Torero and the Suit of Lights Carignan 2021
By Christian Eedes, 12 January 2023
-
Share:
2
Via his business Rueda Wine Consulting, Fernando Rueda offers a select portfolio of wines for sale, both local and international, as well as cellaring services.
In 2021, he sourced Carignan from a well-established block in Wellington and made his own wine by the name of Torero and the Suit of Lights. Grapes picked early, winemaking involved 30% whole-bunch fermentation before maturation lasting eight months in older oak.
Associated with Languedoc-Roussillon, Carignan typically makes for quite rough wines that are high in both acidity and tannins but Rueda has managed to fashion something rather elegant. On the nose, some flinty reduction before cranberry and raspberry, a touch of floral perfume as well as some meaty character while the palate shows good fruit purity, bright acidity and pliable tannins.
Late ripening, Carignan lends itself to cultivation in relatively warm climates and more and more of South Africa’s progressive winemakers are looking to work with it – this clearly demonstrates the potential of the variety. Price: R360 a bottle.
CE’s rating: 92/100.
Check out our South African wine ratings database.
-
Share:
Greg | 13 January 2023
Hi Gareth. Try the Painted Wolf Darius Carignan 2021. Old vines – possibly even the same block as the Torero. At R220 more realistic pricing and excellent value. Multilayered & a great example of what the variety can achieve here.
Gareth | 12 January 2023
I would love to try this, purely because I also share your sentiments about Carignan – but the price tag puts me off as I know for R360 I can get a bottle of wine that I am sure will be super.
I guess this is one of the many issues facing RSA producers trying to make something of quality and still turn a profit.