We
attended the second dinner and wine auction last week which was held at
Neetlingshof Wine Farm. Why two? There were so many people wanting to pay
tribute to Dave Hughes, they had to have two. Neetlongshof donated the venue,
the food and the wines served were also donated, the chefs gave their time for
free and all of the wine in the auction was also donated. He is much loved and
respected in the industry
The Neethlingshof Manor house
Some canapés were served. A glass of gazpacho and
some sliced duck paté rolls
Some glasses of bubbly to welcome everyone
Neetlingshof is a national monument
Now that is a celebratory dinner jacket!
Jeanette Bruwer of Springfield and Jacques Roux of Douglas Green Bellingham and their other halves enjoy a glass of bubbly on the stoep
Beautiful early evening light on the cellar
Dave Hughes comes from a Scottish family so, as a
surprise, the evening started with a Pipe Band dressed, we were told, in
MacDonald tartan. He was surprised and delighted.
We all stood on the terrace while they played some
lovely tunes on the Pipes and Drums. Lynne’s mother was a Scot and John played
the pipes in his school band, so we both find the music very moving; it must be
in the blood
Some of the wines in the auction. The industry and
private individuals had been very generous with their donations
We had donated the Bergsig 1997 Cape LBV and the
Groot Constantia 1972 Shiraz from our cellar
The room was full; both benefit dinners have been
sold out
Sue Wardrop, Director at Meridian Wine Merchants, started
proceedings and related some memories of Dave Hughes
Pea soup with sierings (sorrel leaves), smoked
feta cheese, gremolata was prepared by Chef David MacDonald who works at Bertus
Basson's Spice Route restaurant. The soup was beautifully light and fresh, such
a good way to serve young peas. The heavily smoked creamed feta in the centre
was a huge contrast. We had some Ghost Corner Sauvignon Blanc and some De Wetshof
Bon Vallon Chardonnay with this course, both very good matches
Duimpie Bayly is an old mate and colleague of
Dave Hughes and had some lovely memories to share
And so did Bennie Howard of Meerendal who made us
all laugh at his recollections. Duimpie, Bennie and Dave were three of the
first Cape Wine Masters
Dave Hughes made a gracious and typically humorous
reply to the words of his friends. Seated with him were his wife, Lorna, and
Walter Finlayson
The next course was a Mexican-inspired deep fried
fish taco, with coleslaw, a citrus salsa and guacamole on a soft tortilla with
a char grilled lemon wedge. It was prepared by Chef Lulu Oosthuizen of Neethlingshof
The organiser of both the events, Celia Gilloway gets
the auction underway. Celia has done a magnificent job as the function
organiser and is available to do one for you should you need her
The main course was some of the best cooked loin
of impala we have ever eaten. The meat had been properly but not overly hung,
was tender but not pappy and nicely pink in the middle and was perfectly
seasoned. It came with a simple but beautifully flavoured meat jus. The fresh veggies
were al dente, the blue maize meal was strange and the very spicy chakalaka
might have suited the taco better, as it could overwhelm the meat. The perfect
meat was cooked by Chef Archie MacLean of Catharina's restaurant at Steenberg
Our auctioneer was journalist and wine judge Fiona
MacDonald. She did it so well we think she has an assured future new career as
an auctioneer! Narry a stumble was made, she spotted all the bidders and the
money and was in full control of the crowd. A grand sum of R237??? was raised
this evening, and together with the R?? raised on the first auction a very nice
sum for Dave Hughes who has faced very large medical bills lately
In action! R9,500 going once, twice, fair warning,
SOLD! to the gentleman in Blue.
Time for dessert. A spiced marigold and dark chocolate
delight with frozen yogurt ice cream, a chocolate soil and some cinnamon and
rose infused honeycomb, which we loved
The chefs and kitchen staff line up to loud
applause and thanks
And yet more delights. More of that fantastic
honeycomb, and some Indian sweets: cardamom Burfee, chickpea Channa, and sweet
and syrupy Gulab Jamon to be served with coffee
And some good 12 year old Van Ryn brandy, putting
a perfect end to a great evening for those not driving
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