Thursday, August 31, 2023

NT Wines and Ree Marketing trade tasting at the Pepper Club

Nicoleen Traut (NT Wines) and Riana Smit (Ree Marketing)
are independent wine distributors who, between them, represent eleven farms
They are friends who work as two independents and sometimes collaborate with one another
They put on a tasting of their farms' wines at the Pepper Club 

A good venue with ample room to taste

Great to see Hempies du Toit; it has been a long time - he spends much of his time on his Karoo farm
We tasted two of his Annandale wines from Stellenbosch
First, the 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon, which has dark fruit richness and great wood on the nose
It is a classic Cabernet, with lovely soft tannins, great fruit, with length, depth and wood on the end. Built to last
The Annandale Shiraz has incense wood, pepper and red berry fruit with some spice and sweetness

Rudi Schultz was showcasing his impressive Schultz Family wines
North Beach is his 2021 Sauvignon Blanc from Sutherland, Karoo grapes
Elegance with green notes of pepper, fig leaves; a classic
Rounded on the palate, green and full of lovely ripe fruit with salty minerality
Skeleton Bay 2022 Chenin Blanc from an old (1961) vineyard in Paarl, whole bunch pressed
and the juice was allowed to settle overnight
Barrel fermentation completed in old Burgundy barrels has produced a rich Chenin that cries out for food
His Pepper Street Shiraz is produced in as Rhône a style as he can make it
Razzle Dazzle on the nose and palate with chocolate, dark cherry, plum, good chalky tannins and licorice on the end
Boneyards 2019, a blend of 64% Malbec and 36% Petit Verdot has roses, violets, vanilla oak and dark berry fruit
Lighter than expected on the palate, with long fruit flavours

Annalie van Dyk – Winemaker at Hidden Valley, Stellenbosch
The Hidden Valley 2019 Cap Classique Brut, 50/50 Chardonnay Pinot Noir,
spent three and a half years on the lees and it shows well on the nose
Initially Lime/lemon then the pinot fruit appears. It has some salty minerality
The 2022 Sauvignon Blanc has a good green nose and palate which we like,
and some granadilla adding long fruit flavours; a good food wine

Lizelle Gerber, showing the Org de Rac organic wines from the Swartland, had an excellent Cap Classique, La Verne
90% Chardonnay, 10% Pinot Noir; biscuity on the nose, it has a lovely crunch of crisp fruit and good mousse

Wines from the Hasher Family Estate in Hemel and Aarde (it was previously called Sumaridge)
The 2022 Fat Lady Sauvignon Blanc is from grapes planted in 1997; the 2022 vintage is the swansong for this wine
Lots of ripe tropical and gooseberry fruit
Marimist is a reference to the cool Atlantic sea mist
which is  blown into the valley every evening and departs early in the morning
70% of this 2022 Chardonnay was fermented in 228L French oak barrels, of which 20% was new wood
so wood is present along with lime, citrus and peach

Bernard le Roux, Zorgvliet winemaker

The Zorgvliet 2022 Sauvignon Blanc has good fruit on the nose and English gooseberries with salty minerality on the palate
Simoné, their white Bordeaux blend of Semillon (58%) and Sauvignon Blanc
has grey Semillon on the nose with citrus and marmalade on the palate,
Semillon creaminess, long flavours melding together, a good food wine

We were impressed with Zorgvliet's 2023 100% Cabernet Franc rosé
Perfumed with jasmine, rose and strawberry. These remain on the crisp palate; it's as charming as it can be

Alvi's Drift wines from Rawsonville, presented by Junel van der Merwe CWM
The 2022 Chenin Blanc has a classic nose, good fruit on the palate, not too tropical with crisp lime notes; quaffable

Klaas Coetzee presented his Kusafiri certified organic wines. The name means 'journey' in Swahili
His Sauvignon Blanc is crisp, fruity and interesting. He not only bottles his wine, but also sells it in cans
His Wellington 2022 Viognier is matured in barrel, so wood is present
It has the correct peach-filled nose and follows through on the palate

