Hamilton Russell Pinot Noir 2023
Case of 6 x 75cl
Hamilton Russell
£275
Hamilton Russel Chardonnay 2022
Hamilton Russell
Founded by Tim Hamilton Russell in 1975, Hamilton Russell Vineyards benefits from the cool and maritime climate of the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley. Only grapes grown at the estate are used to make highly individual and terroir-driven Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, which are widely regarded as the best in South Africa. Anthony Hamilton Russell, second generation, has been running the estate since 1991. Together with his wife Olive, winemaker Emul Ross and viticulturist Johan Montgomery, the team is dedicated to produce tiny yields and deliver world class wines.
Their Chardonnay is barrel fermented and aged for 9 months in 228 L French oak barrels. Aromas of pear and citrus fruit with well-integrated vanilla notes. Medium to full-bodied on the palate with a dry minerality and a bright acidity. This is an elegant and complex Chardonnay with great length.
Delivery
Items are expected to be delivered within 4 weeks
Producer
Region
Variety
Reviews
Tim Atkin 95 Points, James Suckling 93 Points, Decanter 95 Points
Bottle Format:
75cl
By selecting a "case of 6", you save £3, help the environment and contribute to eco-sustainable development
Variant
Status
Price
Quantity
Ratings
95 Points Tim Atkin
Ever the class act, Hamilton Russell's Chardonnay is in a rich vein of form right now. Using only 5% malolactic because of the warmer year, this is fresh, layered and detailed, with perfumed 23% new wood, notes of brioche and lemon butter and a stylish, stony finish. Concentrated without being heavy in any way.
93 Points James Suckling
This has a lovely nose of cedar, grapefruit, lemon rind, apricot stones and tarragon. Salted butter. It's medium- to full-bodied, deliciously saline and creamy, with a long and elegant finish. Drink or hold.
95 Points Decanter
Subtle at first on the nose and palate, this builds with floral aromas and a hint of spice, together with succulent white peach and pear fruit on the palate. Oak is supple and beautifully integrated. Deceptively powerful, there is a mineral, almost steely, edge which will give this a long future. 100% barrel-fermentation in François Frères oak, 23% new wood, 5% malolactic conversion. Another fine wine from Emul Ross, and a classic example of Chardonnay from the Lower Valley.
Are you aware of this product? Enter your rating to help users of our site in their choice!
South Africa
South Africa is one of the most prominent wine-producing countries in the Southern Hemisphere. With more than 300 years of winemaking history, it is often described as bridging the gap between the Old World and New. The majority of wines are made using New World winemaking techniques but often have more in common stylistically with their Old World counterparts.
South Africa's wine industry is distributed around the lush, rugged landscape of the Western Cape. Here, the abundance of mountains, valleys and plateaus allow winemakers to produce a diverse range of styles. Vineyards are also found in the Northern Cape's Orange River region, where the flat, barren landscape is dominated by the Kalahari Desert. Most of South Africa's wine-producing regions have a Mediterranean climate, significantly influenced by the meeting of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans.
The country's signature variety is Pinotage, an indigenous crossing of Pinot Noir and Cinsaut that is rarely found in quantity in any other wine-producing country. Shiraz is widely planted also, as are Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.
However white grape varieties account for 55 percent of the country's 96,000 hectares (237,000 acres) of vineyards. Chenin Blanc is the republic's most planted grape with 18.5 percent of all plantings. South African Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc have become popular internationally in recent years.
Western Cape
The Western Cape's wine regions stretch 300 kilomers (185 miles) from Cape Town to the mouth of the Olifants River in the north, and 360km (220 miles) to Mossel Bay in the east. Areas under vine are rarely more than 160km (100 miles) from the coast. Further inland, the influence of the semi-arid Great Karoo Desert takes over. The climate can be cool and rainy (as in Cape Point and Walker Bay) but is more often than not Mediterranean in nature.
The city of Cape Town serves as the epicenter of the Cape Winelands, a mountainous, biologically diverse area in the south-western corner of the African continent.
A wide variety of wines are produced here. Wines from the Shiraz and Pinotage grape varieties can be fresh and juicy or full-bodied and gutsy. The Western Cape's elegant, ageworthy Cabernet Sauvignon wines and Bordeaux Blends were at the vanguard as exports recommenced in the mid-1990s, while Burgundy-style Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from Walker Bay are gaining global acclaim, and cool-climate style Sauvignon Blanc from Darling and Overberg is rivaling that made in any other New World country.
