Tuesday, April 18, 2017

The Magic of Chenin and All that Jazz! at The Grand Beach, V&A Waterfront

A marvellous Chenin party with the Chenin Blanc Association
We were so delighted to see the Chenin Blanc Association open up their annual Chenin Blanc tasting to the public.  This was held last week at The Grand on the Beach in the Waterfront from 5 to 10 and was sensational.  A chance to taste Chenin from every member of the association, old and new and some very different .  We had a ball
David Trafford and Sijnn winemaker Charla Haasbroek show the artwork for a new Sijnn label. Charla is also wearing the artwork, which is on the silk scarf around her neck
Chenin, sunset, service and sea side.  Perfection
We were early; lots of room for arriving guests. Canapés were served throughout the evening
Kleine Zalze cellarmaster Alastair Rimmer and friends


Owner winemakers David Trafford of De Trafford and Sijnn and Jeff Grier of Villiera
Both were showing very, very good Chenins
Wine tasting counters were arranged at all the bars
Inside the shed there was a pay bar for those who wanted to drink something else...?!
The jazz band played on all evening
Watching the sunset cruise boats coming back to harbour
Hannes Meyer of Simonsig
Ken Forrester, Chairman of the Chenin Blanc Association in beach attire, gets the ball rolling on the evening
Bruwer Raats with his son
Adam Mason of Mulderbosch chats to two media members
Chilling on the beach with Chenin.  There was a very good magician Larry Soffer circulating and amazing people with his mind reading and Légerdemain
Edo Heyns, Strategic Marketing Manager at AdVini South Africa with L'Avenir Single Vineyard Chenin blanc
A taste of Kleine Zalze
Hobbits also attended
Aletté van Vuuren of Ken Forrester with Anthony van Schalkwyk of Kleine Zalze
At the Ken Forrester stand there was a huge push to taste Ken's Dirty Little Secret
Cathy van Zyl MW enjoys a joke with Danie Steytler Jr of Kaapzicht
Full moon rising over the bay.  The weather was balmy.  All we needed  was an owl and a pussycat.  OK, it's not pea green...
La Colombe sommelier Joseph Dafana and journalist Jeanri-Tine van Zyl
A superb chance to taste some of the very best Chenin Blancs currently on sale in South Africa. We hope that they will do it again next year and that you can come
Posted by MENU at 5:23 pm 0 comments

Breakfast at Newport deli

On a fairly miserable morning after a night of (much appreciated) rain, we ventured out to Mouille Point to Newport Deli to try their breakfasts.  We did not realise that they keep a kosher menu so were a little bit disappointed to discover no bacon but turkey macon, something we avoid. We are not fans of pretend food and miss the fat on the bacon!
We were directed to an inside table.  Lynne had tried to make an on-line reservation and to phone them, but neither worked.  Luckily, they were not full
The essential black coffee on arrival
The menu
They do a good Shakshuka , which is what our vegetarian friends come for - spicy Tomatoes and peppers with eggs, an Israeli or north African speciality.  There are only a few hot breakfast options on the menu:  Poached eggs with bread, Scrambled eggs with bread  or on a croissant (which we both went for), Croissant French toast, Hot Oats and the Shakshuka.  Everything else is extra:  Cheese  R 15, Grilled Tomato  R8, Turkey Macon  22, Spinach  R15, Avo  R20, Feta  R20, Salmon  R65, Banting Bread Add R 10.  There are lots of healthy cold options

The scrambled eggs are cooked without butter (we assume not kosher) and were rather disappointing and thin, rather than creamy.  Neither is the croissant served with butter and we must assume not made with butter either?
The hot oats are served with baked apple, sweet dukkah and honey
A view of the deli from above
There are lots of tables
The bill
Posted by MENU at 8:19 am 0 comments

Wednesday, April 12, 2017

This week’s MENU. Breakfast at South Hill, Bubbles at Charles Fox, Tasting Buitenverwachting wine, Saxenburg's impressive vintage wines, Spaghetti Marinara, King of the Hill Chardonnay

One of the joys of Autumn is enjoying the spectacular sunsets
Our felicitations to you all for Easter and Passover
A fairly quiet week ahead with the holiday weekend to look forward to. We hope you will all enjoy your celebrations and not be affected by any of the madness we usually see on the roads. Be safe and enjoy the time spent with your families and friends
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*      What's on the Menu this week. Spaghetti Marinara

