We meet
Georg Riedel of Riedel Glass at Creation Winery
This was the main reason for our visit to Hermanus. A lunch had been arranged at Creation winery by Michael Fridjhon and Michael Crossley of Reciprocal Trading, who are the distributors of this glassware in South Africa and they had invited lots of media and restaurateurs to meet him. Over lunch, we would sample Creation wines in Riedel glasses – the one designed specifically for that varietal and also in another. This does make it easy to see how well the correct glass showcases both the aroma, the taste and the enjoyment of each wine. We learned much more about Riedel Glass and how they formulate these special glasses for specific wines, based on very scientific methods
Creation winery from the parking area. It is surrounded on all sides by
vines and some lovely indigenous gardens
A warm welcome
A lovely presentation box of The Art of Creation wines, Creation's new premium range, perfect for a gift or your
cellar
The tasting room all laid out for the lunch and tasting
Carolyn Martin with Michael Fridjhon
Jean Claude Martin with Michael Crossley
The Creation wines we will taste with their appropriate Riedel
glasses. From l to r Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Merlot
Lots of discussion before the tasting
Georg Riedel had come from his factory in Austria to inform and instruct
us on the correct use of his glasses. He says size and shape matters,. And, one
and a half centimetres can make a
difference – the Chardonnay glass is the same shape as the Pinot Noir glass, but
higher and the wines taste completely different in each glass
The menu: first the wine tasting in the glasses paired with five
canapés, then a main course selection and coffee and chocolate
With the Sauvignon blanc, a slightly sweet, fruity tomato gazpacho
containing pineapple with some finely chopped scallop
“Wine makes the music, we are the loudspeakers”
Carolyn explains the canapé pairing with the wines
The full citrus and vanilla Chardonnay paired with prawn, avo and
vanilla mayo on pastry
If you travel and cannot take your full set of Riedel glasses with you,
you can travel with The O glass, a stemless glass which comes boxed as a pair and which Carolyn is
holding. There was some amusing controversy about the correct glass for the
Syrah/Grenache
who is passionate about his products and their use
He showed us how to swirl and wash the wine around the inside of the
glass to get the maximum aroma and taste
He showed us how to smell – your face must make contact with the glass.
And he showed us how the same wine in different glasses was completely
different in taste and smell and intensity
A tiny slice of thin beetroot atop a goats milk cheese panna cotta topped
with lentils to go with the Pinot Noir
Waiting or the next wine pairing
with its tiny cup of warm cauliflower and gorgonzola soup
and finally the Syrah Grenache with a lovely duck rillette on a poppadum
with aioli
Michael Fridjhon thanks Georg for coming
John’s main course of rare roast loin of springbok, greens, a fondant
potato and a smoked marrow with a pinot noir and cranberry reduction.
The same dish for Lynne came with mushrooms
Creation have a superb selection of different teas for you to order. We
smelled cinnamon, chocolate, vanilla mint and many more exciting tea flavours.
JC Martin, Georg Riedel, Carolyn Martin and Michael Fridjhon on the lawn
after the tasting
Monika Elias, Shante Hutton having fun and in the background. Dieter Odendaal, Sales
Manager of Creation, capturing the moment.
Creation’s Executive Chef, Warwick Taylor, who designed the menu for the
day
© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2014
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