.

Tuesday, August 08, 2017

Winemag Signature Red Blend Report 2017 Awards

Pinning down a butterfly

What are Signature reds as defined by the Wine Magazine judges? A blend certainly, but not a Bordeaux blend, nor a Cape Blend (containing Pinotage), although at least one of the winners did contain Pinotage. The criteria are "those wines which are distinctive of their originators" and "those which draw particular attention in the market place". They think that "Perhaps the Rhône is a better reference point given local growing conditions" and given the effects already being shown by global warming and the current drought, we tend to agree

So it was with some interest and a feeling of exploration that we attended the awards ceremony last week, which is always followed by a tasting of the winners

The venue for these awards was Stuzzico on Bree Street

And the room was filled with well known and respected winemakers. Here are Carl van der Merwe of De Morgenzon and Tyrrel Myburgh of Joostenberg

Judge Roland Peens with André Morgenthal. Andre is working on a project identifying old heritage vineyards in South Africa. We hope many will be able to be preserved, many are sadly disappearing under the plough and new crops

Photographer Danie Nel chatting to Jean-Claude Martin of Creation

Christian Eedes, Editor of WineMag.co.za and Chairman of the judges. He says it is essential that we promote South African red blends overseas, not necessarily Cape Blends, it is what we make so well. The judges use the 100 point scoring system and taste blind. There were 82 entries from 62 producers received this year. The judges found many wines sweet, and questioned whether winemakers are leaving some sweetness to appeal to the market? Are there problems with fermentation, are alcohols killing off the yeasts ? There were some with intense reduction flaws, premature oxidation, and lack of precision. The wines they liked were lighter, fresher, drier, more Southern Rhone whole bunch fermented. Roland Peens said it is important not to let wood dominate. Our comment is what really constitutes an SA Blend? It is as difficult as trying to pin down a butterfly.

Winemag business manager Jacqueline Lahoud announced the awards

Christian gave out the certificates

Broadcaster Guy MacDonald with Winemag Director Derek Prout-Jones

Waiting to hear who won. There was a lot of variation in the entries, as expected with the huge range of varietals in the blends. All of the wines were indeed worthy of awards. Three of the top four wines were more elegant and restrained, as we have come to expect from these judges. Many in the room were appreciating many of the lower scoring but more African, warmer, riper fruit wines

The list of the winners with the points they scored

92
Joostenberg Bakermat 2015
Price: R186

Newton Johnson Granum 2015
Price: R273

Olifantsberg Silhouette 2013
Price: R195

Vrede en Lust Artisan Range Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon 2013
Price: R139

91
Creation Syrah Grenache 2015
Price: R190

De Morgenzon Maestro Blue 2015
Price: R200

Eikendal Charisma 2015
Price: R104

Guardian Peak Summit 2014
Price: R160

Luddite Saboteur Red 2015
Price: R250

Opstal Carl Everson Cape Blend 2015
Price: R175

Rust en Vrede 1694 2014
Price: R1 300

Vondeling Erica 2014
Price: R195

90
Fairview Extraño 2013
Price: R100

Haskell II 2013
Price: R180

Haut Espoir Gentle Giant 2012
Price: R90

Le Riche Richesse 2015
Price: R140

Orange River Cellars Lyra Vega 2015
Price: R95

Spier Creative Block 8 2014
Price: R159

Stellenbosch Vineyards Credo Shiraz Merlot Viognier 2014
Price: R149

Warwick Three Cape Ladies 2013

Extraño, a Coastal blend from winemaker Anthony de Jager at Fairview, a blend of 73% Tempranillo, 14% Grenache Noir , 13% Carignan. 90 points. Rich, spicy, warm, YES

Haute Espoir 2012 Gentle Giant gives a nod to their winemaker Rob Armstrong, who is rather a large and very friendly man. The wine is a blend of 55% Merlot; 23% Cab Sauvignon; 16% Tannat; 6% Cabernet Franc. 90 Points, The wine is somewhat wild, warm and full

