Thursday, June 20, 2019

Robertson Wine Valley's Wacky Wine Weekend 10. Arendsig



Sometimes after a good dinner, you awake quite hungry for breakfast. So we packed up at Tanagra, checked out and thanked our hosts by 7,30 to get to Arendsig in Bonnievale where we were invited to breakfast at 8.30. Oops no, Lynne got it wrong, it was 9.30(!), so we arrived an hour early. Actually it was fine as we got the most beautiful early morning winter views of the countryside on our trip there. We risked the short route via the Steenbokvlakte Road skirting the Vrolijkheid Nature Reserve. It is gravel all the way but much, much shorter than going back into Robertson and "all round the houses" for 40+ kilometres. There is a rather vertiginous mountain pass on the way and we were so glad we had not driven that way when the road was wet with rain. But it is a beautiful route. John grew up on dirt roads in Botswana and, later, was in a rally team so he has no problem driving on them
We had encountered freezing fog on our way back from Montague the night before and could see patches of it on this road
as we came down the road into Bonnievale. But it looks so romantic! And it is a very bonny vale
They were still getting things ready for the day but we were happy to walk around, have some coffee and enjoy the early morning and not get in the way
The farm has some lovely views across the valley
At 9.30 people began to arrive and the sun came out to shine. The low temperature of 7.5 we had seen that morning went up during the day to 25 degrees
Is it a Triffid? About to whiplash Lynne? We have one in our garden and had no idea that it could grow a flower stem this long
Called the Fox Tail Agave, aka Lion's Tail, Swan's Neck, official name Agave attenuata
Beautiful late Autumn/early winter landscape over the vines
Across the river, the mountains turning blue
We enjoyed a thorough tasting of these wines after breakfast!
On offer for lunch
All lined up and ready for opening - the White wines. The Sauvignon Blanc is very much in the Marlborough style; they have a lovely Soft Chardonnay which spends 11 months in old oak barrels, and a very good Chenin Blanc. The Viognier is elegant with soft peach notes but dry with long flavours, a terrific wine which spends 10 months in old small French oak. Its very Condrieu in style. Had to buy some
And the Red wines. The pinot noir is tempting and has a typical strawberry raspberry nose with classic cherry flavours and gentle wood. The Granache has wood smoke, dark berry fruit and those lovely wild flavours, Its young and needs time. The Shiraz is complex, spicy dark berry fruit on the nose, Salty with cherry fruit, licorice, pepper and chocolate. The Pinotage grown on shale has leather and salt on the nose and palate. Tight tannins mean this needs to age. The Pinotage grown on chalk has richness, dark berry fruit, chalky tannins and again salt on the end. The 2017 Cabernet Block 9 is classic with cassis berries and leaves, and salty minerality. The Mourvedre has richness, wildness, mulberry and cherry and is full and satisfying, with soft tannins. An amazing selection
And yet more
The farm dog Boerseun (Farmer’s son) a St Bernard, is as soppy as they come and loves being made a fuss of
Across the valley lies Weltevrede where we visited the day before
First cup of coffee for about 6 months! But she hasn’t warmed up yet
Tasting wines but who remembers Bashews soft drinks?
The lads start a cooking fire
And tables are laid for breakfast
Boerseun wants some too
Arendsig spoils its guests. Time for breakfast. To begin with, a selection of lovely fruits with yoghurt
There was also a nutty Muesli and some juices
Croissants and good home baked breads served with jam and butter
And a wonderful cooked breakfast of farm sausage, crisp bacon, tiny seared Roma tomatoes and two very fresh fried eggs. Delicious and just what we needed. 
Lourens joined us at the table and one of his twin daughters also did for a short while
A quick cuddle and she was off. Mom looks on
Another view of farms and vineyards in the area
Lourens and Lizelle van der Westhuizen. They also cater for functions and weddings on the farm and you need to contact Lizelle for information. https://www.arendsig.co.za/contact-us-map
A man and his wine
And suddenly it was busy and lots of people were tasting the wines and buying
We could not resist and came home with a couple of boxes
People arriving for lunch in the the Marquee. We had to leave for our next appointment at Quando
Boerseun was finding it hard going & relaxed for a nap or a tummy rub!
Thank you Lourens and Lizelle for superb hospitality, wine and breakfast
Posted by MENU at 3:06 pm 0 comments

