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Friday, November 30, 2018

The Magic of Bubbles. Wine Concepts' Champagne Festival at The Vineyard

Oh joy, it was time to taste real French Champagne this year at Wine Concepts' "Finer Things in Life” International Sparkling Wine & Champagne Affair Celebration at the Vineyard Hotel last Friday night.

No driving long distances into the winelands for 10 coupons, only to find that it will cost you five of them if you want a small taste of real Champagne, but the chance locally to taste all of the 34 different French champagnes and a few Cavas and Proseccos. And all this for a R500 ticket, which includes canapés and a champagne glass. Oh, and a free raffle based on the number on your ticket. You can take an Uber home without bankrupting yourself or, if you are feeling celebratory, take the Vineyards special offer of a room, dinner and breakfast..

Maryna Calow was having fun with her friend

First in the room, Bianca Brand showed us the Billecart-Salmon Champagne, imported by Ken Forrester. There were three to taste, all excellent. We had just had a licorice chocolate from the stand next door and are surprised and please to let you know that the Brut Rosé pairs very well with liquorice. Who knew?!

A very bling Italian Prosecco from Bottega. Matching glasses too

Have you tried Drappier Champagne?

A selection of marques from Reciprocal Trading, Champagnes Forget-Brimont and Jacquinot
and their Riedel wine glasses

Yes please! Lynne’s favourite of the evening

Lots of lovely Mumm Champagne, the Brut, the Cordon Rouge, the Rosé and the Demi-Sec. It seems that the younger generation loves semi-sweet bubbles. We grew up with them and are less keen. We had too many bottles of semi-sweet “Grandma's Socks” (a play on the name of inexpensive SA sparkler, Grand Mousseux) at every birthday, christening, bar mitzvah, wedding, anniversary or any excuse for a celebration. Give us lovely, dry and crisp bottle-fermented bubblies

Broadcaster at Magic AM, Guy McDonald was the MC for the evening

JP Colmant and Marina Synnott on the Champagne Tribaut table

Therèse and Alan Mullins (Woolworths wine buyer) and their driver getting some details about Lanson

Photographer Gavin Withers brought his own Riedel glass

Nice to see Piper Heidsieck this year. Their bubbly had quite a woody note,
not what one expects, but there are fans

On the Lanson table, you could taste...

the Brut, the White label demi sec (they tell us it is drier than some Bruts!?)
as well Louis Bouillot,a Brut Crémant from Burgundy

Mike Bampfield Duggan of Wine Concepts with Sarah Revell Marillier on the Vinimark table,
where she and Tracy James-Elphick showed Bollinger and Nicolas Feuillatte

Mike and his wife Renée

The Veuve Clicquot. Go big! It is always rather good

Guy McDonald ran the raffle while Maryna Calow drew the tickets

The oyster table was very popular. There were also two chocolate tables for tasting and purchasing

And a chance in the raffle to win a drive in one of these two beauties:

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'SA launch' wine & food-pairing dinner of Aristea wines at the Alphen Hotel, Constantia

An invitation from Matthew Krone to join him and taste the new release of his Aristea wines over dinner at the Alphen in Constantia. Aristea is a partnership of three friends who each already have their own wine brands/wine ventures and many years of accumulated winemaking experience. Their aim was to make exceptional South African wines that would reflect each of their individual identities and passion for wine, Matthew, a 12th generation winemaker from South Africa who sources the grapes and makes the wine, Martin Krajewski who is British and owns Clos Cantenac in St Emilion and in 2016 bought Château Séraphine in Pomerol and Frenchman Florent Dumeau, a renowned Burgundian winemaker, who has extensive experience of winemaking and vineyard management, as well as considerable expertise in France, Italy, Greece, Hungary, South Africa, Turkey, China and Serbia. Together, they strive to produce exceptional wines in the Cape that encapsulate the wild spirit and raw beauty of this wonderful land and that make people smile. For the full story, go to https://www.aristeawines.com/

We began the evening with the Aristea Méthode Cap Classique Blanc 2015,

a blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes

It has sophistication with brioche on the nose and some perfume, salty citrus with clean and fresh long flavours, with some minerality and a good mousse. It spends 3 years on the lees. A small portion of the Chardonnay spends some time in wood

Antique buildings in the The Alphen complex as the evening shadows lengthen at sunset

The restaurant is in this superb old Cape Dutch mansion

It is called blanko

Canapés of oysters were served with the bubbly. They came topped with red pepper, croutes

and gazpacho and, sadly, chopped raw onion, which masks the delicate flavour of the oyster

Matthew’s father, Nicky Krone, joined us for dinner. His father, NC Krone, made a very important contribution to the international wine industry, being the first winemaker in the world to implement cold, low temperature fermentation in his wine tanks. This revolutionised white wine production worldwide, and made it possible to make fresh-tasting, reductive white wines

Chatting in the lounge before dinner

Two squirrels on the wall outside surveying their territory!