Some canapés, tomato bruschetta topped with mozzarella and basil

Le Riche 2014 Richesse, a complex and layered blend of 27% Cabernet Sauvignon,24% Merlot, 18% Petit Verdot, 13% Cabernet Franc, 12% Cinsaut, 6% Malbec. 90 points

Spier 2014 Block 8 is a Cape blend of 8 varieties include Pinotage, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Shiraz, Petit Verdot, Cinsaut, Cabernet Franc and Malbec. 90 points Complex, spicy, dark

Warwick 2013 Three Cape Ladies, one of the more mature wines, a blend of 50% Pinotage, 34% Shiraz, and 16% Cabernet. 90 points. Good fruit, nice length, warm and spicy

Truffled cheese bruschetta

Creation 2015 Syrah Grenache, always one we favour, it is an 80/20 blend, with the Grenache adding such character and depth, great fruit and a little wildness. 91 points

De Morgenzon Maestro Blue 2015, another addition to their Maestro label. A blend of 44% Grenache Noir, 29% Mourvèdre, 21% Syrah, 6% Petite Syrah. 91 points This wine takes you straight to the Rhône

Eikendal's 2014 Charisma is an unusual blend of Shiraz 61%, Petit Verdot 27%, Sangiovese 12%, rather southern European in character. 91 points. Spice and leather, dive in nose, the Petite Verdot shines

The best canapé of the afternoon and we reckon worth returning to the bar for more, (and we have eaten almost no pasta for three years, was the blue cheese cappelletti. It so enhanced the wines

Guardian Peak 2014 Summit, a blend of Syrah 66%, Mourvèdre 25%, Grenache 9%. 91 points. Another full of rich spicy fruit

2015 Saboteur from Luddite, always extraordinary, usually a blend of Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Mourvèdre. 91 Points

Carl Everson 2015 Cape Blend from Opstal. Winemaker Attie Louw is famed for his excellent Chenin; now he can also boast about his Cape Blend, an equal blend of Cabernet, Shiraz and Pinotage. 91 Points. Perfumed, chalky tannins, soft sweet fruit

Rare sliced steak on a rich mash, but somehow it tasted burnt? Did the flame grill go too far?

From Matthew Copeland at Vondeling, his enjoyable 2014 Erica, a blend of 73% Shiraz, 12% Mourvèdre, 7% Grenache, 5% Carignan, 3% Viognier. 91 Points. Complex nose and palate, warm linen

Rust en Vrede's 2014 version of 1694, a straight blend of 56% Shiraz, 44% Cabernet Sauvignon. 91 points. Warmer, fruitier mellower

Two different arancini risotto balls, one flavoured with beetroot - bright pink inside and the other more conventional. Crisp outside and gooey inside, but with little flavour and we couldn't find any cheese inside

Joostenberg's 2015 Bakermat, a blend of 38% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Syrah, 12% Merlot , 12% Touriga Nacional, which got it 92 points. Vanilla wood, silky on the palate, impressive

Newton Johnson's 2015 Granum, very elegant and sophisticated, this is a blend of Syrah with some Mourvedre. 92 points. Fresh, wild and in the dryer style the judges prefer

Olifantsberg 2013 Silhouette took many people by surprise. This is not a wine from the Olifants river area, but a farm near Worcester. This wine is a blend of Syrah, Grenache, Carignan and Mourvèdre. 92 Points Perfume of violets, and also fresher in style

Vrede en Lust 2013 Artisan Range a blend of Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon. 92 Points. A perfect nose, perfumed fruit and fresh in style

Attie Louw of Opstal, Nico Grobler of Eikendal and Roland Peens of The Wine Cellar

