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Monday, August 10, 2015

John Collins Trade wine tasting at Ottimo Cibo

The week started well with a great tasting of the brands represented by John Collins. It is a small but perfectly formed list of some of our top wine farms and brands: Diemersfontein, Jordan, Kleinood, Newton Johnson, Thelema Sutherland, Springfield, Keet Wines and, newly added to the stable, Le Lude MCC from Franschhoek

Nikki Booth, owner of Ottimo Cibo, does the catering in her beautiful Italianate house in Bishopscourt. We believe that she and her husband Advocate William Booth have now sold the house and we all await with bated breath to see what Nikki will do next

Ottimo Cibo has beautiful gardens

Le Lude showed this Magnum of Brut Rosé non vintage MCC with nice berry fruit from the 65% Pinot Noir showing beautifully

Grilled goats cheese topped with preserved green figs

Winemaker Paul Gerber of Le Lude with Anne Ferreira. Peter “Bubbles” Ferreira has consulted for Le Lude and Anne manages their PR

Tiny crustless quiches with an embedded sweet caramelised mini tomato

Michelle van Eeden from Thelema/Sutherland pours out a tasting for a member of the trade. The 2012 Viognier/Rousanne really impressed, lots of apricots and orange blossom, very complex and such a good food wine

Marvellous well spiced chicken sausage rolls

Marketing manager Dian Joubert and winemaker Francois Roode on the Diemersfontein stand. We loved their Carpe Diem 2014 Chenin and 2014 Viognier and the Thokozani 2014 Rose. The 2013 Carpe Diem Pinotage is our favourite; full of rich vanillins, plums and blueberries

Jessica Saurwein and Spicer de Villiers on the Kleinood table. The 2014 Viognier is smoky, with a lush mouth and lots of peaches. Lynne liked the pretty 2015 Katharien Syrah Rosé and their two Syrahs always deliver impressive fruit and elegance. This year, they have 2011 Syrah and the top of the range John Spicer 2009 Syrah.

Morsels of delicious rare duck which went so well with the Newton Johnson Walker Bay 2013 Pinot Noir, full of roses and violets on the nose and sweet berries, with a good acid balance on the palate

Fishy balls with lemon mayo. These went well with the superb Newton Johnson 2014 Chardonnay, a full tingle on the tongue of beautiful citrus fruit and gentle wood

Lots of tasters from restaurants, hotels and the wine trade attend, with a few media like us

Lots of food came non-stop from the kitchen

The Springfield whites never disappoint. Both the crisp and exciting 2015 Special Cuvée and Life From Stone Sauvignons Blanc are ready for drinking, the 2011 Méthode Ancienne Chardonnay is rich and full, and we loved the exciting Miss Lucy 2015 white blend of Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and Pinot Gris, which we think might become a prize winning classic. If only SA would drink more white blends they would get this excitement. The Red Stumpnose fish on the label is known as Miss Lucy by the Southern Cape fishermen

Wine merchant Caroline Rillema with Gary Jordan. Jordan's newly released "The Real McCoy" 2014 Riesling is indeed that. It blew Lynne away with its concentrated, layered fruit, great balance and crisp acidity. The newly released 2014 Nine Yards Chardonnay is, as expected, a cracker of a wine with elegance, golden fruit, crisp, rich and sophisticated

Tiny parmesan biscuits topped with blue cheese cream

Small cups of tomato soup topped with cheese

Turnovers

Tiny pies with a tomato sauce

Chris Keet entertaining the trade with his newly released 2011 First Verse (the third vintage), a red blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec & Petit Verdot, all in harmony and balance, all promising a long life. It was the second time in a week that Lynne had tasted it and it confirmed her choice. This is her birthday wine for 2015 - which means that John has given her a case of this for her birthday on the 14th. Expensive, yes, but he will share it with her over the years. We recommend that you buy some to keep if you cellar your wine. It will drink well now, but it is sure to improve for many years. We have a selection of wines made by Chris over the last 20 years, and the oldest are still magnificent

Neil and Sue Proudfoot of Wine Concepts in Kloof Street with their daughter

John Collins with his colleague Marcha Cooke

It was a great tasting

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Thursday, August 06, 2015

This week's recipe: Sweet Potato and Turnip Dauphinoise

This week's recipe

is Lynne's take on the Sweet Potato and Turnip Dauphinoise we were served at the Quest for the Best Wellington wines . We had this with our roast lamb on Sunday.

