Friday, December 08, 2023

In MENU This Issue. Platter 2024, Caroline’s White Review, Hermanus Weekend, Creation lunch, Tokara Moss Garden, Elgin Open Gardens, Oak Valley lunch, Meerendal Blanc Fumé



This is our last MENU of 2023 and, because of a variety of reasons, it is a bumper edition with more stories than ever. They have all been published on our web site, Facebook and LinkedIn between the end of October and now. We have had some memorable meals, enjoyed wonderful wines and visited beautiful places in the Western Cape. Please enjoy them with us by clicking on the links and photographs

We hope that you will all have a most enjoyable holiday season, a Blessed Christmas and Hanukkah and that 2024 will bring you all the benefits you wish for

Platter's 2024 South African Wine Guide launch

The 2024 Platter's Guide to South African wine was launched at Andrea and Chris Mullineux's Roundstone Farm near Riebeek Kasteel. The farm is just off the road to Riebeek Kasteel, just before the mountain pass
We parked between vineyards and were taken by bus to the cellar. Read on...

Platter's 2024 Wines of the Year

These are the highest-scoring wines within each category, tasted within Platter's 2024 Wines of the Year blind tastings.  See them Here

Platter's 2024 Top Wineries of the Year

See the story Here

A Hermanus, Hemel en Aarde Weekend

We took a family friend to Hermanus while we were staying in the Hemel and Aarde; it really should be on all tourists' agendas. It is such a great place to visit and if you are lucky, as we were, you might spot some whales breaching and flapping their tails in the air. Read on…

Wine pairing lunch at Creation

For our weekend in the Hemel and Aarde, we made a reservation for lunch at Creation Wine Estate. Our family friend Angela from London had been there before and wanted so much to visit again. See the fabulous lunch Here

The Moss Garden at Tokara

We received an exciting invitation to visit Tokara wine estate during the Open Gardens weeks, including a visit to their special Adamastor Moss Garden. The gardens are spectacular, with many garden 'rooms' leading down from their home to the lake. Lovingly created by GT and Anne-Marie Ferreira, we wandered around in awe, exclaiming at the garden and enjoying the marvellous views back over the vines to Table Mountain in the distance. The most recent addition which has been evolving over the past two years is the Moss Garden. We really had no concept of how amazing a moss garden could be until we saw it, and how beautiful and large it was. See the garden Here

Elgin Open Gardens

Lynne is a member of the Cape Horticultural Society. With our friend Judi Thomas, who is also a member, we decided to go to Elgin for the weekend to visit the Open Gardens. We stayed overnight in an AirBnB. It was quite an experience; do always check the reviews before you book .... We began our visit at Freshwood. The gardens here are spectacular at this time of year. Read on Here….

Lunch at Oak Valley's The Melting Pot

After our visit to the Hemel and Aarde, we booked to have lunch at The Melting Pot on Oak Valley Wine Estate on our way home. It was such a successful visit that, as we were going to be in Elgin for the Open Garden's weekend, we immediately made another reservation. As they are now on the list as one of the Eat Out best restaurants to visit in the winelands, we wanted to show you the delightful food we enjoyed

Meerendal launches a new Blanc Fumé

An invitation to experience another new wine from Meerendal. Their Cellarmaster Wade Roger-Lund has made a new Sauvignon Blanc, this time in the Blanc Fumé style which, translated from the French, means smoked white. Called The Chapel 2023, the wine has been barrel fermented; it will be released on December 15th. This style of wine comes typically from the regions of Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé in France's Loire Valley. Meerendal has put one whole vineyard block of Sauvignon Blanc into this very special wine. It is their oldest Sauvignon block, planted in 1997 on a high, cool site. Read on…






All our stories can be seen in the Blog Archive near the top of the column on the right

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Thursday, December 07, 2023

Meerendal launches a new Blanc Fumé

 An invitation to experience another new wine from Meerendal
Their Cellarmaster Wade Roger-Lund has made a new Sauvignon Blanc, this time in the Blanc Fumé style
which, translated from the French, means smoked white
Called The Chapel 2023, the wine has been barrel fermented; it will be released on December 15th
This style of wine comes typically from the regions of Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé in France's Loire Valley
Meerendal has put one whole vineyard block of Sauvignon Blanc into this very special wine
It is their oldest Sauvignon block, planted in 1997 on a high, cool site
Meerendal has 48.6 hectares under vine, 16 hectares of which are planted with Sauvignon Blanc
It has that lovely identifying whiff of smoke, then buttered toast, jasmine and lime blossom on the nose
It is full on the palate with wood just supporting the crisp limes and guava fruit
Minerality and length make this a very enjoyable food wine
It is a style of Sauvignon Blanc that we love and have missed
It was very popular here in the 1990s when Villiera produced a very good example

Wade welcomed us with a glass of their new sparkling sauvignon blanc which will be disgorged in the new year

Still a little yeasty with a good mousse, bready nose, crisp and zingy

Sitting out on the tasting room terrace were Bennie Howard CWM and Delaille Raubenheimer
being poured a taste of The Chapel and Meerendal 2005 Sauvignon Blanc by Wade and winemaker Trudie Mulder

Wade explained that the Meerendal focus is changing
They have always been diverse with restaurants, their hotel, food, events and cycling
Now more focus will be concentrated on their wine

