Our Swartland Pinotage ‘Guillermo’ 2013, with its velvety ripe blueberry, mulberry, exotic spice and creamy vanilla flavours is almost sold out.
We are proud to announce that we will be launching Guillermo Swartland Pinotage 2014 at Prowein. We invite you to come and taste it and tell us how you would describe it. It is a wine that is part of the history and soul of our company, and is it our most successful and iconic wine.
Where did it all start?
The idea that grew this wine started many years ago in Botswana when three people met while working at Lloyd’s Camp. Our founders, Jeremy and Emma Borg met and married up there in the African wilderness, and left with an enduring love of the wild places and the animals that lived in them. Years later, when they founded a wine company with distinctive delicious wines and the conservation of African Wild Dogs as its core, they turned to that third person to distil the energy and persistence of Painted Wolves into a logo.
Jenny Metelerkamp, no longer at Lloyds, but working as an artist, rose to the challenge and decided to take some ink for a run. She described her process to us later: “I worked with a brush dipped in India ink. It was quite challenging. When you work like that, straight onto the paper, you have to keep your hand moving all the time. So the method and process of drawing a dog on the move actually reflected the subject matter, which seemed quite appropriate.
“In the process of trying to capture the form and energy of a wild dog, I ended up creating many different versions as there were so many ways to make the ink move. I also felt inspired by the energy of the company. It is as dynamic as a wild dog”
The running dog we loved the most became our logo and the basis for the label of Guillermo Swartland Pinotage.
Why does our very South African wine have a Spanish name?
Our business is based on relationships, like a wild dog pack. We believe that the strength of the pack is in the strength of each individual member. When we were looking for investors in our company, one of the first people to dive in was Argentinian born Billy (Guillermo) Hughes who grows seriously sought after organic grapes on his farm Kasteelsig. Guillermo Swartland Pinotage is made from his grapes and bears his name because he believed in our pack.
Over vintages it has garnered many awards and accolades.
Here are a few of the highlights:
Guillermo Swartland Pinotage 2013
- 90 points – Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
- Double Gold – National Wine Challenge/Top 100 wines 2017
- Gold – Old Mutual Trophy Wine Show 2017
Guillermo Pinotage 2012
- Finalist Diners Club Winemaker of the Year 2015
- 89 points – Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
Guillermo Pinotage 2010
- Top 100 Wines of 2013 – Wine Enthusiast USA – 91 points & Editor’s choice
- 90 points – Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
- 90 points – Steve Tanzer
Guillermo Pinotage 2009
- Winner – ABSA Top 10 Pinotage Competition 2012
- Matthew Jukes: “Guillermo – the purest, most alluring Pinotage I have tasted in years!” Jan 2011
Painted Wolf Pinotage 2007
- 90 points – Wine Enthusast USA
We look forward to hearing your verdict of this new addition to the pack.