We used to sell a lot of Riebeek Cellars' Pieter Kruithof carbonated bubbly at Main Ingredient, our shop
Made from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir; it is still a popular wine
The Barrel-fermented Chenin Blanc from Paarl has some sweet, ripe golden fruit on the nose and palate with hints of oak
The RAAR 2023 Grenache is interesting. Quite grey on the nose; sweet jubejube fruit, with potential

Luan Aucamp - Sales Manager at Ridgeback Wine.
The 2022 Ridgeback Viognier has a whiff of wood with peaches and nectarines on the nose,
which follow through on the palate with ripe fruit

Annelien Loubser showing the Stettyn wines to Tony Garcia of Liquor City
We really liked their entry level Sauvignon Blanc with its green fig leaves and asparagus on the nose,
refreshing green crispness on the layered and vibrant palate with salty minerality
Their Chenin Blanc was classic, another lovely mouthful of fruit with good crispness and balance

Walking out through the Pepper Hotel reception

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Wednesday, August 30, 2023

Sunday Brunch at The Granary Cafe, The Silo Hotel

The Silo building was a grain silo in the Cape Town docks
It has been adapted and hugely altered by heatherwick studio into premises for two tenants:
The Silo Hotel and the Zeitz Mocaa Art Gallery
After a fortuitous meeting at a wine tasting, we received an invitation to sample their Brunch
which takes place from 11.30am to 3pm every Sunday in the hotel's Granary restaurant

The Hotel and restaurant reception area is filled with art, but still has some of the features of the original grain silo
The sparkly picture of the woman must have nearly blinded the artist
It is made up of tiny sequins, each one applied individually

Heavily detailed restaurant entrance with Ardmore fabric-covered sofas and a display of African tribal art

The bar and serving area under heavy steel beams which support the mezzanine floor above
and the signature floor to ceiling faceted glass windows give views of the city and harbour from many angles

A welcoming glass of Graham Beck Brut Cap Classique

The menu of the day. The cost is R350 per person

Such helpful and friendly staff, which shows that excellent training can result in happy staff

A view of the wintry Table Mountain, wreathed in cloud, from our corner table, with the Synchrolift below us
It is used for refurbishing smaller vessels

Enigma XK is a converted former British Coastguard vessel
She is now an ultra-luxury expedition yacht and is for sale with an asking price of US$18 000 000,
should you be in the market for a useful toy....

Soup arrived in a charming vintage china cup and saucer
It was a rich and savoury butternut, so deliciously savoury that Lynne thought that she tasted duck stock
but we were informed that it's purely good vegetable stock

Next comes the Brunch Etagere to share
It means " a piece of furniture with open shelves for displaying small ornaments, which is very appropriate 
Top shelf had a crisp and buttery croissant dough onion roll which is very moreish, and some melba toast
Below: good Parma ham and some rolled ham, with some dressed leaf salad
Bottom shelf: two delicious smoked salmon rolls with capers and lemon, perfect with the onion roll,
and some local hard cheeses

To go with our Brunch, we ordered two different rosés by the glass:
La Residence Rosemary Jane Rosé, served very cold
Rather like an Orange wine with notes of sherry lees on the nose and flavours of orange and oak
It is made for the hotels in the Royal Portfolio
which includes La Residence in Franschhoek and The Silo
Clifton Atlantic Rosé is produced from Mourvèdre for The Clifton Collection
by Bottega Family Wine’s winemaker, Reino Thiart
It was shy to begin with but had good fruit; a food wine

We could then chose one of the courses listed on the menu
The Tempura Prawns served on sushi rice,
with pickled cucumber, and lots of avocado and spicy siracha mayonnaise, was really enjoyable
It's rather like eating a very large plate of fried sushi
Three large prawns with perfectly crisp Tempura batter
The soy sauce was poured below the rice, and the accompanying salad added refreshment
Perhaps some dressing for the salad?

