This week's MENU recipe: Chicken Provolone

This week's recipe is another classic. Chicken Provolone The prep is a bit messy; you get to beat the hell out of some chicken breasts - very good if you are in a bad mood - and the result is impressive and not really very difficult. The tomato sauce is ready in about five to ten minutes and makes a very quick pasta sauce. (You could add some cream to enrich it and pour over pasta). Provolone cheese is available here, but buy the best one you can afford. It will pay off. You can add grated cheese and dried herbs to your breadcrumbs

Chicken Provolone

The sauce:    2 cups of tomato passata - 1 cup of good chicken stock - 1 t fresh thyme leaves - 1 T olive oil - 4 large cloves of garlic, thickly sliced - ¼ cup of finely chopped shallots or onion - ½ t chilli flakes, or more according to your taste) - 2 T fresh basil, torn

Liquidise or blitz the passata, with the chicken stock and thyme, with your hand blender. In a frying pan on a medium heat, add the olive oil and, when hot, add the sliced garlic, the chilli flakes and then the onion. Fry for a minute or two until softening, but not browning. Add the torn basil leaves and then pour on the sauce and simmer while you prepare the chicken. Taste and season before using.

4 chicken breasts - 2 eggs - 2 T whipping cream - 3 cups breadcrumbs - canola oil for frying - 300 g Provolone cheese, thinly sliced

Wrap each chicken breast in cling film and, using a mallet, bash them till they spread into scaloppine. Do not overbeat and don't use the studded side of your mallet. If the breasts are very large, slice them open as if you were making a pocket and then cut them in two equal pieces

Put the breadcrumbs into a wide flat dish. Whip the eggs with the cream and put into a matching dish.

Using tongs, dip each side of the scaloppini into the egg and cream mixture, then put it into the breadcrumbs. Using a spoon, cover the surface with the breadcrumbs, turn and make sure each side is well covered. (You can use your hands but you will make them very messy). Heat some oil in a large frying pan and fry for only 2 minutes on each side until browning and cooked. Remove and keep warm. Turn on your grill.

To serve, you need a pan or dish which will go under the hot grill. Put a good tablespoonful of the sauce onto the top of each scaloppina and then cover with a layer of the cheese. When all four are done, pop each under the grill until the top is melted and browning. You can do one at a time or all together. Put a good 2 spoonfuls of the sauce on each (warmed) plate, place a scaloppina on each and top with some dressed rocket and serve.

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© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus

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Hartenberg's Riesling & Rarities Rock - fun on a summer day

Lounging about at the Riesling and Rarer Varietals Festival at Hartenberg

South African Rieslings have always been a challenge for Lynne, who grew up drinking, first, terrible (when she was young and poor in London in the swinging 60's, when you took a bottle of really cheap, commercial Riesling to parties) and then really excellent examples of this grape from Germany, Austria and Alsace and loving them. When she came back to South Africa from Britain in 1992 she discovered that SA liked to taste terpenes in their Riesling (a petrol note, for those of you who don't recognise the term) and she doesn't, not at all.. You don't often find them in European Rieslings, unless they are positively ancient. The good news is that this seems to be changing.... so she hasn't given up trying them and buying those with no trace of terpenes, but with the quality and freshness, and the great fruit, sugar and acid balance she is looking for

This annual festival always seems to fall at just the right time of the year. The weather was perfect. You can lounge about on the Hartenberg lawns, on cushions and blankets, or sit at outside tables in the shade of the huge trees or umbrellas and then get up to taste some really wonderful wines. There were excellent Rieslings and each farm was also allowed to bring any unusual varietal wines they produce. There was good food on offer and great wines were tasted and bought for enjoyment at the festival or at home

All the wine stands were arranged on the bricked plinth in the centre of the gardens

Journalist and radio personality John Meinking with Nick Pentz of Groote Post

Their Riesling was Lynne's favourite of the day. The acid sugar balance is perfect, as is the alcohol at 12.5%, 17.9 gm/ltr Residual Sugar, pH: 3.12. It’s full of Lime/lemon and pineapple on the nose with ginger, citrus and honey on the palate. Sadly, the 2015 is already sold out, so we await the 2016 with anticipation

Lazy day on the lawn in the shade of the trees

This couple was selling really fantastic falafel, jam-packed into toasted pita bread. Or you could have a plate of mixed salads for R50 each. We both had falafel

Or Ghenwa Steingastner had her huge selection of Lebanese delights on offer. Seen here with Tita Stross

What would you like in your falafel?

