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cinsault

Cinsault (also spelt Cinsaut) is a black grape variety with a strange reputation. It's quite widely planted in southern France and South Africa, yet isn't regarded as a high-quality variety. It's planted because it produces big berries with lots of juice and therefore high yields. That makes it popular with growers, but less so with producers. Its reputation also suffered as it's one of the parents, alongside Pinot Noir, of South Africa's Pinotage. Pinotage is a variety which produces much better wines than its reputation suggests, but Cinsault, with its high yields and basic wines, was seen as part of...

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