Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Birthday lunch at Overture

A restaurant for a great celebration or just for fun
To celebrate John's recent birthday we were taken to Overture by our friend Angela, who was visiting from London. We wrote a week or so ago that both John’s SD card on his camera was corrupted and the photos on Lynne's phone also disappeared, so we had no photographs - technology! Angela has now sent us her pictures, we so wanted to tell you about our excellent lunch
Overture is on Hidden Valley wine estate, high up in the Helderberg mountains in Stellenbosch. You turn up the Annandale Road and follow the signs after Peter Falke Wines. The views of the Cape are sensational. The restaurant has a large terrace with see-through screens if the wind is blowing or the weather is inclement. In the winter you can eat inside. It is run by renowned award winning top 10 chef Bertus Basson, who is very talented.
We were given a lovely table on the terrace with superb views. Their three course menu costs R550 at present, although there are many, many extras included. The price of the Six course degustation menu is R760. We discovered that water is complimentary, still or sparkling; they obviously have their own bottling facilities
This is one of the many amuse bouches they served us; there were five in total. It was watermelon, fresh and pickled, with a tomato foam, and crisp slices of deep fried garlic. Sounds strange, it was delightfully refreshing.
The other three: In the front, a plate of crisp baby vegetables. Spread on the side of the plate was a smooth fish paté coated in herbs. Behind that the damper bread made in the open fire, a board of olives with good olive tapenade and a lard candle on top of biltong shavings, which you could dip into with the bread as it burned down. There was also a small paper packet of tiny, crisp fish croquettes and kale leaves which had been dipped into chickpea flour and deep fried and some deep fried chickpeas, served with a garlic aioli to dip into, all hinting at Cape Malay influence - sorry no picture, we demolished them on sight, very flavourful and delish
The first course - there was a choice of three, one being a vegan option. We chose the tender slices of roast pork loin, topped with spinach leaves, crisp fried potato shares, sliced white strawberry, and crisp pork crackling on a good asparagus puree. John ordered a bottle of the Hidden Valley Sauvignon Blanc and we drank this with most of the meal.
One of the main courses, ordered by both Angela and John, was the beautifully cooked sliced sirloin with seared onions and a good jus on a parsnip/celeriac? purée. John had a glass of the Hidden Gems Bordeaux blend with his main. The ladies stayed on the white wine. Lynne ordered the fish option; such fresh hake, pearly flakes of fish, perfectly cooked, painted brown by a sticky miso glaze - quite superb and one to copy at home. This was served with sweet baby turnips, on mushrooms and kale, with a sea flavoured dashi broth. We also opted for a side order of crushed potatoes roasted in duck fat.  After the main we were served palate cleanser lollypops of frozen fresh crushed strawberry
Angela ordered the Soufflé at the beginning of the meal, knowing she would not regret it. It has to be pre-ordered; there is a 30 minute advance notice, if memory is correct. We rather regretted not ordering it. It is a Boeretroos soufflé made with Ideal Milk, with a thick, unctuous caramel sauce
This is poured on at the table. It came with ice-cream and crisp crumbs. John went for the cheese platter which included Camembert, Brie and shaved Huguenot, served with an apple onion jam, apple purée and some good bread. Lynne went for the Spiced Apple Purée sorbet served with a set vanilla panna cotta and cooked pear squares, with a very good, tart apricot puree, and a good crumble. They did rather ruin it by including some frogspawn. Oh, sorry, sago. If you went to boarding school, you too might not like it
We all had black coffees to end; the espresso is very, very good. This tiny amuse was served with it, a good Swiss meringue on top of a lemon curd on a crisp buttery biscuit, and it was no larger than a 50c piece. The presentations are amazing, the service is good - there are many Michelin service touches, like small tables for ladies’ handbags but getting ice on a very warm day was a bit of an issue, we had to ask more than once.
A really great meal which began at 12.30 and finished about 5, so a very relaxed celebration. We will definitely be back but perhaps wait after the season is over. Booking is essential. https://www.hiddenvalleywines.co.za/pages/overture-restaurant-at-hidden-valley
Oh, and if you don't want a full meal, Bertus has recently opened The Deck alongside the dam, where they have a small and simple menu of great burgers and fish and chips. No reservations as they are weather dependent; call Overture first to see if they are open. Tel: 021 880 2721
All these photographs are by courtesy of and © Angela Redman
Posted by MENU at 5:38 pm 0 comments

Friday, December 08, 2017

In This Week’s MENU. Mission Britain, Saartjie wines from Hillcrest, Wine of the Month Club Winemaker Awards 2017, Thelema's Annual Boland Braai, Homemade Mince Pies, What to drink with Mince Pies

