Pop up lunch at Mellasat with chef Janet Richardson

Mellasat Pop-up restaurant     It is the season for lunches and, while you can partake of the excellent lunch at Laborie all year round, the Pop-up lunches at Mellasat only happen every month or so and, should you care to drive Paarl, the next one will be on the 15th and 16th of August.  You will need to book (for either lunch or dinner) as these are very popular with the locals. Their address is Mellasat Vineyards, Keerweder Road, Klein Drakenstein, Paarl Contact them on Tel: +27 (0) 21 862 4525 Email: mellasat@mweb.co.za  The cost is R220 for two courses, R295 for 3. A cheese platter costs R70 per person.

Mellasat bills itself as the home of the original white Pinotage, but Steven Richardson’s wife, Janet, used to be the chef at Fraai Uitzicht in Robertson when Axel Spanholz & Mario Motti owned it and some of you might be familiar with her good food. We were invited for lunch this Sunday and, despite the N1 being closed due to a nasty accident which necessitated a detour, we arrived just after 1 o’clock for a good repast with some well matched wines

Welcomed by owner Steve Richardson in their tasting room

The dining room is beyond

There is some interesting artwork in the two rooms

And some homilies

The restaurant is spacious and beginning to fill up

Our menu for lunch

Another Mellasat must

Lynne discusses with Steve what we should drink with our lunch choices

Although we were not tempted to eat any bread, we did taste this nice green olive and almond tapenade

Our Amuse was a tiny bobotie tartlet with guava pickle

The wine list. Dekker’s Valley is the original name of the farm and is the second label of Mellasat

A list of old wines which they have drunk and put to bed

Some more lurk in the cellar

We shared the starter and main courses. This is the Bouillabaisse with a crouton with good rouille. Well matched with Mellasat 2013 Viognier

The other starter was small salmon cakes with fried capers and lemon crème fraiche. This went well with a glass of their 2012 White Pinotage which, if you close your eyes, still tastes like a red wine.

Steve joined the family firm on their farm in Norfolk before coming here to farm grapes in South Africa. He says there is not much difference in farming sugar beet or grapes, it is just that the product's sale is delayed with wine and that costs money.

A guava sorbet was a refreshing interlude before the main course

A main course of Pork done two ways: soft Belly with apple and fennel and a seared fillet with a rather odd balsamic fig chutney. Very good crackling. This was served with a glass of 2012 M, a blend of Shiraz, Cabernet and Pinotage

Perfectly cooked Osso Bucco with a good tomato rich sauce. Beautiful with the Mellasat 2012 Tempranillo/Cabernet Sauvignon, which added something to the dish.

Belgian chocolate torte on a Génoise sponge, Frangelico mascarpone and espresso granita

Liquorice poached pear, brandy cream, toasted walnuts and pear sorbet


Our chef, Janet Richardson, looking a little relieved after service is over, with her smiling husband

Chatting about food and recipe with Janet. They kindly gave us 2 bottles of their wine to take home, a white Pinotage and an M.

Their lovely old farmhouse

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© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2014

Matthew Gordon launches his winter menu at Harvest, Laborie in Paarl

It seems only a week or two ago that we were enjoying Matthew Gordon’s summer menu at Laborie. This week, we and other media were invited to sample his new Winter Menu and one of our number liked it so much, he took his family there two days later for Sunday lunch. We can heartily recommend it and think it is very good value indeed for the quality and quantity of food that you get. We started with a welcome glass of their MCC sparkling Chardonnay which we seem to consume regularly a) because we like it very, very much and b) because it is also extremely good value. While we were standing around chatting they produced some good canapés: large and tender sweet tempura prawns and tempura slices of avocado, something new and quite interesting, we might try at home.

This was the menu we ate, which is a selection of things available on the new expanded Winter Menu

The table in the small separate dining room with a nice roaring fire

Eamon and Clare McLaughlin of Spill with Kerryan Lancaster, Global Brand Manager of Laborie

Lynne chatting to journalist Neil Pendock

Those moreish tempura prawns and avocado slices

Kerryan tells us about the new menu

Winemaker at Laborie, Kobus van der Merwe

Marketing Director for KWV, Jeff Gradwell, tells us about the wines

and Executive Chef Matthew Gordon explains his menu. All the items on it are sourced locally if at all possible

Making notes and having a glass of one of our favourite bubblies, Laborie’s Blanc de Blanc MCC

Chef Matthew explains the courses

First course with a glass of the KWV Special Collection 2013 Chardonnay, rich and creamy with a hint of wood smoke. The grapes are from Elgin

And what a wow of a first course. Lynne might travel miles to eat this delicious soup again. A rich silky saffron velouté bursting with fish and seafood and some cheeky crisp crab wontons

Perfectly cooked smoked duck breast, a Confit duck leg croquette, more crisp spicy wontons and a berry jus to match this with the soft and gentle Laborie Merlot/Cab blend

Two different vintages (2011 and 2012) of the elegant and complex Laborie Jean Taillefert Shiraz were served with the main course of terrifically tender red wine braised Karoo lamb with a garlic crust

And then with the honeyed, sweet and sticky Pineau de Laborie, a classic steamed lemon pudding, light as a feather with limoncello curd and lemon meringue ice cream and some very unusual mojito jelly (we loved it). A tour de force, on the palate it tasted as if you had just eaten a huge slice of lemon meringue pie!