Robertson Wine Valley's Wacky Wine Weekend 9. Mimosa Lodge, BluVine Restaurant

We set off from McGregor at 5.30 for Mimosa Lodge in Montague where we were invited for a tasting and dinner at their new restaurant. We allowed lots of time as its a fair old way and the road works are still on going on the road to Montague, We were told by locals there were two "stop and go" traffic lights for one way access. Luckily we got through reasonably quickly. We arrived at the Hotel at a quarter to 7, and were warmly welcomed by the Barman to their new bar; he remembered us from our stay there a couple of years ago. He poured us a lovely glass of Chardonnay which we sat enjoying when we saw Fida Hess, wife of Bernhard the owner/chef who said, "What are you doing here?" "We came to see your new restaurant" we replied. It turns out that it is nowhere near the hotel and we had not been told it was separate or been given its address. "They are waiting dinner for you, you must hurry" she said, and with some instructions, we managed to find the new restaurant which is on the right as you enter Montague from Ashton. It is called BluVines
From the road, it looks like an old Farmhouse building with broekie Lace on the stoep; from the back it is very modern. You park at the back and walk in here. On their website, they say it is a "glamorously refurbished old farmhouse". Very glam and quite sexy with the blue lighting. They have lovely seating for the summer and the windows of the restaurant all fold back to give an inside/outside feel. There are lovely mountain views. The night was perishingly cold at about 7ºC, so we were happy to be inside
The kitchen is open and they have a coffee station and a good selection of the Mimosa wines
There is a separate tasting room in another building which is also the wine cellar
Apparently we had missed the tasting, but were given our table and the evening began
We did explain that we had not been told it was in another place and apologised for any inconvenience caused
The restaurant has been a long held dream of owner Bernhard Hess and had taken three years to open because of
the usual planning and other building restrictions. He and his partner are very happy and relieved to have finally got there
The waitrons are alumni from the Rural Arts Development (RAD) Foundation, a Montagu-based registered non-profit organisation that introduces all forms of visual and performing arts to rural youth in an endeavour to inspire, engage and educate the children of the community. And they certainly are well trained as waiting staff and they entertained us very well during the dinner. Mark Stalmeester has a lovely voice and sang one song à capella on his own with a backing track. He had written this himself; he is very talented
We chose a glass of the Mimosa 2017 Chardonnay, as we had not been able to finish that poured for us at the hotel,
and we enjoyed it very much with the starter. It's a classic, soft Chardonnay, with lots of ripe apple, limes and lemon notes
The wines are made by Lourens van der Westhuizen of Arendsig
We really liked the glass bead chandelier, which gives a good diffused light, not easy to capture on the camera
The starter was three large prawn and chive wonton dumplings served with two dips,
a Teriyaki with Hoisin sauce and a Ponzu - a citrus flavoured soy. Very enjoyable and a good pairing with the Chardonnay
The main course was served with an accompanying salad of small sliced Roma tomatoes with fresh red onion
and was a flame grilled, perfectly seasoned Picanha steak, cooked medium rare. It was fire charred, so full of flavour, with succulent crisp fat and very, very tender. It is our favourite cut of steak. This came with a mélange of fresh vegetables, "Hurray, Vitamins" we exclaimed, so welcome, the first we had seen all weekend, a baked potato and servings of crisp frites (French fried chips). We so enjoyed the first proper meal of the weekend, and the first food we had which was not in some sort of bun!
With it we had glasses of the 2017 Mimosa Cabernet Sauvignon with incense wood, rich cassis and berry fruit on the nose
It has rich, complex dark fruit in layers with some licorice and dark chocolate on the end, a perfect match for the steak
Chef James Mulligan came to see if we were enjoying the meal. He also sings for the diners!
Our neighbours across the way were from Switzerland and it was their first time in South Africa.
They were camping in the area! At this time of year.... so brave to endure the cold nights
And a chance to meet Sous Chef Sean Bassett
More glasses were supplied for the dessert course
We took a short pause and John went to take some photographs. Another view of the terrace and the restaurant
Inside the tasting room they have these large concrete wine fermentation "Eggs"
Wine will be stored here
Lynne was told by the manager Jonine Erasmus to go and check out the toilets
and there she found this waterfall wall! Very unusual, it certainly does encourage a visit
Happy staff in the restaurant
Manager Jonine Erasmus told us about dessert and the wine that would be served with it
The Mimosa Reserve Natural Sweet 2018 (500ml) is made from Gewürztraminer and has rose petals and muscat notes on the enticing nose with hints of honey botrytis. An R/S of 162, it is sticky and sweet with honey and spice, Turkish delight and some nougat on the palate, with good citrus acidity to balance the sweetness, and a little pétillance. 11% alcohol and only 3000 bottles made
Dessert was a very sweet chocolate lava cake with vanilla whipped cream, raspberry syrup, ice cream and topped with a fresh strawberry. John enjoyed it, but it much too sweet for Lynne, especially with the wine. No criticism, just no sweet tooth. John enjoyed a very good double espresso.
Chef James gave us a spirited version of "My Way"; he has a good voice
We thanked all the staff and they sang "It's so Hard to Say Goodbye" to us
We loved the evening and hope to be back in the summer to try out the normal menu
Posted by MENU at 2:09 pm 0 comments

Friday, June 14, 2019

On the MENU this week. Pea, Lentil and Ham Hock Soup


It is definitely winter in Cape Town this week. We have had some good rain and the temperature has dropped to single figures. So warming and nourishing soup is the order of the day.  This is one we love and it is very easy to make.  And it will do for a couple of meals for a small family