1 large white sweet potato, peeled - 2 turnips, topped and tailed and peeled where necessary - 30 to 40g grated Emmental cheese - 4 T double cream yoghurt - salt and freshly ground pepper - 1 T butter - 3 T chicken or vegetable stock

Using a mandolin grater if you have one, slice the potato and turnips into thin slices. Layer them alternately in a buttered baking dish, seasoning the layers as you go and spreading a layer of yoghurt and cheese between each layer. Top with cheese and some small cubes of butter and pour the stock in carefully around the edges. Bake in a 180 ⁰C oven until well done and browning on top. Serves 4

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Morvino trade tasting at the Mount Nelson

This small trade tasting was held in the famous Ocean room at the Mount Nelson Hotel on Monday night and we had such fun catching up with the wines, and friends from wine farms we know and love. This was accompanied by good canapés made by the Mount Nelson kitchen, they did very good smoked salmon on melba toast and pulled pork rolls amongst others

Our beautiful Pink Lady, the Nellie - Cape Town's favourite name for the Five star Mount Nelson Hotel

A stand up tasting, with canapés floating past regularly

Bizoe, a new wine name for us, produces Henrietta, a Bordeaux style white blend which earned 4½ stars in the 2015 Platter

Louis Nel with his lady, Juané Profitt

Painted Wolf owner and winemaker Jeremy Borg with Mignon du Plessis of Pick n Pay

Dirk and Kirsten Roos from Mooiplaas in Bottelary, Dirk is now assistant winemaker with Louis Roos and they are also the talented cooks and organisers of their Langtafel lunches

Blaauwklippen showed not only their great selection of wines, including a reserve Zinfandel but two very excellent brandies

And their witty dessert wine called Before and After

Raymond Noppé CWM & winemaker Reg Holder from Delheim talking about their wines

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This Week's MENU - Caroline's Reds, Agri Wellington, De Grendel, Morvino & Vinimark tastings

A break in the storm. Looking across Wellington to the surrounding mountains

In this week’s MENU:

The Quest for the Best in Wellington

Caroline’s Red Wine Review

Sir de Villiers Graaff gives a look at the future of De Grendel Wine Estate

MORE, the Cook Book launch

Morvino Trade tasting

Vinimark and WineWorx Trade tasting

This week's recipe: Sweet Potato and Turnip Dauphinois

Coming events

Learn about wine and cooking

We write about our experiences in MENU, not only to entertain you, but to encourage you to visit the places and events that we do. We know you will enjoy them and we try to make each write up as graphic as we can, so you get a good picture of what is on offer at each place, restaurant, wine farm, festival we visit. To get the whole story with photographs, please click on “Read on.....” at the end of each paragraph, which will lead you to the related blog, with pictures and more words. At the end of each blog, click on RETURN TO MENU to come back to the blog version of MENU.

The Quest for the Best in Wellington Once a year Wellington Wine Route asks its wine farms to enter their wines in this competition to find the best wines that Wellington is producing. The Award ceremony was held last Wednesday at Au’ de Hex conference venue in Wellington and there were some surprises.

We also note that not all the wine farms in the area enter this competition. We think this is a mistake and would encourage them to rethink this next year. We like the fact that the competition is judged by some very experienced local and international Sommeliers who have an excellent insight into the requirements of the target market. We have attached Higgo Jacobs speech (He convened this panel) and the sommeliers' comments on the wines they tasted and also the list of winners.. Read On.....

Caroline’s Red Wine Review Caroline Rillema has a very good palate and a very good wine business. Once a year, she showcases her favourite red wines at her Red Wine Review and we were privileged to be invited this week. It was held at the Table Bay Hotel. There were some absolutely stunning wines in the list, in fact it is hard to mention any that were not special. She chooses her top 60 red wines, all of which must be at least Platter 4½ star or Old Mutual Trophy winners. This is the a superb opportunity to taste so many of the current top and iconic red wines of the country, at one tasting; wines that are not ever open for tasting, even on the farms. All for a ticket price which is less than the price of one of these bottles. Some farms bring their newly released wines to show and others bring vintage wines to taste. And you can book (through Computicket) for her White wine review on the 21st of October to taste 60 iconic white wines for R200. See our Events calendar. Read On.....

Sir de Villiers Graaff invites us for a look at the future of De Grendel Wine Estate Sir David Graaff, 3rd Baronet, passed away at home on the De Grendel family farm on Saturday, 24 January 2015, after a short illness. His son Sir de Villiers Graaff, is now the 4th Baronet and he invited the media to this event.

We know, when we visit De Grendel, that we are going to taste great wines. Charles Hopkins makes them and his care and attention to detail shows in each bottle. Their Koetshuis 2015 Sauvignon Blanc is one of our favourites and is crisp and full of all the lovely gooseberries, elderflower, green pepper and asparagus tastes we so enjoy in this varietal. We hear that our favourite blend The Winifred will have a small release this year to De Grendel’s wine club members only, and the 2012 Op die Berg Pinot Noir we tasted was a quintessential example full of smoky cherries and vanilla, gently perfumed with well integrated fruit but it needs time. They have completely changed the old tasting room into a comfortable lounge with those amazing views out over the sea to Table Mountain. The restaurant downstairs has also had some changes Read on.....

MORE, the Cook Book launch We were invited to the launch of this book on midday Saturday at Societi Bistro. Owner Pete Weetman had generously allowed them to take over lunchtime service of the restaurant and chef Stefan Marais made lovely snacks from the book. Author Sylvie Hurford has written this, her second cookbook for families with allergies. The focus is on feeding children, who do not yet have family allergies, food that will keep them free of those allergies that plague their families. The simple and delicious recipes are wonderfully showcased by photographer Warren Heath and book designer Petal Palmer Read On.....