And when we didn’t think we would or could eat anything else, a good double espresso, a glass of Laborie Alambic Brandy and some homemade Belgian chocolates

Clare Mack with Madge Booth from Good Housekeeping, enjoying the chocolates

Journalist Shanté Hutton of wine.co.za having fun with her camera

Chef Matthew sits down for a chat and a small glass of something with Laborie General Manager Zelda Oelofse-Cornthwaite

Thank heavens we were driven there and back home by one of KWV’s excellent, interesting and service oriented drivers, Nolan Blankenberg

because the road was not pleasant with a lot of heavy, but welcome, winter rain. Thank you all for a super day

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© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2014

140516 Main Ingredient's MENU - Old Mutual Trophy Feedback, Keet & van Biljon wines, Mediterranean delicacies, spiced meat loaf

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A seagull flying to a winter sea

In this week’s MENU:

 Old Mutual Trophy Feedback

 Keet & van Biljon Wines at Aubergine

 Chocolat with Mediterranean, Knead & Nitida

 Spiced Meat Loaf

This week’s Product menu – If the cold weather is driving you indoors and you getting excited about cooking exotic winter dishes, remember we have all the difficult to find spices like whole nutmeg, grains of Paradise, juniper berries for game, za'atar and sumac, Ras al Hanout for tagines, and rose water and orange blossom water as well..

If you can find it in the supermarket, we don't usually stock it, just the products you would struggle to find.... Check our online shop to see more details and prices.

Old Mutual Trophy Feedback’s Exciting results for the SA wine industry in 2014      There are quite a few wine competitions throughout the year and they all have different formats. Some are judged by wine experts, others by the wine trade, some by pure amateurs, and others by winemakers, journalists or the entrants peers and some are a combination of all the above. Old Mutual Trophy employs a mix of different specialists involved in the wine industry and invites several of the judges each year from different countries to get a good outsiders view of how the local industry is doing. The wines are subjected to rigorous tasting. This year 212 producers entered wines, and 1040 wines were tasted in three and a half days. And there are some very exciting results reported at the Feedback session last Thursday .

We heard that the depth of talent in most classes was extraordinary and how hard it was to keep wines out of the medal classes. High silvers this year would have been gold a few years ago. There are 23 Trophies this year, including the Museum class, 14 gold, 121 silver and 496 bronze awards.  LOTS MORE here about the Feedback, with pictures

 Old Mutual takes the top wines on a national road show to introduce them to discerning wine lovers in eight cities in Southern Africa. Check out the website www.trophywineshow.co.za for more details

Keet & van Biljon Wines at Aubergine      To say we are big fans of Christopher Keet and his wines is an understatement. We first met Chris in the mid 90s, when we both were beginning to get involved in the wine industry – he lectured in our Wine Academy Diploma course - and we have loved his wines ever since. His intelligent and precise winemaking produces classic wines. They are brought out from our cellar on high days and holidays to be enjoyed and the 1997 Crescendo is still drinking beautifully. We were distressed when Cordoba closed and he had to go out on his own, so we were excited to buy some of his First Verse 2009 when he released it.  Last Friday we attended the launch of his 2010 First Verse, an extremely elegant red blend of Cab Franc, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot and a soupçon of Malbec, together with the launch of another wine he has made for Anton and Julia van Biljon, a powerful classic Bordeaux blend called Van Biljon Cinq 2011. They are very different, but both excellent.  Both need time.  Then we had the pleasure of a lovely Aubergine lunch cooked by chef owner Harald Bresselschmidt. MORE here

Chocolat with Mediterranean, Knead & Nitida under the stars      The May weather may not seem sensible for an evening watching a film on a rooftop in Central Cape Town but we had such fun on Tuesday night at the Grand Daddy Hotel. Mediterranean Foods laid on a huge spread of dips, cheeses, olives, crudités and other delicacies, there was great bread from Knead and really special wine from Nitida in Durbanville . Then we took our seats in the small outdoor cinema and armed with blankets, a superb glass of red wine (Nitida Calligraphy) and popcorn to watch this lovely movie with nostalgia. Was it chilly? Yes it was but we were all well wrapped up, and they came up trumps when they provided a cup of hot cocoa mid-performance. And they sent us home with a lovely goodie bag full of some new products to try like an Asparagus dip, Halva and roasted artichokes. MORE

This week’s recipe       We thought it was time for a simple meat loaf. Prosaic, yes, delicious yes, you can’t cook special meals all the time and this is quick to assemble and easy to make. This is suitable if you are cutting out carbohydrates. Flavour to your own taste using dried spice and herb mixes like Nomu, Cajun, Garam masala etc. And cook a spoonful to check the taste before baking the loaf. Should serve 4 (or 2 for two meals). You could also bury a couple of peeled, just hard-boiled eggs in the centre of the loaf.