A fire boat practising in Table Bay – cool water for a hot summer
This week, busy as it has been, sees us looking at a quieter time in the remaining weeks of the year. The heat wave has hit us with temperatures in the Boland hitting the 50s. Not good in drought conditions, but we have a suggestion for cool, refreshing beverages
We will continue to publish MENU for another two weeks, but it will be a shorter edition with very few events. It will have more suggestions for festive foods and wines. MENU will then take a break until about the third week of January. We will spend some quiet time up the West Coast, looking at the cool Atlantic and reading books and then come back, hopefully renewed and girding the proverbial loins for the new year’s activities. We hope you’ll like this week’s stories, photographs and food and drink ideas. Click on these links to see them:

Mission Britain    
Last week, we were invited to a seminar at Joostenberg about Exporting Wine to the UK and to hear from two prominent Australian wine makers who really surprised us as we learnt how difficult winemaking can be in that country. We were so impressed at how open they were with all the facts and figures and they gave us a warning about water wars
Saartjie wines from Hillcrest    
Arno Smith the winemaker at Hillcrest Wine Estate in Durbanville invited us and other media to come and taste his newly released wines named after his rather cute Jack Russell terrier, Saartjie. Each of the four wines was paired with some tapas style food and a great evening was enjoyed by all. The wines are now available for tasting and buying at the Hillcrest tasting room
Wine-of-the-Month Club Winemaker Awards 2017     
Time for Wine of the Month Club to laud their suppliers. The event was held at Vista Marine restaurant which is behind the Aquarium in the V&A Waterfront. This year's event was a chance to taste some of their most popular wines and meet the winning winemakers
Thelema's Annual Boland Braai    
This annual celebration for the wine trade is held on the farm each year. This year was special as patriarch Gyles Webb had his 70th Birthday celebrations that week. A family event; everyone may bring their spouse and children and this year it was lovely to see so many new babies. The full range of Thelema and Sutherland wines is available for tasting. There is a generous spread of salads, cheeses and dessert and much sausage and steak is expertly cooked on the fire. We think these fellows could enter one of the Braai competitions and win
What's on the MENU this week. Back to Planning for Christmas, so our next recipe comes under the heading of pleasure and entertaining. Fiona Burrell Stevenson is an old friend of Lynne's; she runs the award winning Edinburgh New Town Cookery School.  She was the Principal of the Prue Leith School in London for many years.  Yes, you could buy your pastry and the mincemeat, but it is so much nicer to make your own.
Homemade Mince Pies
Author: Fiona Burrell Stevenson
Yield  12 - Servings
This mincemeat is so easy to make and can be stored in the refrigerator.
You can play around with the ingredients and change the dried fruit if you like. Try chopped dried apricots, dried mangos, dried cherries etc. It stores easily in the fridge so you may prefer to make double the batch so you have some to hand when the mince pies run out, which they will - quickly! Once you have made your own mincemeat you will never want to use shop bought again. The pastry is a simple shortcrust.
If you prefer or are feeding lacto vegetarians, or cannot find lard, substitute the lard for butter but the lard does make a very short pastry. You can also add a couple of teaspoons of sugar to the crumb mixture before adding the water if you would like the pastry slightly sweetened.
For the pastry
225g plain flour - pinch salt - 40g lard, chilled and cubed - 80g butter, chilled and cubed - very cold water
For the mincemeat
1/2 an eating apple - 45g sultanas - 45g raisins - 25g currants - 45g dried cranberries or chopped dried apricots - 25g flaked almonds - finely grated zest of 1/2 lemon - finely grated zest of 1/2 orange - 1 tbsp orange juice - 1 tsp mixed spice - 2 tbsp whisky - 30g melted butter - 1 small ripe banana or 1/2 large one
First make the pastry:
Sift the flour with the salt into a large bowl. Add the fats to the flour. Using your finger tips rub the fat into the flour until the mixture looks like coarse breadcrumbs. (Add sugar now if making sweet short crust). You can use a food processor for this but always add the water by hand. Add 2 tablespoons water into the mixture. Using a knife mix the water into the crumbs until they start to clump together. Add a little more water if necessary, remembering that too much water will make the pastry tough. Bring the dough together with one hand to form a ball of dough. Wrap in cling film and flatten to a thick disc. Chill for 20 minutes before using.
Now make the mincemeat:
Wash and grate the apple with its skin on. Put into a bowl and add the sultanas, raisins, cranberries, dried apricots, almonds, lemon zest, orange zest and juice, mixed spice, whisky and melted butter. Mash the banana and add to the mincemeat. Put into a plastic container or into glass jars and seal. It can be used immediately or it can be stored for a week before using. Keep refrigerated once opened and consume within 6 months.
To bake the mince pies, preheat the oven to 200C. Roll out two thirds of your pastry and cut into rounds with a cutter. Line a patty tin with these circles. Spoon a teaspoon full of filling into each pastry case. Then roll out the remaining pastry and cut slightly smaller circles (or stars). Top the pastry cases with these lids. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. To serve, eat warm dusted with icing sugar.
What to drink with Mince Pies?
Well, in a cold northern country we might say a vintage Port or a warm Negus, but here in hot South Africa we might suggest a chilled white or pink port. Perfect for that pre- or after dinner indulgence.
All these wines come from Calitzdorp, South Africa's Port capital
·         Axe Hill Cape White is made by the Solera method from several vintages of Chenin blanc, is almost dry but has cooked apple flavour
·         Peter Bayly White Port is made from two vintages of Chenin blanc. Peter's description is: "A shy bouquet of roast almond, crushed oats and hints of orange blossom and lemon rind, unfolds into an ethereal, complex and lengthy palate.  Peach pip, dried apricot, Seville marmalade, roast almonds and hints of spice taunt the senses, while the Port ends with a characteristically dry finish"
·         De Krans Cape Pink. The farm's description says: "a port with a beautiful vibrant blush colour, rich ripe flavours of fresh red berries and a long, lingering aftertaste"
·         Boplaas Cape Pink Port. Cape Pink Port, as the style is called locally, is a fresh, fruity Port produced in a similar method to a rosé or blanc de noir wine, but of course fortified. The recipes for the Boplaas Karoo Sunset and Pink Lady cocktails are available from the website
All these wines are delicious straight from the bottle, but a popular use of all these wines in addition to drinking them straight, and always chilled, is to add Indian tonic or soda water to make a refreshing long drink for this hot summer