We also tasted something older and rather special, a bottle of Meerendal 2005 Sauvignon Blanc
It hints at the Sauvignon Blanc character, with richness and complexity on the nose
Full on the palate, with layers of berry fruit and a good grip on the end, showing how well Sauvignon Blanc can last
It would be perfect with cheese and dessert

We asked to taste the current 2023 Sauvignon Blanc and there is a similarity on its nose to that of The Chapel
Nectarine, some gentle green pyrazines, with crisp fruit on the exciting palate
which is long and chewy with berries, lime and nectarine
Pumping well above its station, it makes you want to quaff and reach for food
To be added to our daily drinking list

Then we tasted The Loft 2023, a Cape Blend of Pinotage, Merlot and Shiraz
Incense wood, perfume, richness with red berry fruit, complexity and long flavours, soft tannins and spice
One can see how this is becoming a best seller in the market, both here in the Cape and in Gauteng

The Meerendal Chenin Blanc is from a high mountain vineyard near Philadelphia, about 40Km north of Cape Town
It was fermented with Champagne yeast 
Classic Chenin, big fruit nose, softer on the palate

The Meerendal 2023 Pinot Noir is a light almandine garnet in colour
Beautiful perfume; a berry delight with elegance and restraint on a very attractive nose
On the palate, crisp and full of long cherry and raspberry flavours in layers. Definitely one to watch and keep
Not a hint of green or vegetative character; it is grown in a single vineyard  on rich clay soil

The Meerendal 2022 Pinotage shows more of its Pinot noir parent's character; good fruit and gentle, soft tannins

We enjoyed some good cheese and charcuterie platters with the wines for our lunch

All our stories can be seen in the Blog Archive near the top of the column on the right

If you do not wish to receive e-mails from us, please email menucape@gmail.com with the word 'UNSUBSCRIBE' in your email


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Monday, December 04, 2023

The Moss Garden at Tokara

We received an exciting invitation to visit Tokara wine estate during the Open Gardens weeks,
including a visit to their special Adamastor Moss Garden
The gardens are spectacular, with many garden 'rooms' leading down from their home to the lake
Lovingly created by GT and Anne-Marie Ferreira, we wandered around in awe, exclaiming at the garden
and enjoying the marvellous views back over the vines to Table Mountain in the distance
The most recent addition which has been evolving over the past two years is the Moss Garden
We really had no concept of how amazing a moss garden could be until we saw it, and how beautiful and large it was
It has been created by moss artist Gert van Tonder
using local sandstone, granite and mosses from the surrounding terrain
As they say, "it shares the beauty, humility and harmony of the Zen gardens of Japan, yet remains quintessentially Tokara"

We followed the path that leads in front of the Ferreiras' house 

and found the round lily pond


Beautiful swathes of old roses that have lovely perfume

A table for picnics in the green shade

Another view of the house and the round lily pond

"Lovingly nurtured by GT and Anne-Marie Ferreira, who founded Tokara over two decades ago,
their private farm garden is a place of serenity where awe-inspiring landscapes are accentuated by life-size sculptures
from the family’s extensive art collection"
We loved this one of dogs playing on the lawn

Then we found the Moss Garden. There were many people keen to see it
so we were taken around in a small group so as not to crowd it to much

Stepping stones, but only for the gardeners. We had to stick to the specially laid flagstones

One of the stone masons crafting another stone for the garden. So skilled

The lake is full of lilies and birds
We sat at the boathouse while waiting for our tour to begin. So peaceful and calm

Bees and dragonflies love these local pink waterlilies

We have decided to find some of these for our lily pond

The entrance to the Moss Garden

We were guided by this young man, who gave us all the information we needed

Another pretty flowering fynbos plant

The Japanese stone lantern was hand crafted by the stone masons
This is the second one; the first, sadly, broke during installation, so they started again. The tools they use are laid below it

Rocks, grasses and moss

You may not walk on the moss; here our guide is explaining the different mosses that you find here. All are indigenous

Some are large and green

Others are brown and grown in a velvet carpet.  Here you can see many different varieties in the garden.  

A stone basin in the rock
 We were told that it is a Japanese tradition, on entering the garden, to wash your hands and scatter some water around

A beautiful Zen arrangement of rocks and nature

More rocks and moss and the addition of running water adds to the calm and quiet of the garden

This is the tiny yellow local waterlily Nymphoides indica
Geelwaterlelie (Afrikaans)
Yellow Waterlily, Floating Hearts (English)
Marombodane (Venda)

A rare Cape orchid

Flowering fynbos and Dietes iridioides
A species of plant in the family Iridaceae which is native to Southern Africa, planted near the water
commonly named African iris, fortnight lily, and Morea iris

The local bees seem to enjoy this beautiful fynbos plant Pseudoselago pulchra which often grows in rock crevices

So peaceful, so beautiful

Back up to the car through a lovely green lane

Another special sculpture 'seated' on the lawn. This is Dionysus by South African sculptor Angus Taylor. He is huge
Dionysyus is the Greek god of wine-making, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, festivity, insanity,
ritual madness, religious ecstasy, and theatre

The children give an idea of his size

and, on a bench, a girl with an umbrella

Further up the green lane was the visitors' parking area

A very special experience
We were lucky enough to see Mrs Ferreira briefly and to thank her for inviting us to view their wonderful gardens
and especially the moss garden

All our stories can be seen in the Blog Archive near the top of the column on the right

If you do not wish to receive e-mails from us, please email menucape@gmail.com with the word 'UNSUBSCRIBE' in your email

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