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#427 Bellevue Malbec 2022

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Where Pinotage History Meets Malbec Swagger:

Bellevue’s no stranger to making history — they supplied the fruit for the very first Pinotage bottling back in 1959 — and their Malbec shows the same pioneering confidence. A nod to classicism, a wink to modern drinkability.

In the video below, we’ll dive into the vineyard story, the style, and why this particular Malbec feels like it’s carved a new silhouette for the grape in South Africa. Spoiler: there’s rosemary, there’s buchu, and there’s just enough swagger to keep you guessing.

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If you have yet to sign up for your Monthly HanDrinksSolo Wine Subscription then you’ll have to hunt this wine down in your own time. But until then, here are my tasting notes and some technical specs:

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TASTING NOTES

AROMAS: The 2021 Bellevue Malbec smells like someone dropped a bouquet of wild fynbos on the bonnet of a classic car, then drove it through the Karoo with the windows down. Rosemary, mint, and that elusive herbal kick of buchu lift from the glass, chased by a curl of dark chocolate and cinnamon from 12 months in French oak.

PALATE: On the palate, it’s all plums and red cherries dressed in leather jackets — plush and ripe, but still just a little wild around the edges. A streak of eucalyptus and spice threads through the fruit, soft tannins glide in like an encore nobody wanted to end, and the finish lingers longer than a Springbok victory lap.

This is Malbec with a South African passport: confident enough for Karoo lamb, bold enough for venison, and suave enough to make ostrich feel underdressed.

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TECHNICAL SPECS

00% Malbec. Wine of origin Stellenbosch. Grapes were harvested at around 24° Brix and fermented at 26–28 °C for approximately 5 days. During alcoholic fermentation, pump-overs were done three times daily, which rally is rather rigorous, and explains that firm tannic structure. Malolactic fermentation was completed in stainless steel tanks. The wine was aged in French oak barrels for 12 months, with around 20% of that oak being new

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