RETURN TO MENU

Subscribe to MENU

Breakfast at Truth Coffee, Cape Town

Truth Counts

So, where next to go for breakfast? Lynne asked on a Facebook food site she belongs to. Several suggestions popped up, some of which we have already visited, some were out of town and some stood out. On checking on Trip Advisor and the menu on line, we settled for David Donde's Steampunk Coffee House in Buitenkant Street in town. And we were not disappointed

No bookings allowed, it's a first come, first served coffee house, with food. We visited a year or two ago when David installed Colossus, his vintage Probat coffee roaster and did a media launch. He is one of the people who has done a great deal to introduce Cape Town to the international coffee culture. Who can remember when all you were served was a cup of awful instant in most places? We have been meaning to return and did so at 9 am last Saturday morning. And yes, we are coffee snobs, grinding our beans at home

The quirky outfits worn by the staff are amusing and fun. This is the friendly and welcoming doorman with his staff and medals

Decoration is industrial madness with some bygones and lots of functional installations. Comfort is not a great factor, but then it is a coffee house

People come first for the excellent coffee and to chill and chat and perhaps eat something. Newspapers and laptops are allowed. 7 am to 6 pm and 8 am to 2 pm at weekends. Lots of friendly attentive staff

The first coffee of the day is always welcome. They don't serve cappuccino, this is their flat white

The coffee roaster in its protective cage. It's a bit chaotic and less untidy than first appearances lead you to believe, but it all adds to the charm and difference of this place

You can do a coffee tasting before you buy coffee to drink there or take home to brew. And they do Barista courses

We were celebrating, so took a bottle of Prosecca which they allowed us to enjoy with our breakfast. Corkage is R40 a bottle

We were seated in one of the comfortable u-shaped banquette alcoves next to the service bar

A knight in shining armour....

...no, a sugar dispenser

Steam punk blimp with cogs

Interesting plumbing

And some wicked cakes and desserts to tempt. The coffee is excellent, strong, hot and full of flavours. We had the Vengeance Americanos, and some had two each. R18 is good value

Shakshuka for our veggie friend, nice and spicy and served with good sourdough bread. Its on the All Day menu. A snip at R47

Who can resist truffled infused scrambled eggs topped with mushrooms and rocket on sourdough. Truly Funky at R74

Lynne decided to go for something she has not had for quite a while, a Croque Monsieur with Bayonne ham, an excellent béchamel and Swiss Gruyère cheese. You can taste the difference; it is so important to use the right ingredients. It was very good and very satisfying. But not sure what the onion marmalade was doing there.... She did move it to the side. The dish is served on a small salad of leaves, apple and walnuts, a nice counterpoint to a fairly substantial sandwich, R90 on the all day menu

John, who had had an awful cold all week, went down the "Feed Me Carbs!" route, unusual for him but necessary for his recovery. He had the French Toast. This was no ordinary French Toast but croissants dipped in their homemade eggnog and fried till crisp on the outside, squidgy soft inside, and topped with banana, bacon and rum and vanilla syrup. Sensational, we all wanted some and just right for a recovering invalid. R68, plus the bacon is an added extra at R15 a portion. Very happy bunnies. Our sort of place

RETURN TO MENU

Subscribe to MENU

Wednesday, August 02, 2017

This Week’s MENU. Vriesenhof at Auslese, Rhebokskloof, Bellevue, Sommeliers’ Awards, Muratie Flavours of Winter

Winter rain brings green to the landscape

After a fairly slow period in the middle of winter, the pace of events is accelerating and we are having to juggle the pages of the diary to fit in the things we want to do, in addition to the invitations we receive. This week we tell the story of several wine events in different environments, all of them enjoyable and interesting in their different ways

Vriesenhof at Auslese

Rhebokskloof Wine Club dinner

An impressive tasting of Bellevue Wines

The Sommeliers Selection Wine List Awards

Muratie Winter Festival with some great ports

MENU's Wine of the Week. Bellevue Cinsaut 2015

What's on the Menu this week? Babi Ketjap

Vriesenhof at Auslese

An invitation this week to attend a tasting of Vriesenhof wines at Auslese, with the wines paired with food prepared in Chef Harald Bresselschmidt's kitchen sounded really exciting. He is rather good at this