Morvino Trade tasting This small trade tasting was held in the famous Ocean room at the Mount Nelson Hotel on Monday night and we had such fun catching up with the wines, and friends from wine farms we know and love. This was accompanied by good canapés made by the Mount Nelson kitchen, they did very good smoked salmon on melba toast and pulled pork rolls amongst others. Read On.....

Vinimark and WineWorx Trade tasting Vinimark and Wine Worx held their annual trade wine show on Monday evening at the Cape Town International Convention Centre. They have a superb list of French champagnes and distribute some of the best South African wines... Read on.....

This week's recipe

is Lynne's take on the Sweet Potato and Turnip Dauphinois we were served at the Quest for the Best Wellington wines . We had this with our roast lamb on Sunday.

1 large white sweet potato, peeled - 2 turnips, topped and tailed and peeled where necessary - 30 to 40g grated Emmenthal cheese - 4 T double cream yoghurt - salt and freshly ground pepper - 1 T butter - 3 T chicken or vegetable stock

Coming Events:

AUGUST

Friday, 7th August 7p.m for 7:30 p.m. Mediterranean Extravaganza at Erinvale Estate Hotel & Spa, a Mediterranean food and wine pairing extravaganza offered by Chaine des Rôtisseurs chef Ghenwa Steingaszner of GHENWA’S LEBANESE COOKING CLUB and Henry Kotze, cellar master of Morgenster Estate. The event will take place in the “Seventeen07” dining room and will feature intermittent entertainment provided by singer and musician Dara Steingaszner (daughter of chef Ghenwa). Cost: R 550 Space: limited to 35 Dress code: smart casual. Erinvale Hotel offers free parking and attractive special rates for guests wishing to stay for the night. For reservations & hotel bookings please contact Genine Bruce, Conference Coordinator at +27 21 847 1160 or conf@erinvale.co.za www.erinvale.co.za

Saturday, 8th August from 11h00 to 12h30 Ladies of Leisure at Le Bonheur. Join winemaker Lauren Behrens in celebrating Woman’s Day. Ladies are encouraged to arrive with a group of friends and enjoy a morning of wine and treats. Six wines will be paired with sweet and savoury delicacies at the magnificent Le Bonheur Manor House. The event costs R125 per person. Advanced booking is advised. Call 021 875 5478 or email info@lebonheur.co.za to make your booking now.

Saturday 8th August Barrel lunch at Beaumont Family Wines. Starting at 11:30 with a short demonstration by Sebastian on the art of pruning a vine and then heading back to the barrel cellar for a delicious lunch paired with Beaumont wines. Menu @ R410 per person Bookings & Contact hereontact

Sunday, 9th August 10h30 to around 15h00. Celebrating All Things Beautiful on Women’s Day at Nederburg. Meet new Nederburg cellar-master Andrea Freeborough for a luxurious ladies’ feast of the senses in the Winelands. Book your seats at R350 a head from Webtickets For additional information, please contact Nederburg on 021 877 5155, or send an e-mail to nedwines@distell.co.za.

Click here for details of more exciting events

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

The Hurst Campus, an accredited school for people who want to become professional chefs, has a variety of courses. See the details here

In addition to his Sense of Taste Culinary Arts School, Chef Peter Ayub runs a four module course for keen home cooks at his Maitland complex. Details here

Nadège Lepoittevin-Dasse has French cooking classes in Noordhoek 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

Nicolette van Niekerk runs baking courses at La Petite Patisserie in Montague Gardens

George Jardine will be running a series of winter cooking courses and other activities at Jordan. Details here

6th August 2015

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.

If you like the photographs you see in our publications, please look at our Adamastor Photo website for our rate card and samples from our portfolio

We apologise if MENU caused your phone to bleep in the early hours. To send to our huge list of subscribers takes a long time and many of them receive it in the middle of the night. Might we suggest that your phone should not be activated to receive messages from us or from other sources in the witching hours? If your boss needs to contact you at that time, (s)he’s intruding on your valuable personal time.

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.

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Vinimark and Wine Worx trade tasting at the CTICC

Vinimark and Wine Worx held their annual trade wine show on Monday evening at the Cape Town International Convention Centre. They have a superb list of French champagnes and distribute some of the best South African wines

A good place to start was with Ginette de Fleuriot CWM on the Champagne table

with Gosset, Ayama

and Bollinger, poured here by Carla Strydom

Jacques Bruwer showed his excellent MCCs. This Jeroboam is available to order for your special celebration

Carolyn and JC Martin were there to show their lovely wines from the Hemel en Aarde valley

and Wendy Appelbaum was there with Carl van der Merwe, her cellarmaster, to show off their superb De Morgenzon wines. Here, she pours the De Morgenzon Maestro red blend for Grootbos sommelier Eben Bezuidenhoud

A special treat was being able to taste from a magnum of 2005 De Morgenzon Chenin blanc,

made by Chenin guru Teddy Hall. Who says SA whites don't age well? This was our wine of the evening, from a selection of superb wines

French sommelier Denis Garret, seen here with cellarmaster Arco Laarman, was especially enthusiastic about Glen Carlou's Gravel Quarry 2009 Cabernet sauvignon