The rather small hamburger is served on an English muffin, topped with a fried egg (John ordered sunny side up),
half an avocado, lots of bacon and cubes of feta cheese

We were ably serenaded all during the meal by John Neil who is a versatile Cape Town recording artist

We had been invited for the previous Sunday, Lynne's Birthday
but, because of the Taxi strike, were moved to a week later, which we didn't mind at all
They had not forgotten the birthday and a lovely plate arrived with a slice of rich chocolate cake
which reminded Lynne of her favourite Opera cake
Served with a swirl of orange gel and piped white chocolate mousse 

There were two choices of dessert, so we had one each
A true to expectations moist Sticky Toffee pudding with cinnamon ice cream
set  on a streusel crumb with leaves of caramel toffee

A light as air milk chocolate mousse, tasting of really good chocolate like Valrhona; pale but full bodied
 Topped with chocolate shavings and tiny squares of moist, dark, almost gelled chocolate
and piped white chocolate, a dessert full of flavour and texture
A very satisfying meal and a lovely way to spend a Sunday


We must thank all the staff who were so good to us. Johandri Ras the Assistant General Manager of the hotel,
Anika de Jongh, Food and Beverage manager, Andre the Assistant Food and Beverage Manager
and, especially, kind, gentle and helpful Peter, our Malawian waiter
We had been invited by Johandri Ras and he came to see that we had enjoyed the lunch
He asked if we would like to go with him to see some of the suites in the hotel and he took us up to see two
First, the Red Suite which has its own lounge with dining/meeting table and kitchen area

It is on a corner of the building and has magnificent city views

Can you imagine waking up to this? The windows are all one way glass, so no one can see inside

A comfortable bed with views of the harbour and the mountain

Oh my, what a way to enjoy a bath. Love the red Chinese cabinet holding the lotions and potions

Then into another room, beautifully decorated and with huge crystal chandeliers
This is their entry level room should you wish to book:  https://www.theroyalportfolio.com/the-silo-hotel

With its own balcony

and its own bathroom, which also has a chandelier

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Tasting Catherine Marshall's Pinot noirs at her cellar

An invitation to a tasting with Catherine Marshall of her Pinot Noirs, followed by lunch, was quickly accepted
We so respect what Cathy has done in her career and really love the wines she produces

Her cellar / tasting room is on Lavinia farm, at the very top of the last hill on the Polkadraai Road,
as one approaches from Stellenbosch, so there are magnificent views across toward Stellenbosch 

Lynne getting a warm welcome from Cathy's mum Jakki, whom we have not seen for far too long

The wine that welcomed us was the Amatra Semillon which has that greyness Lynne always picks up on Semillon
with good rich fruit and a whiff of oak. Crisp English gooseberry and limes on the full palate,
with that little Semillon fat on the roof of the mouth, refreshing and enjoyable

In the tasting room, Cathy outlines some of her history
She attended Elsenberg for 3 years and has done a lot of harvests abroad
in Sonoma, Oregon, in Australia and at Angelus in Burgundy
She started making wine in 1996 with a foot stomping party on Muizenberg beach,
which produced her first Shiraz from a ton of grapes
She was the first Garagiste winemaker with her Barefoot (on the beach) wines
There was little legislation then and buying grapes and hiring cellars was possible
Then new legislation arrived and finding grapes became difficult, especially for women winemakers
 And so her winemaking became more serious

Some of her Barefoot wines

The full range for tasting sits beneath the paintings done by  Hannekie de Klerk, which grace the wines' labels

After scouring vineyards throughout the Western Cape, Cathy made the decision in 2007
to source all grapes from mostly cool climate Elgin and the Hemel en Aarde Valley for Pinot Noir
and also Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling and Chenin Blanc
Grown on Table Mountain sandstone and Bokkeveld Share these are the oldest soils in the world at 500 million years

The first four wines in the tasting

2014 Sandstone Pinot Noir has perfume and cherry raspberry and pomegranate on the nose
with a whiff of wood which follows through on the very satisfying palate which lasts well. From 100% Elgin fruit

The Clay Pinot Noir 2014. The nose more earthy with umami and brulée notes
Elgin fruit; mulberry cherry and pomegranate. Clean and crisp and full of red berry fruit with some blueberry,
it is still fresh with wood on the end

