Calling all Rhône lovers AND French Pinot lovers! This one’s for you.

This summer, some Operatives from out of town stopped by HQ with a few other couples. Agent AG and Agent Magnum were about to give them the grand tour of the facilities… and that’s when Operative Lee spotted this bottle and went straight for it. 👀 The verdict from Operative Lee? A great drinker after it has time to breathe. Good eye, Ops!

Cinsault?? 🤔 “It’s a wonderful grape, but how do you sell it?” That’s Adi Badenhorst talking about Cinsault, as Tim Atkin, Master of Wine, reported it.

Well… Double 94 Points helps. Over 50% OFF helps even more! Just $29 😏 But in all seriousness…Adi Badenhorst??

So who is Adi? He is ONE of the Four Founding Members of the Swartland Revolution, alongside Eben Sadie, Chris and Andrea Mullineux, and Callie Louw of Porseleinberg. Before any of that, he worked harvests at Château Angélus in Saint-Émilion 🇫🇷 and with Alain Graillot in the northern Rhône. Then he spent nine years as winemaker at Rustenberg in Stellenbosch.

Then he and his cousin Hein bought a neglected farm called Kalmoesfontein on the Paardeberg. They went back to basics in a cellar that hadn’t made wine since the 1930s. Ramnasgras is a single vineyard of old Cinsault vines planted more than half a century ago.

In the glass. Our team tasted it together. Once it got some air to blow off a little bottled-up funk… it went straight to violets and rose petals over earth, with raspberry and strawberry compote. Baked and fresh fruit sit side by side, with wild herbs running through a very tightly knit palate.

Agent Brut liked it and called it complex, with tons of mineral weaving throughout. Agent AG only needed one word… Silky. ✨ Agent Lees LOVED the mulberry and freesia. She said it drinks like a Pinot Noir right up until the finish, and that finish had her saying yummy out loud. 😋 But it was Agent Rôtie who summed it up perfectly…

Agent Rôtie’s verdict: “Any Rhône lover would go crazy for this, including me!” 🙌

At the table. 🍽️ Think Pinot friendly and Rhône friendly: grilled salmon, wild mushroom risotto, herb-crusted lamb chops, or a board of charcuterie and aged cheese. It’s also dangerously easy to drink on its own too.

$29 here. Over 50% OFF a fabulous Rhône varietal that takes you on a journey. Great by itself, fun with food too. HAPPY DANCE!! 💃🕺 Oh yes, and Double 94 Points too!

94 Points - Tim Atkin ”It’s a wonderful grape, but how do you sell it?” asks Adi Badenhorst of Cinsault. The answer is surely by making more wines that are as good as this. Light, but not insubstantial, this has rose petal and raspberry aromas, some whole bunch pepper spice and savoury tannins. 2021-27.”

94 Points - Decanter ”From Adi Badenhorst, Swartland’s savoury, mineral and meaty tones chime though here, the fruit taken from a single vineyard planted in 1964. Lifted expressive aromas of cherry blossom, raspberry and rhubarb continue on the light-bodied but concentrated palate, which has lovely purity of fruit, crunchy cranberry acidity and supple tannins. Ethereal, complex and characterful.”