We are grateful to the producers for their notes
Posted by MENU at 12:55 am 0 comments

Thursday, December 07, 2017

Wine of the Week. Pink & White Ports for Christmas

What to drink with Mince Pies or other Christmas treats? Well, in a cold northern country we might say a vintage Port or a warm Negus, but here in hot South Africa we might suggest a chilled white or pink port. Perfect for that pre- or after dinner indulgence
Images obtained from wineries

All these wines come from Calitzdorp, South Africa's Port capital
·         Axe Hill Cape White is made by the Solera method from several vintages of Chenin blanc, is almost dry but has creamy cooked apple flavour
·         Peter Bayly White Port is made from two vintages of Chenin blanc. Peter's description is: "A shy bouquet of roast almond, crushed oats and hints of orange blossom and lemon rind, unfolds into an ethereal, complex and lengthy palate.  Peach pip, dried apricot, Seville marmalade, roast almonds and hints of spice taunt the senses, while the Port ends with a characteristically dry finish"
·         De Krans Cape Pink. The farm's description says: "a port with a beautiful vibrant blush colour, rich ripe flavours of fresh red berries and a long, lingering aftertaste"
·         Boplaas Cape Pink Port. Cape Pink Port, as the style is called locally, is a fresh, fruity Port produced in a similar method to a rosé or blanc de noir wine, but of course fortified. The recipes for the Boplaas Karoo Sunset and Pink Lady cocktails are available from the website
All these wines are delicious straight from the bottle, but a popular use of all these wines in addition to drinking them straight, and always chilled, is to add Indian tonic to make a refreshing long drink for this hot summer
We are grateful to the producers for their notes
Posted by MENU at 6:00 pm 0 comments