Breakfast at South Hill     
We needed to have a good breakfast in Elgin on Sunday morning and Nicky Wallace had recommended South Hill for breakfast the next morning and she was so right, it was superb. Owner Kevin King was on the farm that morning. He joined us for breakfast and gave us a tasting of some of their wines. See more....
A morning with Bubbles at Charles Fox     
We popped into Charles Fox on Sunday morning and were treated to a tasting of their MCCs. This collection of classic Mèthode Champenois always impresses. The wines all rate 4½ stars in Platter...
An evening tasting Buitenverwachting wine     
Last Wednesday saw us visit Buitenverwachting in Constantia with our wine club. It is one of our favourite farms, producing superb wine. It has a very good restaurant run by chef Edgar Osojnik, a successful coffee & deli shop, a family of owls in the oaks and the new tasting room Read on....
Saxenburg shows off some of their impressive vintage wines     
Cellar master Nico van der Merwe joined Saxenburg in 1990, just a year after the Swiss Bührer family bought the estate. Vines were first planted by the founder Joachim Sax in 1701. Winemaker Edwin Grace took over from Nico recently and is now the Cellar master. Nico made wines to last and this was a chance to taste quite a few of the older vintages with members of the family and Edwin, followed by lunch at the Cattle Baron restaurant on the farm....
What's on the Menu this week. Spaghetti Marinara

This is an easy store cupboard and freezer supper. We keep a frozen seafood mix in our freezer for dishes like this. Will serve 3 to 4 people. Add a little more spaghetti if you like.
1 small onion, finely chopped - 1 t olive oil - 1 clove of garlic, crushed - 50 ml dry white wine - 350 ml tomato passata - 400 g defrosted frozen seafood mix - 200ml fish stock - 1 t fresh thyme leaves - 1/2 t oregano, chopped fine - salt and freshly ground black pepper - 200g spaghetti - garnish: 2 t chopped parsley.
Put a pot of well salted water on to boil. Fry the onion gently in the oil in a large deep saucepan and, when softened, add the garlic and fry for a minute. Put in the white wine and reduce it down to half. Add the tomato passata and the fish stock and the herbs. Simmer the sauce gently for 5 to 10 minutes to thicken and then taste and add seasoning. Leave to simmer while you cook the spaghetti. When the water comes to the boil, add the spaghetti. Cook for 8 minutes, until just before it has finished cooking. While the spaghetti is cooking, add the marinara mix to the sauce and let it cook through. When the spaghetti is ready, using tongs, drain it and add it to the sauce; stir and cook together for 2 to 3 minutes to allow the sauce to coat the spaghetti and finish cooking it. Serve sprinkled with the parsley
Wine of the Week. King of the Hill Chardonnay from South Hill     
The King of the Hill is a single barrel 2015 Chardonnay made for Kevin by winemaker Matthew van Heerden (previously of Uva Mira, now at Grande Provence). It is made from best terroir Elgin grapes
Vanilla and jasmine nose with cooked apple. Clean, zingy citrus flavours followed by apricot and more apple; it has a silky texture, with the wood showing full on the end with Seville marmalade. It can take time. Definitely a food wine, it matched the Seafood marinara so well






12th April 2017
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Phones: +27 21 439 3169 / 083 229 1172 / 083 656 4169
Postal address: 60 Arthurs Rd, Sea Point 8005
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Recommendations of products and outside events are not solicited or charged for, and are made at the authors’ pleasure. All photographs, recipes and text used in these newsletters and our blogs are © John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus. Our restaurant reviews are usually unsolicited. We prefer to pay for our meals and not be paid in any way by anyone. Whether we are invited or go independently, we don’t feel bad if we say we didn’t like it. Honesty is indeed our best policy. While every effort is made to avoid mistakes, we are human and they do creep in occasionally, for which we apologise. This electronic journal has been sent to you because you have personally subscribed to it or because someone you know has asked us to send it to you or forwarded it to you themselves. Addresses given to us will not be divulged to any person or organisation. We collect them only for our own promotional purposes. If you wish to be added to our mailing list, please click here to send us a message and if you wish to be removed from our mailing list, please click here to send us a message.
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© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2017
Posted by MENU at 1:27 am 0 comments

