Thursday, April 25, 2019

The new Heritage Tasting Menu at Grande Provence, Franschhoek

Grande Provence wine estate in Franschhoek, has gone back to its culinary roots with a new Heritage Tasting Menu,
prepared by talented Head Chef Marvin Robyn, and we were invited to the estate to sample their new Tasting Menu,
which is available exclusively to dinner guests. The menu offers a wide selection of fresh, local ingredients
expertly prepared with Chef Marvin’s own twist on South African heirloom recipes
We arrived in the transport kindly arranged and were welcomed with a glass of Grand Provence Brut MCC,
made from equal quantities of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay
It is aged “sur lie” for 5 years before disgorgement with zero dosage. Classic Eye of the Partridge colour
and complex flavours of brioche and cooked apples, a good fine mousse and a nice crispness on the end
And served by very happy staff
We love the garden area with its trees, pools and beautiful sculptures
Oysters were served with the MCC
Then we repaired into the Jonkershuis, where a long table had been set for lunch
Marna Viljoen, Hospitality Manager, welcomed us and explained how the Heritage Tasting Menu had been conceived
They had taken heirloom recipes and asked the chef to refine them for modern tastes
Not fine dining, but to make traditional South African food more sophisticated
The food is paired with Grande Provence wines. She said that there is such enthusiasm in the kitchen
We were introduced to Head Chef Marvin Robyn
He graduated with distinction from the acclaimed Institute of Culinary Arts (ICA) and previously worked at a number
of top winelands restaurants including Delaire Graff, Cuvée at Simonsig, Equus at Cavalli and finally Makaron at Majeka House
We also met winemaker Thys Smit who has been part of the Grande Provence winemaking team since 2015
In July 2018, he was promoted to Grande Provence winemaker and farm manager. Previously with Lourensford Estate,
he has also trained and worked in America at Roth Estate, focusing on Chardonnay and Bordeaux-style blends
The Menu for our tasting. We were told we would get to taste other items of the main menu during lunch
The first course of Ox tongue was paired with the Grand Provence 2017 Rosé
It has lovely fruit flavours of raspberry and mulberry, slightly lactic on the end and very refreshing
The 2017 Chardonnay was served with the intermediate courses. Rich, oily, a typical Chardonnay nose, round on the palate; buttery flavours with apple, crisp limes and long flavours; very, very enjoyable.
We were served freshly baked Mosbolletjies with a dill flavoured butter
The soft, sweet glazed rolls are made with fermenting grape must; traditional in the winelands at harvest time
The herb butter was an interesting and not unpleasant pairing
The days of wine and roses
Chef Robyn came out to describe each course to us
The first dish (an amuse bouche), served on a dish of raw black beans, was a sample of a tiny Bobotie samoosa
topped with a sour gel and a cheese tuille filled with thick cheese sauce and dusted with grated biltong
Despite many saying that they did not enjoy tongue, this dish went down very well indeed. Finely shaved ox tongue, nicely meaty, topped with pickled mustard seeds, ash, on a bed of sweet mustard, radish and turnip. John had a perception that tongue is slippery and viscous, this completely changed that opinion. Lots of umami flavours paired with the warmth of the mustard, the zing of the pickle and the fresh crispness of the shaved radish and turnip combined to make this an impressive dish
And the pairing with the Rosé worked well
Another intermediary dish of a bed of Malay fried onions, smoked snoek, rather fishy tasting oyster cream, topped with a crisp poppadom sprinkled with cayenne pepper and other spices. It was a good riff on a deconstructed Pickled Fish.
Not all of us were brought up with the intense flavours of this classic Cape Malay dish, but it was enjoyed by many
The Chardonnay went well with this dish
Winemaker Thys Smit explained how they had paired the wines with the menu
The Chardonnay
Probably the best dish of the day was the Intermediate course of Kabeljou fish,
on a heringboontjie purée (a local white dried bean), celeriac, with a dill cream
The perfectly cooked fish, which has a steak-like texture, crisp and golden on the outside and moist inside,
was then topped with sliced white seedless grapes and herbs
A great combination of superb cooking and great flavours, well matched
The fish was served with the rather woody 2015 The Grande Provence White, a blend of Chenin Blanc and Viognier,
pressed, barrel fermented for 11 months and aged in French oak barrels for 24 months
Full bodied with flavours of sweet peach, melon and quince with big oak structure. R430 on the farm
The Main course was Venison (kudu) loin, perfectly pink, served on a buchu and honey syrup, a slice of grilled polenta
(mielie pap) and accompanied by a spicy purée of Chakalaka, a spicy vegetable relish or African version of salsa,
made from cooked onions, chilli, tomatoes, carrots and peppers
And then another extra course of tender Lamb loin served with a delicious and unusual purée of acorn and parsnip
(with peanut butter like richness), and a Morogo purée
Morogo is wild African spinach and can be one of three different plants. Served with a jus and sliced tomatoes
The wine paired with these two dishes was the 2015 Grande Provence Red
Complex red and black berry fruit on the nose and palate, a Bordeaux style red blend matured in French barrels for 24 months
with notes of dark plums, fresh fruit acidity, chocolate and lots of wood support on the end. R590 on the farm
Dessert was half a small Melktert, a scoop of very creamy vanilla ice cream flavoured with Naartjie (mandarin orange)
and a curry praline
And the Petit Fours were minute cream horns and Koesisters - the Cape Malay coconut covered doughnuts
The talented team that put this menu together. Do go and try it for yourself
It is definitely a place to take overseas visitors to try our local food
We loved this wonderful sculpture which absolutely captures two horses nuzzling each other, and having a word, as they do
If you look at it for a while, you swear you can see the heads coming together, so magical is it
Posted by MENU at 5:26 pm 0 comments