200g Split peas– 200g red split lentils – 1 tablespoon oil - 2 onions, finely chopped
2 large carrots, diced – 2 long celery sticks, diced – 1 ham hock – 2 bay leaves
a good handful of chopped thyme - salt and black pepper
Pour boiling water over the peas and lentils to cover them and allow them to soak for an hour or two. Drain. In a large soup pan with a cover, fry the onions until just taking on colour in a tablespoon of oil and then add the carrots and celery.  Continue to cook for about 5 minutes to soften the vegetables. Add the peas, lentils, herbs and the ham hock. Cover with water – about 2 or 3 litres and bring to a simmer. Simmer gently until the ham hock starts to fall apart and the pulses have melted down. Remove the hock and the bay leaves from the soup, take off all the skin and fat and roughly chop up the meat and replace it in the soup. Feed the skin, fat and bone to your hungry dog, or the neighbours. Taste and adjust the seasoning by adding salt and a good grinding or two of black pepper. Be careful, some ham hocks are quite salty. Serve with crisp croutons and some good red wine.  We had this with our Wine of the Week, Tanagra Cabernet Franc, and it went so well

All content ©  John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus

Posted by MENU at 1:29 am 0 comments

MENU’s Wine of the Week is Tanagra Cabernet Franc 2015


We were gifted this bottle of when we stayed at Tanagra wine farm in McGregor during this year’s Wacky Wine Weekend. We took it home and had it with two meals, Pea, Lentil and Ham Hock Soup and a Lasagne that Lynne made.  It was superb with both and is a really versatile food wine. It does not dominate food, just compliments it.
Perfumed with cassis and cherry, it is fruity with soft tannins and great depth.  Black cherry and mulberry flavours entice with dark wood notes on the end. A very good wine with food. R140 a bottle on the farm, well priced for this quality. Made by Lourens van der Westhuizen from Tanagra’s grapes

All content ©  John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus
Posted by MENU at 1:20 am 0 comments

This Week’s MENU. Robertson’s Wacky Wine Weekend, Part One - Tanagra, Kranskop, De Wetshof, Weltevrede, Zandvliet, Ex Diem, Bonnievale. Tanagra Cab Franc, Pea, Ham and Lentil Soup

Early morning mist in the Bonnievale valley, near Robertson

This week, we have one story to tell. It has several chapters and they comprise so many different stories that we have held several of them over until next week. For many years, Robertson Wine Valley has been the country’s most active wine region, encouraging tourism and giving us, members of the media, stories to relate to you. Each year they hold seasonal festivals, Hands on Harvest, Robertson Slow, Wine on the River and this, the Wacky Wine Weekend. They are always very well organised by the Robertson Wine Valley management, with the rider that it is up to the individual farms to entertain their visitors to the best of their ability. Read on to see how well they did…

This was our first visit to Robertson Wine Valley's Wacky Wine Weekend since 2011 and we were very happy to be invited this year. Much smaller than in previous years; we were saddened to see how many farms, smaller and larger, no longer take part and wonder whether this is enough to sustain this winter festival…


Our hosted accommodation was at Tanagra Wine Farm in McGregor, which was taking part in the festival with its wines, grappa and Eau de Vie. We were warmly welcomed by the owners, Anette and Robert Rosenbach, and taken to The Garden Cottage where we were to stay, which was very comfortable and is perfect for self catering…


Our first port of call after checking in to Tanagra was Kranskop Wine estate in Klaasvoogds, near Robertson. It was really good to see owner/cellarmaster Newald Marais again.  He invited us to stay at Kranskop in October last year, when we visited Robertson for the De Wetshof Chardonnay Celebration…

We asked to visit some of the newer wineries which we had not yet visited and Ex Diem was one of them. It is in the beautiful Klaasvoogds valley behind Kranskop and produces olives, olive oil and some wines…

Our next stop, after ExDiem and Ashton, was at De Wetshof for a comparative tasting of Chardonnays from the area. The view up the jacaranda avenue is superb when it is flowering…

Our tasting at De Wetshof finished at 5.30 and we were only expected at Zandvliet at 6.30 for 7. It would take an hour to drive back and forth to our accommodation so we had time to waste. Most tasting centres would be closed, so we went to see how the river was flowing from the red iron bridge that crosses it, on the way to Bonnievale…

Up bright and early on a wet and cold morning, we rushed the 45 minutes from McGregor via Robertson to Bonnievale. We were reluctant to take the quick route through the mountains because we had been told it could be slippery on the dirt road, so we went the long way round…

Down the road from Weltevrede, through Bonnievale village and around the corner to Bonnievale Cellars which was nice and busy with people tasting the wines…









14th June 2019

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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 our website and ancillary works are © John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus. Our restaurant reviews are often 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.

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Posted by MENU at 12:52 am 0 comments
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