2024 Middle Arm Vineyard Pinotage $70

Now this is something different. Pinotage from northern Tasmania. Not South Africa. Northern Tasmania.

Industry veteran Bruce McCormack was determined to try planting more than just the usual suspects when he set about establishing Middle Arm Vineyard, just outside the old gold-mining town of Beaconsfield.

His choice of Pinotage may have come from out of left field, but the variety appears to have settled very well into the Tamar Valley landscape. Best known as one of the work horses of the South African wine industry, it was first created in a laboratory there in 1924-25. The variety came into being following the cross-pollination of Pinot Noir and Cinsaut (commonly called Hermitage at that time).

Wines from the country's cooler locations typically show vibrant cherry or blackberry fruit, while heftier plum characters appear in the fuller-bodied wines from South Africa's warmer regions.

Vintage 2024 was a warm one across the State, with McCormack's four trial rows producing just 850 bottles of finished wine. The palate does indeed show those aforementioned cherry and blackberry notes, together with some blueberry and fruit cake elements.

The colour is deep and brooding; the aromatics similarly rich and sumptuous. That noted, the flavours are midweight and come with surprising charm and finesse when you take into account the wine's opaque appearance in the glass.

It will be fascinating to see how this release evolves over time. There's clearly a fair amount of extract, and the wine spent the best part of a year in French oak. However, the wine is also a bit of a smoothie, and can be enjoyed right now à la cool-climate Syrah without the spice. Short-term cellaring may add complexity, but who knows?

See for yourself.

Source: Cellar door purchase at Tamar Gold, 104 Greens Beach Road, Beaconsfield

www.tamargold.com.au

Last page update: 3 October 2026