Rhebokskloof Wine Club dinner

We had an invitation from Rhebokskloof to join them for a tasting of their new releases, followed by dinner. The event was an opportunity to thank their loyal customers, who are the highest purchasing members of their Loyalty Club

We don't drive home in the dark after events like this, so we booked an AirBnB room in Paarl on what must have been one of the coldest nights of the year! Cellar tasting and dinner....

An impressive tasting of Bellevue Wines

We have not visited Bellevue wine farm in Bottelary for a while. John does take wine tours there to taste the superb Pinotages; it was where the original commercial plantings of Professor A. I. Perold's Pinotage were made in the early 1950s. The first Pinotage, made and bottled by P K Morkel was grown on Bellevue. Pinotage is a cross of Cinsaut and Pinot Noir and is a truly South African grape. Dirkie Morkel saw our write up of Kaapzicht and invited us to come to the farm to taste some wine. So, as we were in the area after our dinner at Rhebokskloof, we made a date for 11 am the next day...

The Sommeliers Selection Wine List Awards

These annual awards of places in the coveted Sommeliers Wine list are now in their 3rd year. The ceremony, attended by representatives of many wine farms and the media, were held in the beautiful Hofmeyr Hall in Stellenbosch. The sommeliers, who chose the wines, do not categorise wines by cultivar on the list, rather grouping them into flavour and economical categories....

Muratie Winter Festival with some great ports

When we are invited to something at Muratie, we go. They are authentic; they really know how to arrange a good day of tasting wine and great food, very good company and feeling relaxed. And there is some good music. They want you to have a great time and you do. This time it was their winter festival which incorporated a mini Port festival....

MENU's Wine of the Week. Bellevue Cinsaut 2015

This once popular grape, used in a blend in many older South African wines, is now being credited with their longevity. On its own, it is getting a lot of attention as old vineyards are being found and exploited at last by many of the younger winemakers who are producing such interesting wines. So the grape is now rather fashionable

Bellevue has using it in blends for a long time, but has been making it as a single varietal wine for just a couple of years. It is dusty on the nose, but shows lovely raspberry and strawberry flavours and is long and soft, not harsh and tannic as some we have experienced. We think this wine has a potential to age too. R70 a bottle on the farm is great value. We bought a case

What's on the Menu this week? Babi Ketjap

This is an Indonesian dish, often seen as part of a Rijsttafel. But it is easy to make and tastes delicious. It uses pork, which is cheaper than most other meats at the moment. I don't know if you can use beef, but I don't see why not

2 onions, finely chopped -3 t coconut oil or peanut oil - 600g lean pork (steak, chops or leg meat) - 1 t ground coriander - 1 t ground cumin - 1/2 t chilli, fresh or powdered - 1 t fresh grated ginger - 2 cloves of garlic, chopped - 2 t tamarind paste - 3/400 ml chicken stock - 5 T Ketjap Manis (sweetened soy sauce from Indonesia) - 1 t rice wine vinegar - Salt & pepper

Finely chop the onions. Cut the meat into bite sized pieces. In a casserole with a lid, fry the onions in the oil. Add the meat and brown on all sides. Add the spices and the tamarind, ginger and garlic. Stir in the stock, Ketjap Manis, and vinegar

Cover with enough stock to cover the meat and bring to the boil. Turn down and simmer for 2 to 3 hours on a low heat. Do check and give it a stir regularly, the sauce will thicken considerably to a nice dark syrupy consistency. Taste, and season with salt and pepper. Serve on simple boiled rice, with a salad, and sprinkle with roasted peanuts and coconut flakes

2nd August 2017

RETURN TO MENU

Subscribe to MENU

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

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

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.

