Newton Johnson Walker Bay Pinot Noir

Newton Johnson, the South African winery in the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley, in the Walker Bay district (Cape South Coast), has been working with Pinot Noir with great results for more than 27 years. This family business, founded in 1995 by Dave Newton Johnson and his wife Felicity, is now run by Gordon Newton Johnson (second generation) and his wife Nadia (a graduate in Oenology and Viticulture from Stellenbosch). Both have always been involved in wine culture, becoming experts in Pinot Noir, a variety that they have great experience with; in fact, Dave Newton Johnson, a Cape Wine Master, has written a doctoral thesis on this variety typical of Burgundy that has taken easily and successfully in the southernmost tip of Africa, appearing in wines like Newton Johnson Walker Bay Pinot Noir.

Several factors have made this possible. The first of these is the soil, which is very similar to that of Burgundy (in central France), with a clay content that retains some of the 850 mm of annual rainfall (which falls mainly in the winter months between May and August). The unique thing about Newton Johnson Walker Bay Pinot Noir is that it is made with grapes from the youngest vineyards. While other Pinot Noir wines from the estate, made using vines planted at higher altitudes, are more serious, Newton Johnson Walker Bay Pinot Noir (planted south facing on medium and lower slopes), is the younger, fresher version of this variety where, of course, there is no skimping on quality. These wines start life in vineyards very close to the coast, between 4 km and 8 km from the Atlantic Ocean, growing under a clear maritime influence that cools temperatures and reduces the contrasts between day and night, leaving an average temperature of 25ºC. These temperatures are moderated by two wind currents, the Berenguela (coming directly from Antarctica) and the Doctor Cape (a cold wind from the southeast).

All these climate factors mean that this variety, which is typical of cold and temperate climates, grows successfully on the other side of the world. Quality is maintained and guaranteed throughout the vinification process, from the harvest (in large crates to avoid crushing) to the winery. Always working to keep the grapes in good condition, when they reach the winery, they immediately spend the whole night in cold storage chambers, at a temperature of 8ºC, dropping their temperature. The next morning the bunches are transferred to a conveyor belt, where they are destemmed and fall directly into the fermentation tanks. Newton Johnson Walker Bay Pinot Noir spends 4-6 days here at low temperatures undergoing pre-fermentation maceration. After this time, the native yeasts begin fermentation, and punching down takes place. After that, Newton Johnson Walker Bay Pinot Noir spends 15 days in contact with the skins before being pressed.

Finally, Newton Johnson Walker Bay Pinot Noir finishes in new and used Burgundy barrels of 228 L and 500 L, made from oak exclusively for vineyards. The wine undergoes malolactic fermentation here and is left there for 11 months until it is again racked into stainless steel tanks, where it spends another 6 months before bottling (without clarifying or filtration).

In 1995 Dave Newton Johnson’s enthusiasm for Pinot Noir was passed on to his children. Now one of those children Gordon, has also adopted wine as a way of life and in their hands both the winery and the vineyards are reaching new heights and going in new directions. You can’t miss out on what they’re doing.