The sales desk was busy selling bottles to drink or bottles to take home

This mini black mantis dropped suddenly onto our table. You can see why the Khoi regard them as gods, as they do look like small people. This was very tiny, newly hatched. The squares on the tablecloth are about 2.5 cm (1 inch) wide. A tiny miracle

The Cederberg wine was also much appreciated. Janine Steyn was showing their excellent Bukettraube, full of rose petals and spice

Jacus Marais at the Nitida stand had their Riesling and the elegant Semillon for tasting

Poetry, not much motion and lovely wines

Gareth Robertson, Marketing Manager for Anthonij Rupert Wyne with Martin Meinert.  We liked the Cape of Good Hope Laing Semillon and Martin's The German Job Riesling 2014

Lots of new fans for Riesling on the Jordan stand

Lots of discussion on our table under the trees in the late afternoon

A very interesting plant in the Hartenberg garden. A tender aloe vossii, an endangered and rare grass aloe from the Soutpansberg

On our way through to Franschhoek for dinner, we came through Jonkershoek, over the Helshoogte Pass, and were horrified to see the fire damage in the vineyards and in the wild areas on the mountainsides. So it was with great excitement that we spotted this Sable antelope (Hipotrachus niger) and his two younger friends, in a field next to the Boschendal manor house with his magnificent curved scimitar horns

He is interested in us, but still nibbling on the grass

They are not indigenous to this part of Southern Africa. The southernmost edge of their range is in Limpopo, in the north-east of our country

Feeding in front of the magnificent Drakenstein mountains

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Supper at The French Connection, Franschhoek

Off after the festival at Hartenberg to Franschhoek, where our group of Irish friends was staying. We had to say goodbye to Liam Murphy, with whom John used to have fun with rally Volvos when he was young and fancy free. Many years ago. We managed to secure an outside table at French Connection, the talk was very good, as was the food and we had a lovely farewell evening

Chatting with Jason Ratner, the restaurant manager

The menu

Three large, very tempting tempura prawns with honey ginger and garlic soy on Japanese mayo were Liam's starter

Lynne wanted something light, so flame grilled asparagus it was, served with garlic butter soaked bread curls, tomatoes and pesto. Delicious

John went for one of his favourites, the home made Paté de Campagne with sticky red onion marmalade and cornichons (baby gherkins) and some salad leaves

Rosé goes with most things, so we ordered a bottle of Foundation Stone 2015 from local wine farm Rickety Bridge. It’s a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz and Viognier, full of strawberries & candy floss, with a kick of spice. Lynne told Liam, who prefers red wine, to close his eyes when first taking a sip and he would think he was drinking red wine. It was the perfect wine for the wide choice of food we ordered

The restaurant was nice and busy all evening and they do manage to turn tables. It was a lovely balmy evening

Pose! Liam and Lynne

John's choice of rich duck in a caramelised berry sauce made with Raspberry balsamic vinegar. There were cape gooseberries, strawberries and some black berries & raspberries

A huge portion, we also ordered some of the signature crisp potato frites

Liam had the Moules cooked in white wine cream and lots of garlic for his main course and raved about them

Lynne’s main was also huge. Tender grilled calamari with chilli, lots of garlic, lemon, olive oil, olives and roasted tomatoes topped with a mountain of rocket

We finished with two coffees for the lads. Our bill did not include the wine, which Jason very generously gifted. A lovely meal, then came the long drive home