What's on the MENU this week. Homemade Mince Pies

Back to Planning for Christmas, so our next recipe comes under the heading of pleasure and entertaining. Fiona Burrell Stevenson is an old friend of Lynne's; she runs the award winning Edinburgh New Town Cookery School.  She was the Principal of the Prue Leith School in London for many years.  Yes, you could buy your pastry and the mincemeat, but it is so much nicer to make your own.
Yield: 12 Servings
Image © Borgh Pottery
Homemade Mince Pies
Author: Fiona Burrell Stevenson
This mincemeat is so easy to make and can be stored in the refrigerator.
You can play around with the ingredients and change the dried fruit if you like. Try chopped dried apricots, dried mangos, dried cherries etc. It stores easily in the fridge so you may prefer to make double the batch so you have some to hand when the mince pies run out, which they will - quickly! Once you have made your own mincemeat you will never want to use shop bought again. The pastry is a simple shortcrust.
If you prefer or are feeding lacto vegetarians, or cannot find lard, substitute the lard for butter but the lard does make a very short pastry. You can also add a couple of teaspoons of sugar to the crumb mixture before adding the water if you would like the pastry slightly sweetened.
For the pastry
225g plain flour - pinch salt - 40g lard, chilled and cubed - 80g butter, chilled and cubed - very cold water
For the mincemeat
1/2 an eating apple - 45g sultanas - 45g raisins - 25g currants - 45g dried cranberries or chopped dried apricots - 25g flaked almonds - finely grated zest of 1/2 lemon - finely grated zest of 1/2 orange - 1 tbsp orange juice - 1 tsp mixed spice - 2 tbsp whisky - 30g melted butter - 1 small ripe banana or 1/2 large one
First make the pastry:
Sift the flour with the salt into a large bowl. Add the fats to the flour. Using your finger tips rub the fat into the flour until the mixture looks like coarse breadcrumbs. (Add sugar now if making sweet short crust). You can use a food processor for this but always add the water by hand. Add 2 tablespoons water into the mixture. Using a knife mix the water into the crumbs until they start to clump together. Add a little more water if necessary, remembering that too much water will make the pastry tough. Bring the dough together with one hand to form a ball of dough. Wrap in cling film and flatten to a thick disc. Chill for 20 minutes before using.
Now make the mincemeat:
Wash and grate the apple with its skin on. Put into a bowl and add the sultanas, raisins, cranberries, dried apricots, almonds, lemon zest, orange zest and juice, mixed spice, whisky and melted butter. Mash the banana and add to the mincemeat. Put into a plastic container or into glass jars and seal. It can be used immediately or it can be stored for a week before using. Keep refrigerated once opened and consume within 6 months.
To bake the mince pies, preheat the oven to 200C. Roll out two thirds of your pastry and cut into rounds with a cutter. Line a patty tin with these circles. Spoon a teaspoon full of filling into each pastry case. Then roll out the remaining pastry and cut slightly smaller circles (or stars). Top the pastry cases with these lids. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. To serve, eat warm dusted with icing sugar.
What to drink with Mince Pies? Well, in a cold northern country we might say a vintage Port or a warm Negus, but here in hot South Africa we might suggest a chilled white or pink port. Perfect for that pre- or after dinner indulgence.
Posted by MENU at 5:13 pm 0 comments

Thelema's annual Boland Braai

This annual celebration for the wine trade is held on the farm each year. This year was special as patriarch Gyles Webb had his 70th Birthday celebrations that week. A family event; everyone may bring their spouse and children and this year it was lovely to see so many new babies. The full range of Thelema and Sutherland wines is available for tasting. There is a generous spread of salads, cheeses and dessert and much sausage and steak is expertly cooked on the fire. We think these fellows could enter one of the Braai competitions and win
 It is held at the private residence of the Webbs, on the terrace and in their magnificent garden
Members of the family like General Manager Thomas Webb, winemaker Rudi Schultz and assistant winemaker Duncan Clarke and the sales marketing team take turns behind the table, pouring tasters of the wines
Platters of great local cheeses with fruit and relishes are there to stem appetites until the braai is ready and they go so well with the wines
Gyles is in charge of the fires and major domo of the braai with a lot of help from the others
The placid family dogs are child friendly and very good at clearing plates mistakenly left on chairs that are within their reach!
The Sutherland Viognier Roussane 2014 is one we really like. It is perfect for summer days and outdoor eating. This 50/50 blend is barrel fermented and so deserves its four and a half stars in Platter this year. The Sutherland Pinot Noir knocked our socks off. This typical elegant and softly fruity Elgin Pinot has legs to go and is backed up by lovely savoury flavours and some soft chalky tannins. We tasted an unlabelled new vintage of The Mint Cabernet sauvignon, full of the eucalypt mint flavours people have so enjoyed in Thelema cabernets of yore. The Sutherland cabernet (previously Cabernet Petit Verdot) delighted us when we bought it last year and we enjoyed the violets on the nose again with the new vintage. There are three Chardonnays, one each wooded from Thelema and Sutherland, which also has an unwooded version. All are delicious with the cooler climate of Elgin producing predictably leaner wines than the full-flavoured Stellenbosch Chardonnay. The two Sauvignons Blanc are so different. The Thelema from the Stellenbosch farm is slightly tropical and full, the Sutherland has more crisp acidity and typical green Sauvignon flavours; we think it is showing best at this time of the year, but they might swap places with a little more age.
Wood is on the way, now just the wait for good coals before the meat can go on. Gyles is supervising
The wonderful mountain views with the Jacarandas in bloom as people relax on the lawn and the children play and eat from their special snack table
Best Boerewors just singing on the coals
And some superb rump steak in its marinade. We were so impressed with its flavour and tenderness, apparently from Stellenbosch Checkers, which must have an excellent butcher, we don’t see meat this good in Sea Point
Done to perfection!
Thomas Webb takes a turn at the fires
Nicely pink and rare in the middle, with crisp fat on the outside
And very easy to cut
Boerewors all ready and portioned for the hungry mob waiting
Lots of chat, lots of trade customers, distributors and media enjoying the evening
Gyles with his wife Barbara and their newest grandchild
The sun is setting and turning the mountains purple and pink; we have been royally fed and 'watered' with great wine, so it is time to head home. Thank you all at Thelema. Happy Christmas and here’s to another successful wine-filled year. And Happy 70th Birthday Gyles
Posted by MENU at 11:05 am 0 comments