Tuesday, April 11, 2017

This week's MENU recipe. Spaghetti Marinara

This is an easy store cupboard and freezer supper. We keep a frozen seafood mix in our freezer for dishes like this. Will serve 3 to 4 people. Add a little more spaghetti if you like.
1 small onion, finely chopped - 1 t olive oil - 1 clove of garlic, crushed - 50 ml dry white wine - 350 ml tomato passata - 400 g defrosted frozen seafood mix - 200ml fish stock - 1 t fresh thyme leaves - 1/2 t oregano, chopped fine - salt and freshly ground black pepper - 200g spaghetti - garnish: 2 t chopped parsley.
Put a pot of well salted water on to boil. Fry the onion gently in the oil in a large deep saucepan and, when softened, add the garlic and fry for a minute. Put in the white wine and reduce it down to half. Add the tomato passata and the fish stock and the herbs. Simmer the sauce gently for 5 to 10 minutes to thicken and then taste and add seasoning. Leave to simmer while you cook the spaghetti. When the water comes to the boil, add the spaghetti. Cook for 8 minutes, until just before it has finished cooking. While the spaghetti is cooking, add the marinara mix to the sauce and let it cook through. When the spaghetti is ready, using tongs, drain it and add it to the sauce; stir and cook together for 2 to 3 minutes to allow the sauce to coat the spaghetti and finish cooking it. Serve sprinkled with the parsley
Posted by MENU at 11:45 pm 0 comments

A wine tasting with Hermann Kirschbaum at Buitenverwachting

Last Wednesday saw us visiting Buitenverwachting in Constantia with our wine club. It is one of our favourite farms, producing superb wine. It has a very good restaurant run by chef Edgar Osojnik, a successful coffee & deli shop, a family of owls in the oaks and the new tasting room ....
... which is in the old cellar on the side of the large lawn
Previous Cellarmaster Hermann Kirschbaum, who has been with Buitenverwachting since 1993, has been promoted to Farm Manager. Wine maker (for the last 13 years) Brad Paton has now taken over as Cellarmaster. He will be appointing a new winemaker shortly. Here is Herman with his wife Adrienne who organised the platters we enjoyed after the tasting
Inside the spacious new tasting room, we made ourselves comfortable on the long sofas
Modernity fits well into the old building's core
There are lots of different seating options
We began with the Buitenverwachting MCC Brut, often sold out, bright and crisp with some pinot raspberry showing. A great way to start the evening with experienced winemaker Hermann
Baby vines above the bar. We began with the whites and tasted Buiten Blanc. This amazingly popular wine sells over 600,000 bottles a year and is on most wine lists in South Africa. Tasting it, you can understand why and it sells for only R60 a bottle on the farm. One of our favourites, the Hussey’s Vlei Sauvignon blanc, is clean, crisp and lively, with good green Constantia flavours. The well wooded 2014 Maximus Blanc Fumé is complex and elegant, well integrated with the vanilla wood and built to last. R250 a bottle. We are so glad to see a revival in wooded Sauvignon Blancs, it does add so much finesse and character to these lovely wines
The Oenophiles, earnestly tasting, scoring and making notes. Buitenverwachting is keen to host wine clubs
A line up of some of the wines we tasted. We had four reds, starting with the Meifort, a Bordeaux blend, which always sold extremely well in our shop. It is made from the same barrels of wine that the flagship wine Christine is selected from and therefore gives very good value for money at R90 a bottle on the farm. The Christine is in a class all of its own however, showing such intensity with expensive wood and herbs on the nose, soft, supple and warm; a lovely cassis blockbuster, R350 on the farm. We loved the Malbec with its savoury beetroot and pomegranate wildness, soft and supple and sappig with cherry sweetie and soy flavours, gentle tannins and a vanilla ending. R250 on the farm. The Merlot is full of rich dark cherries, tobacco dust, some mint and long after tastes, R160
Adrienne had organised platters for us for afterwards. Good bread, some cheese and curried meatballs, two dips, olives feta and sundried tomatoes, biltong, spicy chorizo and some grapes. What a great evening, thank you Herman and Adrienne, we had great wine and food and great fun with you both
Posted by MENU at 12:20 pm 0 comments
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