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Nedbank VinPro Information Day - how to turn grapes and wine into profit

VinPro is the service organisation for 3 600 South African wine producer and cellar members, striving towards their commercial sustainability, as well as that of the broader producer industry and its strategic role-players. See more at: http://vinpro.co.za/about-us#sthash.giZ6rMib.dpuf

We attended the annual conference last week and were much more impressed and buoyed up by this year's content and speakers, apart from the financial reporting module, which was a bit less optimistic, but realistic given the current world financial situation and our currency devaluation, which can also be seen as a huge positive for those exporting wine. We were particularly impressed by Prof David Venter talk on land reform and transformation. He spoke in metaphors but very cogent and recognisable ones to make the industry sit up and listen and try to work together with everyone from the bottom up in the industry.

Sounding off, again

It was held at the CTICC who, again, let us down. The food served was average at best and, in some cases, impossible to eat. Who puts a hunk of half cooked lamb on the bone in a small dish and offers a cake fork to eat it with? There was nowhere to sit down. It was like something out of The Flintstones. Lunch was brief and stand up outside the lecture theatre. And they froze us to death. Lynne swears she will wear a (fake) fur coat next year. It was 38ºC outside, so everyone was dressed in minimal, but smart, summer attire. The temperature inside the lecture theatre was 15ºC or less and we asked them at tea time if they would please turn it up a little. That happened for about an hour, then someone hit the cold button again and we froze for the rest of the day. Unacceptable, CTICC

The presentation was compered by Lee-Anne Davidson, VinPro Communications Officer

SETTING THE SCENE

Opening - Abrie Botha, Chairman, VinPro reminded us that change is not new to the wine industry and this is not the first time we have faced the challenges of: The economy, exchange rate, job creation, transformation, drought and fires. He reminded us that the wine industry made a R6.1 Billion contribution to the economy in the last year, the third largest industry contribution.

Economic outlook - Isaac Matshego, Economist: Group Economic Unit, Nedbank

reminded us that we are all facing challenges in the global economy and that we are a small house threatened by a big storm coming from outside. We need to fix the small holes. He presented some grim facts on our economy & growth. His solutions are that government policy implementation needs to be more growth inducing, with more certainty & direction or we could tip into recession.. Amen

Seasonal overview and harvest expectations - Francois Viljoen, Manager, Consultation Service, VinPro

spoke about the reduction in vineyards, but also the fact that we have had record harvests in the last 4 years. We are uprooting unproductive vines and planting higher yielding ones. We have had good weather and technological advances. The drought and the heat may affect this year's harvest badly. More drought tolerant grapes being grown like Verdelho, Alvarino, Vermentino & Durif (but, we ask, do these make wines people will want to drink?) The harvest will be down and everyone will be chasing grapes

Producer and winery realities - Christo Conradie, Manager: Wine Cellars, VinPro spoke of the realities of selling our wine, especially to the large supermarket buyers. This is a team talk to the wine producers about the realities needed to work with the wine sales industry.. We must be open, honest and transparent to raise the producers' profits and stop losses, and we must understand the realities. Our wine is for sale. Deal with the concerns and the elephants in the room. Markets, mergers and acquisitions; transformation, who is making the money? Be inspired, challenge the business model, work together, take it forward. We also need the Government as a partner. They take 35% of the value of every bottle of wine sold, but give nothing back

VinPro Foundation - changing lives - Unathi Mantshongo, Transformation & Development Officer, VinPro

R38 million was spent by the wine industry on Social Development, but we need to co-ordinate the initiatives, we struggle to convince investors, we must work TOGETHER. Ethical compliance is 20%, we need 100%. 270 member farms are using the VinPro training DVD's; every wine farm should be using these, including the Eastern Cape. How are suppliers making efforts for transformation and compliance? What are your values? VinPro wants YOU to join them. VinPro can help the smaller companies and the JSE listed companies must not get left behind. We are changing the wine game

What Lies Ahead?

