Tuesday, November 29, 2022

Agulhas Triangle wine festival

When we heard, way back in early September, that there was going to be an Agulhas Triangle Wine Festival,
we booked accommodation immediately, as close to the site as we could afford
We love these southernmost Cape wines but it is rather a long way from Cape Town
and making a summer weekend of it in November seemed to be A GOOD THING
It was held at Lomond Wine Farm, which is just south of Gansbaai on the Baardskeerdersbos road

Organised by Andre Morgenthal, perhaps best known for heading the Old Vines project,
we were delighted to hear that it was fully subscribed and so we hope that they will be able to repeat it next year
It was a blast. And we saw several people we know, like Billie Lambrechts, here enjoying a laugh with a friend


Not just wines, but local beers and ciders:
Ice cold cans of Bruce Jack’s Salute to the sun, brewed from sustainable sorghum


and these Fraser’s Folly cans from Black Oystercatcher - and such great wines

We are huge fans of Strandveld wines, they are always in our cellar and what a great chance to taste the new vintages
Elim where they are grown, is one of the coolest wine areas in South Africa, the soils are rocky and full of minerals
so their Sauvignon Blancs are excellent. But then so are their red wines
Conrad Vlok, the winemaker, was awarded the prestigious Winemaker of the Year award that very night
It is so well deserved


Thinus Botha showed us the wines from Ghost Corner, which is owned by Cederberg wines
They really impressed us the most,
the concentration and elegance and crispness of the Sauvignons and Semillons are backed up by their recent awards
Their two Sauvignons Blanc are some of the best we have tasted this year
The Wild Ferment and the Bowline Sauvignon/Semillon blend knocked our socks off, as did the newly released Semillon
Jerome van Rooi, one of their winemakers, was awarded the Young Winemaker of the Year title this year
This is not a farm or area to ignore if you like classic white wines. They also produce formidable Shirazes


What to taste next? So many choices


So, next, to taste the wines of Black Oystercatcher


They have a good range of wines, including a 2017 Cap Classique Brut Rosé, made from Merlot


Zoetendal was a renewed discovery for us and we enjoyed their Sauvignon Blanc
and the Monarch, a Cabernet Shiraz red blend with four other Bordeaux varietals

Enjoying meeting Robert Stelzner of The Giant Periwinkle and tasting The Bard,
an interesting blend of Semillon, Viognier, Nouvelle and as he puts it, a dab of Sauvignon Blanc
Nouvelle, a cross between Cape Riesling (Crouchen blanc) and Ugni Blanc (Trebbiano Toscano)
is not used very much at all in South Africa
The wine is not named for Shakespeare but for Baardskeerdersbos

Live music brightened up the day


Finding a place to sit was not easy, but we did eventually find a comfortable shared table


while people queued for tastings


and some picnicked on the grass


We bought pies for our lunch


Lots of good meat, but also thick pastry


and, visiting Lomond brand ambassador Gianni Lozzi at their stall we found Andre Morgenthal, who organised the Festival


Cheerfully pouring all day


David Trafford and winemaker Charla Bosman on the Sijnn stall
The wines are different, sustainable and push boundaries
And both David’s farms, De Trafford in Stellenbosch and Sijnn garner good awards here and internationally
These Malgas grapes from Southern Rhône and Portuguese varietals are grown in a warm dry climate
and very different soils from David’s other farm, high in the Stellenbosch mountains,
where he produces excellent and complex red wines Both farms produce excellent Chenins


Billie Lambrechts, back for another taste of the Lomond wines

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