On the MENU This Week. Braaied Butterflied Leg of Lamb

We have always used this recipe for lamb cooked on the Weber type braai. It has evolved over the past 30 or so years from a recipe originally published in the Cape Times. Last weekend, the Cape was assaulted by gale force winds, so we used our gas oven, because braaiing would have been too unpleasant. Procedure with an electric oven should be the same as with gas. Both methods are described below
Very much an action photograph, taken whilst carving and serving
Ask the butcher to debone the leg (or do it yourself) so that there are two half legs, joined in the middle, with fat on one side only. Place the meat in a large bowl and prepare a marinade of
Half cup Olive Oil - Half cup Soy Sauce - 1 cup red wine Vinegar, Red Wine or Verjuice - Grated peel and juice of 1 Lemon - 6-8 cloves of garlic, finely chopped - Several sprigs of Lavender or Rosemary
Chop the lavender/rosemary leaves, having stripped them off the stalks. Whip the oil and soy sauce and the other ingredients. Pour the marinade over both sides of the meat, and cover the dish. Marinate for ± 12 hours with the cut side down, turning it occasionally to ensure that the marinade penetrates evenly
Braai version: Light the fire, and, just before the flames have completely died, put the meat on the grid, cut side down, to sear for 5-10 minutes
Turn the meat over, and leave it fat side down, with the lid on the Weber, for ± 30 minutes for a small leg and ± 45 minutes for a larger leg. Baste the leg occasionally with the marinade (More frequently over an open fire)
Oven version: Turn the oven temperature to 275ºC. Place the meat, fat side down in a metal roasting dish with a good dose of the marinade, about 2cm deep. Do not cover the meat completely with the liquid. After 15 minutes, turn the oven down to 180ºC and continue to roast for another 30 to 45 minutes. There is no need to baste, as the meat is lying in the liquid
Serving: (Use a razor-sharp knife)
Cut the meat down the middle into two “fillets” and carve each one from the meat side toward the fat into very thin slices. The thick parts will be rare, becoming more well-done as the meat becomes thinner

Serve as you would roast beef. We have a rule in our house. Make sure that you serve yourselves as you carve as it disappears very quickly





All content © John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus

Posted by MENU at 4:50 pm 0 comments

MENU’s Wine of the Week 2016 Galpin Peak Pinot Noir

from Bouchard Finlayson in the Hemel and Aarde Valley. Made by Winemaker Chris Albrecht