The Sandstone Pinot Noir 2020; a warm year
Rich cherry conserve on the nose; so accomplished, powerful and fresh. A hint of violets
Rounded on the palate, full fruit and wood and melded into one fine wine, with good oak and minerality
Very Burgundian in style

The Clay Pinot Noir 2020. Shy at first then perfume and ethereal integrated berry fruit
Sweet Raspberry, then morello cherry; a good balance of fruit and acids, umami on the end

Clay 2021 Pinot Noir and Sandstone 2022 Pinot Noir which is ruby red,
 with pomegranate, cranberry and raspberry with wood as a perfume on the nose
Soft and silky on the juicy fruit palate, with good wood and crisp tannins,
the wine has huge aging potential and is delicious, matured in 100% Burgundian 300 litre French oak with just a light toast

Clay 2022 Pinot Noir  has incense wood, perfume of raspberry and rose with earthy notes
Layered mulberry, rhubarb and black cherry fruit, with good texture as tannins, dark oak, 
 chalk and salty minerality reveal themselves. Long, long flavours remain
It's a Wow from us

Finite Elements 2017
Cathy says it's engineering the Elgin Pinot from the vineyard to the glass
From layered red, white and blue clay soils. Smoky with gentle fruit which then opens up to impress
Silky on the palate, full of delicious red plum fruit, perfume of jasmine surrounds

The 2018 Finite also has plum and rose perfume, very approachable and fine
Ripe red berries, cassis, pomegranate and damson

2019 Elements Red
Velvet on the nose, perfume, a hint of oak and minerality
Chalky with wood at first, then lots of plum and mulberry fruit, long flavours; it's waiting in the wings

Finite 2020 from Hemel en Aarde Pinot Noir
Cherry richness, it's a dive in nose with good wood supporting. Very satisfying and intriguing
Silky and full of soft red berry fruit, a delicious mouthful in layers, it calls for food
Best in the lineup, can't wait to see how it matures

Finite Elements Pinot Noir 2021 has perfume, wood smoke and soft berry fruit
It's juicy with long layered flavours and definite salty umami flavours

Sandstone 2021 Pinot Noir, A cherry bomb on the nose and palate
Elgin fruits. Incense oak, the wine has tension, and is very Burgundian in style, soft tannins on the palate
with long red and black cherry flavours

The just released Finite 2022 has smoke, dark berry fruit, elegance and intrigue
We love pinot; cherry, berry fruit, a bit shy but will come into its own
Lovely on the palate, tastes mature already, got all the flavours and the class it needs

Cathy and Zonnika Louw, the Tasting Room manager, pouring the wines


 A local art gallery curates the art which graces the tasting room and it has successfully sold works to customers here

It certainly adds to the charm as does the fireplace


The tasting room "menu"


We certainly encourage you to visit, taste and buy these interesting and quality wines

Need another two glasses!

The view looking towards the Stellenbosch mountains

Time for lunch and there was some very good bread and cheese straws provided

The warm chicken pie was delicious. It went so well with the 2022 Chenin Blanc 

A very good cheese platter; we especially enjoyed the Gorgonzola, superb with good bread and great Pinot Noir

 good mixed salad 

and a colourful coleslaw

It all went so well together

Jakki had made a really delicious, crisp lemon tart

which was accompanied by a trio of very flavoursome, quality ice creams

Strawberries and Cream, Mango and a good, rich chocolate
We had not heard of Sorbetier before, but will be sure to seek them out

The 2023 Riesling has pretty rose petals and smoke on the nose and not a trace of any terpenes, thankfully Long, clean, crisp with hints of honeysuckle and in the style of Alsace

2022 Chenin Blanc grown in clay
Rich golden fruit, full on the layered palate with exciting acidity and good fruit. Light wood on the end, very satisfying

A tribute to the strength of women



Clouds gathering over the Simonsberg in the distance, looking over the lavender which is in full bloom now
Earlier, a small duiker antelope had been spotted in among the flowers
Thank you Cathy, Jakki and  Zonnika for an epic tasting and great lunch
We also enjoyed the company of the other invited guests who seemed to be as keen on the wines as we were

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