Noir with Cinsault to form the grape Pinotage. A lot of consumers refrain from ALL South African wines because they had a Rubbery Smelling or Gas Smelling Bad Pinotage and assume that All South African wine is poorly made. That couldn’t be further from the truth. For this wine, The majority of the grapes are sourced from vineyards on north and south-east facing back slopes of the Tygerberg hills which are typical of the prime viticultural land that characterizes the maritime Durbanville wine ward influenced by the cold Atlantic Ocean just six miles away. Cooled in summer by seasonal coastal mists and south-eastern breezes, these hills benefit from a typically Mediterranean climate with generous rainfall during frost-free winters and dry, warm summers. Ancient, deep, and well-drained soils capture and retain water well into the summer, creating just the right balance between moisture and stress for the vine to naturally produce healthy, flavorful fruit. The perfect terrior if you will, for this grape and others.
The wine is handcrafted from start to finish. Grapes are hand picked and bunches and berries undergo a second sorting, also by hand, at the cellar. Red grapes undergo maceration and a gentle crushing in stain-less steel tanks. The grapes are fermented at carefully controlled and varietally optimal temperatures and then matured in 225 Liter oak barriques. For $12.99 Retail , Let’s Review!!
My Review
F.Y.I , I get a lot of inquiry about the unique handcrafted glassware I use in all my blogs except Oregon Pinot Noirs. I am not a paid promotional advertiser. I was not given samples to blog about. I purchase them on my own because I love them . You can check out their catalog online at http://www.juliannaglass.com Her name is Anna. Best glasses I have used and pretty darn elegant. These cost $60 for a Set of Two.
The wine didn’t need much time to open up. It’s not something you are going to buy to celebrate your milestone birthday. It’s a well made everyday wine. With that said, the wine has a very dark purple color profile with medium plus body. On the nose it is very upfront of teriyaki beef jerky, plum jam, spice and black raspberry. On the palate a fun wine with no off putting flavors. Juicy, black plum fruits, mixed with hints of licorice, ending on a chocolaty soft tannin finish with dare I say a hint of sweetness. That’s MY personal only problem with the wine is that is has over 4 grams of Residual sugar and I wish it didn’t . I will score this a solid 87 Points out of 100.
My Summary
There are an abundance of sugarfied fruit bomb blends on the Industrial Market today that people love and buy all the time. There is as I mentioned above, a negative aura surrounding South African Wines, by most average American Consumers. I think this wine is well made and far from just a celebrity attaching his name to a wine. David Frost shows the same passion for Golf as he does for his wines. This wine will not only please the palate of 90% of Americans buying those California Sugary Red Blends (This has way way less sugar than those) but also regain your trust in South African wines. This isn’t the greatest Pinotage of my career but also far from the worst. It is a solid wine to buy and well made and easy to drink with mass appeal. It’s a no brainer at $12.99 per bottle.
Grape-fully yours, Larry
A Champion Golfer And Winery David Frost
Larry The Wine Guy 