What's on the Menu this week? Babi Ketjap

RETURN TO MENU

Subscribe to MENU

MENU's Wine of the Week. Bellevue Cinsaut 2015

RETURN TO MENU

Subscribe to MENU

The Muratie Flavours of Winter Festival

Could this be the first sign of spring? On our way in to the farm, there was a hillside full of what we first thought was canola/rape but, when we came closer, it was that wonderful acid yellow of oxalis that the recent berg wind conditions had brought into bloom. The same road we drove down earlier in the week, the Kromme Rhee Pad, suddenly has spring flowers along it. The oaks on Muratie are trying valiantly to put out some leaves and Signal Hill in Cape Town is swathed in a velvet cape of spring green from the recent rains

Just inside the winery this duo was making sweet music

Inside the cellar were the Calitzdorp farms. De Krans were showing their range of wines and ports, all four and a half and five stars (their Cape Vintage Reserve) in Platter and so well deserved

Also here were Peter and Yvonne Bayly with their exciting wines made from Touriga Nacional and Tinta Barocca and their ports, especially the White Port which is dry, rather like a sherry with nuts and full on raisins, were receiving great attention. Next to them, Margaux Nel and Leon Coetzee were serving tastings of the Boplaas range. Margaux is getting a solid reputation and winning lots of awards for her wines and ports. Her innovative approach to making these is gaining a lot or respect in the industry.

Muratie sales manager Michelle Stewart was enjoying the ports

Nothing nicer on a cold day than a good glass of port, white, tawny or Late Bottled vintage

Margaux pours a tasting of port

We rather liked this T-shirt - the message of the moment in SA!

Axe Hill ports too were on show but owner Mike Neebe was away travelling

Annemie and Mark were doing a great job showing the Axe Hill ports and wine, always good. These also win wine awards and are worth squirreling away as they last very well

And at the end of the cellar, there were tables to sit and enjoy some wine, port or one of the many dishes on offer in the restaurant

We also enjoyed tasting the two Louisenhof ports, especially the interestingly bottled Perroquet Cape Tawny Port made from Tinta Barocca with the fermentation stopped with an aged brandy; and the Delaire on the busy table opposite. Delaire's 2014 Cape vintage had a rich black velvet nose, with flavours of stout, wood and cherries, some nice chalky tannins with walnuts, spice, cumin and ginger

Time to have some lunch and tables were set outside in the sun, with braziers burning in case of cold. It was very pleasant

"Jy? Ja jong en julle?" says owner Rijk Melck to John. "Come and taste some wine!" offering us a glass or two of Muratie's great white blend Laurens Campher, mainly Chenin with Sauvignon Blanc, Verdelho and Viognier

Lynne asked Rijk if he was planting more dry land southern grapes to take account of our drought circumstances and global warming changing the vineyards and he already has. He already has Viognier, Chenin and the Verdelho but is planting Grenache, Mourvedre and Petite Verdot

Michelle was organising wine for the media table. We were all given vouchers for a lunch dish and a drink

One of the farm's dogs needed a quiet moment in the bushes; he was feeling a bit grumpy

And Rijk was taking some time off to enjoy the day

Joined for a brief while by Kim, his wife, who had been very busy in the kitchen

She certainly had cooked up a storm. We had a wonderful bone sucking Cape Malay mutton curry

Another lovely day in the winelands

RETURN TO MENU

Subscribe to MENU

About us

MENU, our weekly email newsletter, started as an advertising medium for Main Ingredient, our specialist retail grocery business. We opened our Sea Point shop in December 2002 because realised that there was a place in South Africa for a grocer catering to people with sophisticated tastes and needs. We moved the shop on line in 2010, but discontinued it in 2015, having decided that it is time to “retire” and concentrate on our writing, photography and tour guiding. MENU has a wide circulation and is read nationally and internationally.

Subscribe to MENU