Burgundy & Champagne

Timed Online Auction, 2 - 12 June 2023

Champagne & Burgundy
About the Session

The wines of Burgundy and single vineyard Champagnes are produced in small quantities and command high prices. Rarely traded, mature bottles are even more rare in our small market.


Sold for

ZAR 9 380
Lot 1
  • Crystallum; Cuvée Cinéma Pinot Noir; 2015; 6 (1 x 6); 750ml


Lot Estimate
ZAR 8 000 - 12 000
Selling Price
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
ZAR 9 380

About this Item

2015 Cuvée Cinéma Pinot Noir
6 (1 x 6) 750ml

Based in the Walker Bay region of South Africa, Crystallum is run by brothers Peter-Allan and Andrew Finlayson, 3rd-generation winemakers who focus on Burgundy varieties. Within only a little over 15 years (interestingly the first vintage was a singular Sauvignon in 2007!) this outfit has positioned itself as one of the top proponents of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in South Africa. Awards locally and internationally are in fact unrivalled, and the wines are sold out every year on release.

Scenes from a movie based on the life of Napoleon were shot on the Cinéma site the year before vineyards were introduced, which gave this wine its name. This Cuvée is a selection of barrels made from said single vineyard, a premium site in the Hemel-en-Aarde Ridge that was meticulously designed to produce the highest quality Pinot Noir with the planting of high density vines using disease-free Dijon clones.

Provenance

Private Client

Critics Ratings

‘Show-stopping, wild-fermented flagship. 2015 from Overberg vines shows purity, vibrant fruit flavours and concentrated richness. 30% new oak gives structure that will last. Class act. 30% whole bunches, as Peter Max.’ - Platter’s SA Wine Guide 2017, 4.5*

'Subtle, scented and showing the fresh acidity that’s a feature of many Pinot Noirs from the Ridge, this appealing cuvée is fermented with 40% stems. There’s a hint of reduction on the nose, but it adds to the complexity of the raspberry and red cherry flavours.’ - Tim Atkin MW, SA Special Report 2016, 94/100

‘The 2015 Cuvee Cinema Pinot Noir was demonstrating just a touch of reduction, so do not be afraid to introduce this to your favorite carafe. The palate is medium-boiled with sappy red and blue fruit, supple tannins, lovely swagger and style here with a long and sumptuous finish. I adore the manner in which this just shook off its bashful nature and blossomed in the glass, to the point where it might well be the best release from Crystallum this vintage. Go seek, go buy, go drink.’ - Neal Martin, Wine Advocate, 94/100 (Apr 2017)

‘From a Hemel-en-Aarde Ridge vineyard. 30% whole-bunch fermentation, matured for 11 months in 228- and 500-litre French oak barrels, 35% new. A complex nose showing red and black fruit, musk, roses, spice and attractive oak. Great fruit concentration balanced by tangy acidity – possesses real depth and might even be described as hearty. The most convincing SA Pinot yet?’ - Christian Eedes, Winemag.co.za, 94/100

View all Crystallum lots for sale in this auction