This has wood, roses and red berry fruit on the nose and, on the palate, attractive berry fruit, plums, chalky tannins, and dark wood on the end. Made to last and is very enjoyable. This vintage is currently available in 1.5 l Magnums on the farm Galpin Peak 2016 Magnum a bargain at R849 and the current vintage, 2017, is R394 a bottle

 This vintage is already much awarded and has received a GOLD MEDAL in the International Wine Challenge, 2018; TROPHY - SA best red wine International Wine Challenge, 2018; TROPHY - SA best Pinot Noir International Wine Challenge, 2018. 94 POINTS from James Suckling, 2018 and 94 POINTS from Tim Atkin MW, South Africa Special Report, 2018. 93 POINTS (5 stars) in Platter’s Wine Guide 2019

 Lynne is finding roses on the nose of many good Pinot Noirs and it is becoming a pointer to her of excellent quality
All content © Adamastor & Bacchus
Posted by MENU at 4:19 pm 0 comments

Bouchard Finlayson 'New World Pinot Noir' Tutored Tasting at the 12 Apostles Hotel

An invitation to a New World focused Pinot Noir tasting with Bouchard Finlayson winemaker Chris Albrecht sounded intriguing
It was held at the 12 Apostles Hotel 
Our welcoming drink was the Blanc de Mer blend of Riesling with some Viognier, Chardonnay and "a few other varietals",
made to be a perfect match with sea food. It is also a rather good quaffing wine
Guy McDonald, Gosia Young, Michael Bampfield Duggan
A long table was set for the wine tasting,
which was to be accompanied by sushi from ex-Nobu chef Sarawut Sukkowplang of the hotel’s Sushi Bar
We take our seats
This tasting was put together by well-travelled Bouchard Finlayson winemaker Chris Albrecht
He has assisted in cellars in California, France, South Africa and New Zealand and wanted to see what style we preferred
He is a confessed lover of Pinot Noir
The sushi pairing menu
We tasted blind, so did not know what the wines were until the bottles were revealed. We began with four white wines, all unwooded. The 2014 Bouchard Finlayson Sans Barrique Chardonnay has Elandskloof fruit and is buttery, leesy and full of crisp citrus flavours. The 2017 was similar but younger and more zesty. No malolactic fermentation on these wines. The third wine was the ringer, the 2017 Bon Vallon Chardonnay from De Wetshof in Robertson and is perfumed, herbal on the nose, crisp & zesty, with notes of orange and other citrus The unlabelled bottle is the pre-release 2018 Sans Barrique. Still shy on the nose, but with a nice zing of crisp acidity. This is already shaping up well and can be relied on to be a good vintage of this wine
Glistening chardonnays
The sushi to pair with the Chardonnays: on the left, Seared Yellow fin tuna roll; so fresh, with avocado, a mirin aioli, Teriyaki sauce and topped with a spicy mayo and chopped chives. On the right, deep fried and rather large (3 bites a piece) Futomaki (translation: "fat rolled sushi"), filled with yellow fin tuna, Norwegian salmon, farmed prawn and avocado, spring onion, cucumber and drizzled with teriyaki. The fast deep frying adds a good crisp layer of light tempura batter on the outside, but doesn't cook the fish. Two perfect matches for the lovely chardonnays
Head Sommelier at the 12 Apostles, Gregory Mutambe, pouring the first flight of Pinot Noirs for us. He joined us for the tasting
Here, he pours for FIVESTAR PR owner Jani van der Spuy who organised the event
Most would be New World wines, with a ringer or two in each flight
One of the staff members pours for Leanne Beatty
The first four Pinots revealed. The first one foxed us (and this is NOT New World) a German Pinot Noir (Spätburgunder) from Schloss Ortenberg in the Baden Area. 2013. Shy with incense wood, concentrated and older with notes of balsam. Crisp, peppery, full on fruit with stewed plums. Then from the same vintage, the 2013 Bouchard Finlayson Galpin Peak with pink edges, pretty raspberry & cola on the nose, clean red fruit, nice length and minerality on the end. Next the Bouchard Finlayson 2013 Tête de Cuvée in 86% new oak - we knew this was local, from the fynbos on the nose, rusty edges, jammy but lighter fruit, clean, long with mint on the end, an older wine. The fourth was from New Zealand, Te Muna Road Craggy Range Pinot Noir from the Martinborough area. Dive-in red fruit on the nose, raspberry strawberry, lovely fruit, dark toast and still youthful. Much favoured in the room
The sushi pairing for the first flight of Pinots was a cured Tout sashimi, with miso, a Korean spicy chilli Gochujang sauce and spring onions with, on the right, a seared Norwegian salmon roll. with a mirin aioli, Teriyaki sauce, avocado, spicy mayo and chives. Both were so good with the red wine that we think this has added this varietal to our ordering of wine in good Sushi restaurants
The final flight began with the Kooyong Ferrous Pinot Noir from the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria, Australia. Pretty rose and raspberry on the nose, full on fruit, grippy tannins and wood follow. Then another German, 2016 Kreuzberg Silberberg GG Pinot Noir from the Ahr region. Roses, fruit on an exceptionally sophisticated nose; on the palate, fruit first, sour plums, sharp fruit acidity with some salt. Needs time. Next was the 2016 Galpin Peak with wood, roses and red berry fruit on the nose and, on the palate, berry fruit, plums, chalky tannins, dark wood on the end. Made to last and very enjoyable, it is our Wine of the Week this week. The final wine was Ata Rangi Pinot Noir, Martinborough 2016 from the South Island in New Zealand This was rather French in style, with maturity on the nose, cherries and berries, wood tannin and fruit on the palate
The two flights of Pinot Noir
And the final sushi pairing. A seared beef Teriyaki roll, with Teriyaki sauce, spring onions and toasted sesame seeds showed us how we can use meat in sushi when the fish runs out. It works as long as the beef is tender and this was. The Norwegian Salmon Tacos were unusual and fun; they came with a spicy miso, shredded cabbage and toasted sesame seeds. One for Lynne to copy at home as a starter, she thinks
With thanks to winemaker Chris for putting this very educational tasting together. We came with no pre-conceived notions and we all learned a lot about the different styles of Pinot. Lynne is finding roses on the nose of many good Pinot Noirs and it is becoming a pointer to her of good quality
All content © Adamastor & Bacchus
Posted by MENU at 1:46 pm 1 comments