Spiced Meat Loaf

350g beef mince – 1 small onion, finely chopped – 1 jumbo egg – 2 T almond flour – 1 small grated carrot – 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped – 80g haloumi or other hard cheese, cut into 1 cm squares - 1 t marmite – 1 t mixed dried herbs – 1 T fresh chopped parsley – 1 t Cajun spice or garam masala or ras al hanout – ½ chilli powder or cayenne - 1T mixed seeds (sunflower, flax, sesame, pumpkin) – salt and freshly ground black pepper

Put everything into a large bowl and mix together really well. Take a small spoonful and fry it or put into the microwave for half a minute and taste and adjust seasoning. Line a small loaf tin (19 x 10 cm) with foil and fill with the mince mixture. Cover the top with the foil. Put into a tall sided baking dish and add boiling water to that dish until it comes half way up the sides of the loaf tin. Put into a slow 160°C oven and bake for about three quarters of an hour or until the loaf is cooked through but still moist. Serve slices with a good home made tomato or mushroom sauce and lots of vegetables. You can double this up to make a large meatloaf.

Buying from us On Line    We have a lot of fun putting MENU together each week and, of course, doing the things we write about, but making it possible for you to enjoy rare and wonderful gourmet foods is what drives our business and drives the wheels that enable us to produce MENU possible. We stock a good range of ingredients and delicious ready-made gourmet foods. You can contact us by email or phone, or through our on line shop. We can send your requirements to you anywhere in South Africa. Please do not pay until we have confirmed availability and invoiced you, then you pay and then we deliver or post. When you make an eft payment, make sure that it says who you are. Use the form on the website to email us your order. Click here to see our OnLine Shop.

Food and wine (and a few other) events for you to enjoy

There is a huge and rapidly growing variety of interesting things to occupy your leisure time here in the Western Cape. There are so many interesting things to do in our world of food and wine that we have made separate list for each month for which we have information. To see what’s happening in our world of food and wine (and a few other cultural events), visit our Events Calendar. All the events are listed in date order and we already have a large number of exciting events to entertain you right through the year. Events outside the Western Cape are listed here.

Learn about wine and cooking We receive a lot of enquiries from people who want to learn more about wine. Cathy Marston and The Cape Wine Academy both run wine education courses, some very serious and others more geared to fun. You can see details of Cathy’s WSET and other courses here and here and the CWA courses here. Karen Glanfield has taken over the UnWined wine appreciation courses from Cathy. See the details here

Chez Gourmet in Claremont has a programme of cooking classes. A calendar of their classes can be seen here. Nadège Lepoittevin-Dasse has cooking classes in Fish Hoek and conducts cooking tours to Normandy. You can see more details here. Emma Freddi runs the Enrica Rocca cooking courses at her home in Constantia. Brett Nussey’s Stir Crazy courses are now being run from Dish Food and Social’s premises in Main Road Observatory (opposite Groote Schuur hospital). Lynn Angel runs the Kitchen Angel cooking school and does private dinners at her home. She holds hands-on cooking classes for small groups on Monday and Thursday evenings and she has decided to introduce LCHF (Banting classes). The Kitchen Confidence classes, which focus on essential cooking skills and methods, have been expanded and are now taught over 2 evenings. She continues to host private dining and culinary team building events at her home. She trained with Raymond Blanc, and has been a professional chef for 25 years. More info here

16th May 2014

Remember - if you can’t find something, we’ll do our best to get it for you, and, if you’re in Cape Town or elsewhere in the country, we can send it to you! Check our online shop for details and prices.

PS If a word or name is in bold type and underlined, click on it for more information

Phones: +27 21 439 3169 / 083 229 1172 / 083 656 4169

Postal address: 60 Arthurs Rd, Sea Point 8005

Our Adamastor & Bacchus© tailor-made Wine, Food and Photo tours take small groups (up to 6) to specialist wine producers who make the best of South Africa’s wines. Have fun while you learn more about wine and how it is made! Tours can be conducted in English, German, Norwegian and standard or Dutch-flavoured Afrikaans.

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. Our Avast! ^® Anti-Virus software is updated at least daily and our system is scanned continually for viruses.

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. We own our mailing software and keep our mailing list strictly confidential. 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.