A magnum of Cuvee Clive, 2007 Graham Beck’s most
prestigious and exclusive vintage Method Cap Classique 81% Chardonnay 19% Pinot
Noir
Pieter (Bubbles) Ferriera, Cellarmaster of Graham
Beck with journalist Neil Pendock
The media gather in the hall of the Westin Grand
for the tasting and lunch, ably organised by Nicolette Waterford who manages Graham
Beck’s Public Relations
Chris du Toit, CEO of Graham Beck, welcomed us all
Pieter Ferreira takes us through his excellent
selection of MCC bubbles.
and the tasting begins
In search of the perfect bubble
A slide on the warm and cool areas of the Cape
Province
Nicolette helps with the pouring of the MCC’s
There were seven to taste
Lots of colour variation
After the tasting we moved to the Executive Club dining room on the 19th floor for lunch, paired with the Graham
Beck Methode Cap Classiques.
The chef takes us through his very complicated menu
The small second course of quail salami topped
with an interesting soft butter or pate was served with Cuvée Clive 2007, which
is full of toffee, brioche and citrus on the nose, is very silky and has good
flavours; citrus on the palate shows finesse and some age
The next course was not universally liked. A sharp
oyster nage (broth) with some overcooked squid and a strange bready dumpling It
was matched with one of our favourite wines, the 2009 Blanc de Blanc with its
complex rich bready, slightly perfumed nose, tasting of lemons and limes with
long, long lean aftertaste.
A tiny cup of pear sherbet with soft pecans (don’t
know where the baked pudding was) was served with the non vintage Brut – the
wine most of us drink regularly at home. More brioche, limes, lemons and toffee on the familiar nose with crisp
limes on the palate
Another very small (main?) course of Rabbit loin
and rabbit chasseur topped with a quenelle of poached and minced langoustine
and a rather tough onion and potato stick and pickled mushrooms. The Brut Rosé
2009 has slight smoky notes with a leesy character and shy fruit on the nose, but is full of strawberries and ripe red cherries on the palate. It has nice complexity and shows some age on
the end. It just grew and grew in
complexity and depth as it stood in the glass.
Guests at the table awaiting more wine and food! Ingrid
Jones and Anel Grobler
Ah ha it has arrived, happy faces.
This is the cheese course: a tiny spoonful of whipped brie with a crisp
sago biscuit but, sadly, served on what appeared to be raw burnt carbon, a known
carcinogen. Why? Most of us left it and
enjoyed it with the lovely Brut Rosé NV, which smells of spun sugar and fresh
strawberries and tastes the same, but is bone dry with a lovely soft mousse and
nice complexity. This is an excellent food wine.
Dessert was a lovely soft lemon and rosewater
buttermilk pudding. The chef used to be
a pastry chef. They served this with the Bliss Demi sec (slightly sweet) NV.
Although this wine has 34 g/l sugar, it is not very sweet and, when put with
desserts, has a good crispness that highlights rather than competes with the
dessert. Soft sugar and fruit with some violet notes on the nose with a good
mousse.
Pieter and Winnie Bowman toast another great round of MCCs
Guy McDonald and Ingrid Jones enjoyed the day
And finally:
the course no one could get enough of – a ganache block of rich
chocolate and caramel with a little pinch of salt.
Served with the star of the show: the excellent Cuvée Clive 2007
© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2013