New Pronto menu at Societi Bistro

Societi Bistro in Orange Street in Cape Town is running a Pronto special from 12 to 7 pm on Wednesdays and Thursday; they are open till 11 pm and on those two days in April you get a free 330ml Woodstock lager. We were going to be in town, so were tempted to go and sample the food, which you can look at on line. https://societi.co.za/pronto/
You can sit and enjoy lunch in the garden on a sunny day
The Pronto Menu. They are quite happy for you to mix and match dishes or order a combination
We chose a seat inside; Cape Town is rather unseasonably windy at the moment
The decor is modern and old combined and it is a relaxed and comfortable place to eat
Our Woodstock lagers were refreshing, bready, hoppy and enjoyable
We were offered some really good bread and the ale went so well with the sourdough!
Lynne ordered the hake and chips in batter. Wonderfully fresh hake and one of the best batters ever
And each of us succumbed to an order of chips, which come with a mustardy mayonnaise
Oh dear, they were terrific and far too much for one of us; we should have shared a portion. Great long chips with crispy ends
John ordered the Tuna Poke Bowl,
lots of tuna tataki, fresh pineapple, grated carrot, radish, red onions and cucumber, served on sticky rice
The bowl was big and you can see here how big the chips are too
Some gin and tonic and wine options on the blackboard
And the menu of the day
Our very reasonable bill. Peter Weetman, the owner, knows us and very generously sent us two desserts to sample. We liked them so much that John forgot to take a photo of them! A slice of delicious chocolate nemesis tart and a lemon curd tart were much enjoyed and a nap ensued thereafter for one of us. Thank you to our two great waitresses who really looked after us
Our car was parked at the Lifestyle Centre on Kloof Street where our friends Sue and Neil Proudfoot have their wine shop,
 Wine Concepts, so we dropped in to say hello. Rianie Strydom was there, showcasing her wines
So of course we had a quick taste before heading home
Posted by MENU at 12:10 pm 0 comments
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