Wednesday, December 06, 2017

Wine-of-the-Month Club Winemaker Awards 2017

Time for Wine of the Month Club to laud their suppliers. The event was held at Vista Marine restaurant which is behind the Aquarium in the V&A Waterfront. This year's event was a chance to taste some of their most popular wines and meet the winning winemakers
Emil den Dulk of De Toren, Mike Ratcliffe of Warwick and Johan Malan of Simonsig all won awards
The man who started this successful (now on line) wine club in 1986, innovator and owner of Wine-of-the-Month Club Colin Collard
with his sons Clifford and Giscard, directors of the company and daughter Natalie, the wine buyer for the club and the publisher of Good Taste magazine
Clifford Collard began the ceremony. They have 30 000 active members and many more casual buyers. A box of wine is delivered every month. How does the selection of the wines work? They invite a panel of ten independent expert wine judges every week. They ask them to taste 40 wines each week (that is 2000 a year!) and score all the wines blind in a neutral environment at their premises. Blind wine tasting ensures that no judge is influenced by a label, the beauty of a wine farm or warmth of the host. As a member, you can order a selection of wines on line or just let them send you a selected mystery mixed case of the wine styles and varietals you prefer. Check out their website https://www.wineofthemonth.co.za/
Caroline Rillema of Caroline’s Fine Wines won an award for her own Celestina white blend and Jane Ferreira Eedes was there to collect an award for Vondeling
Some hopeful faces. The panel retastes the top 20 of each category every year and finds the champions. They want to award quality
Kathy Leaver Miller, Account and Marketing Manager at Wine-of-the Month Club
Asif Hoosen, Head of Marketing, Product and Public Relations at sponsor Audi South Africa, said that they "are very interested in the top winemakers, they want to know their 'back' stories and to be part of their future"
More intent wine people, with a glass of Johan Malan's winning Simonsig MCC Brut. This has won this category many times
Giscard Collard began the Awards ceremony
One of the slides showing the demographic of their orders nationwide
and another with the top 10 suppliers to the club
Pierre Waal, of Rijks gets his certificate as runner up in the Chenin Blanc category for the Reserve 2011 Chenin. The other runner up was Carl van der Merwe for the De Morgenzon Reserve
Alvi's Drift was awarded the Trophy for the Chenin blanc category with his Albertus Viljoen Chenin blanc 2015 (a Platter 5 star wine), collected here by owner Alvi van der Merwe
The Trophy of Winemaker of the Year went to Gerhard Swart of Flagstone
Some prizes were also awarded, this is some Laborie MCC for winemaker Stephanie Wiid of Fairview
Then it was time for some food to pair with the winning wines
Spicy chicken drumsticks, superb prawns, and fresh oysters,
Those drumsticks
A tray of canapés
Filo pastry quiches
A wicked selection of sweets, chocolates, biscuits and meringues
and a table full of the winning wines to taste
The trophy winners with Colin Collard, only missing Karl Lambour of Tokara who had to leave early
The individual cultivar winners for the Audi South Africa Wine Awards 2017 are:

  • Chenin Blanc: Alvi’s Drift Wines - Albertus Viljoen Chenin blanc 2015
  • Dry White Blend: De Morgenzon-  Maestro White
  • Sauvignon Blanc: Brampton Wines
  • Chardonnay: Pulpit Rock Wines
  • Bordeaux Blend: Bellevue Wine Estate - Bellevue Tumara 2008
  • Cabernet Sauvignon: Wellington Wines 
  • Merlot: Bayede Royal Wines 
  • Pinotage: Flagstone Wines - Writer's Block Pinotage
  • Shiraz: Stony Brook Vineyards - Syrah reserve
  • MCC: Simonsig  - Kaapse Vonkel

Posted by MENU at 9:20 pm 0 comments
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