Overview of The SA Wine Industry Strategic Exercise (WISE)- Rico Basson, Managing Director, VinPro

WISE (Wine Industry Strategic Exercise) is part of everyday life. Use it or lose it or it will get stale. Back ourselves, we have a 366 year old wine industry; we have seen many challenges and overcome them all. It's a call to action. Time to collaborate and grow the pie and stop fighting for your own market share. Build the relationships, sing together and off we will go

Brand SA local marketing strategy Nicky van Hille, Director, The Moss Group

Start addressing the potential wine market, who already drink high end liquor & beer brands like Johnny Walker Black & Heineken, but are confused & intimidated by the vast wine choices. We need to grab more of a market which drinks, on average, 22 beers, 8 alcoholic drinks & only 3 glasses of wine a week

Craig Irving, CEO, Consumer Insights Agency

Taking transformation forward David Venter, Infostrat

Some stunning metaphors by David Venter in his VinPro presentation, Taking Transformation Forward. Such clarity and sense deserved a standing ovation, but the audience is still absorbing his message. We must build success by being reactive and pro-active and not waiting for Government to get rid of the problems. We can fight and lose or play together. Summing transformation up, he quoted William James, "Believe it & you will see it". As long as we use Common Interest based bargaining, rather than offensive confrontational Positional bargaining, we can grow our markets. The Supermarket group model in Europe isn't working anymore, as they have driven prices so low that they only deal with one supplier. Bargaining is not negotiation. People are walking away with either very little or no shelf space. The solution is to speak to the interests that drive us both and meaningfully talking to each other about common interest and areas of confluence, not differences. What ties us together? If we work together we can build bakeries and share lots of cake, not a small piece of one. Talk the language of WE not I.

Growing wine globally - international perspectives Jane Robertson, Category Development Director, Accolade Wines

"Are South African wines sexy?" asks Jane Robertson of Accolade wines UK. Sadly, not really - but they can be... How do we make it sexy? Premiumisation was her theme, go for the aspirational middle classes, where there is growth in income and lifestyle. She spoke of how SA wines have dropped in profile, availability and profitability in the UK market. Brands can make a tribe out of us. People like brands, they expect to pay more for them. We need to build our on-con sales instead and, already, SA wines are appearing in some top restaurants. We need more higher-priced premium wines, available to the affluent market

There are three tiers of wine market. We are selling most to the bottom, entry level, and not making enough profit, and some into the top level. The middle market is where we should be aiming. There is growth potential in the over £6 market! Bulk wine in cheaper Supermarket brands is doing us no favours. We need to own Fair Trade and run with it, we have the biggest regional share of Fair Trade worldwide and it sells wine

Light Lunch

Takuan von Arnim of Haute Cabrière and Jacques Malan of Simonsig

All hands to the task of lunch, accompanied by some excellent wines

Two former managers of the Robertson Wine Route:

Elizma Botha and Bonita Malherbe, who is now Marketing manager at Van Loveren

Managing change in order to grow. Johan van Zyl, Strategic Advisor and former CEO, Sanlam

Johan van Zyl's main message to VinPro delegates is "You are in business to make profits.  Not volumes. Stop all business where you are not making money. The people you are dealing with are making the money." A breath of fresh air. He quoted Warren Buffet "Change is global, we are not the only ones. Hold onto your hats, it is going to be a wild ride". There is massive volatility in markets. However, the US is coming out of its dip, as is the UK with low inflation and better job growth. It's a great time of opportunity for us and entrepreneurs can make money if they are not afraid to take risks. But stick to your strategy and plan if the risks are acceptable to you. Play the long game, don't give up half way, but don't take on massive risk, only what you can live with. Use common sense. It is not common at ALL!

There are too many brands from a large number of farms; they confuse. You are dead if you have too many categories. You are not making money. You are in business for profit and NOT for volumes. The people who do this make money from you. Stop all business where you don't make money

More detail of the presentations can be seen at http://vinpro.co.za/news/presentations-at-the-nedbank-vinpro-information-day-2016

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© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus

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