Matthew tells us more about this vintage release. The wines are sold on allocation locally and in the UK, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. They only make small quantities of each wine, 6 000 bottles of each. Only a small portion (10%) of total production is kept back every year for sale in SA

Listening to the Aristea story

The Aristea wines

The menu was paired with the wines. We were very pleasantly surprised at the quality of the food, they must have a new chef. We have not always had great food at Blanko

We were in one of the small private dining rooms

The first wine was the White blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon. Matthew told us that some of the wine comes from part of a block rather than the whole block; they pay the best for the best fruit. The wine made such an impression on us that we made it our wine of the week in MENU last week. We can pay no better compliment to this wine than to say that, at the table, one person compared it to a Graves, another to a Haut Brion. It certainly is quite French in character, and very impressive. The grapes are from Elgin and they pay the best price for the best fruit. It isn’t a wine you want to pull apart and analyse; it is a full, well balanced, well integrated and layered wine, with beautiful golden stone fruit, good minerality, deliciousness and staying power. It is aged in wood for 10 months and the wood supports, not dominates.75% Sauvignon Blanc, 25% Semillon

It came with the amuse bouche of a perfectly grilled sweet but a little sandy, scallop topped with a pancetta crumb, with a pea purée and a lemon burnt butter. Wonderful pairing

With the starter, we had the Aristea Chardonnay. Beautiful fruit on the nose: golden loquats and greengage plums, whiffs of wood smoke and vanilla oak, sweet, spicy and well balanced with golden fruit on the long, long palate. This went amazingly well with the starter of beetroot carpaccio, dried beetroot chips, and baby beets topped with a creamy and delicate goat’s cheese mousse and killer candied walnuts which were an inspired addition. Neither of us is a fan of beetroot, but we can unreservedly say that this was the best we have ever eaten, and we were not alone around the table. The walnuts brought everything together

Next was the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon from four Stellenbosch producers in the Golden Triangle of Cabernet. Tension is the buzz word in red wines at the moment and this certainly has it. Rich cassis berries and cherries on the nose and palate with liquorice wood, perfume and incense. It needs time to settle and the good fruit acids will carry it forward for many a year. We had it with herb and crumb crusted lamb chops, fondant potato, and an 'exotic' mushroom and rich lamb jus

Dessert was difficult to photograph, as it was rather phallic in shape! A melting mascarpone Semi Freddo, filled with a raspberry gel, on a cocoa nib soil, with fresh strawberry slices and basil. Not the best course, but it went so well with the wonderfully fruity, candy pink Aristea Rosé MCC. It has whiffs of smoke and is full of lively strawberry and red berry flavours. 60% Chardonnay and 40% Pinot Noir left longer on the skins and this shows on the long flavours which delight. To enjoy all summer long. Thank you Matthew for sharing these lovely wines

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StreetSmart hands over R1 million in aid of Cape Town’s vulnerable children

Time for the Annual StreetSmart Cape Town Handover Event with Thank Yous to the restaurants, accommodation venues and wine tasting venues in the Western Cape, Garden Route, Gauteng and KZN, the volunteers, workers and the many other people who have contributed to the R1.7 million rand raised nationally this year. It is an amazing amount, raised by just adding R5 to your bill so, if you contribute, the Thank You is also for you. StreetSmart ensures that every cent donated by you goes towards social and educational upliftment projects for street children, helping them to rebuild their lives. StreetSmart raises its own funds for administration

Melanie Burke the Chairman of StreetSmart SA, which is a Non Profit organisation, told us that they are able to continue to expand their national footprint. R1.05 million was handed over to the Cape Town beneficiaries at this event raised by the 33 local establishments. And they will be disbursing over R1 million to beneficiaries nationally enabling them to support 35 programmes. And all from donations of R5 a time. She extended invitations to other restaurants, accommodation establishments and wine tasting venues to join StreetSmart in their local areas and become part of this great initiative. For information on how to make a donation or join the programme by emailing to info@streetsmartsa.org.za or visit ing www.streetsmartsa.org.za

Keynote speaker of the evening was broadcaster Africa Melane, whom many will know from Cape Talk and Radio 702. He was delighted to announce that he is committed to the work of StreetSmart and will be joining StreetSmart on their Board. He reminded us that President Mandela said that Street children are a testimony to an unfinished job. He said we have the best constitution and the best laws, but we are just not implementing them. Why are 100 000 of our children not going to school when we have compulsory education? Lots of money is spent on them later in life at higher education, but we need to spend it early, while they are young, to give them a future

Certificates are awarded to the top restaurants and venues. StreetSmart Cape Town has selected the following beneficiaries for 2019: Cape Town Multi Service Centre, Home from Home (Masiphumulele, Ocean View and Westlake), Learn to Live, Ons Plek, School of Hope, The Homestead, TLC Outreach Projects and Zip Zap Circus

and to volunteers for the work they have done

and to the staff

Retiring members of the Board were also given recognition and certificates. Margi Biggs on the Left is the founder of StreetSmart. It was set up by a group of concerned Capetonians under the patronage of Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu in 2005. Similar StreetSmart organisations also run independently in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the Netherlands. She retires from the Board this year as does Leonard Hersch. They were thanked for their invaluable contribution

And we heard from some of the children who have been helped by one of the organisations supported by StreetSmart. Their lives have been changed and improved by the work the organisations are doing

Angelo Casu, owner of Grand Dédale Country House and keen cyclist, has raised R30 000 with his partner by getting people to sponsor them riding the Cape Epic and other endurance races

Richard Chamberlain of Out of this Planet Catering donates the canapés to the event
and they were very good. Steak with spicy aioli on a crisp biscuit base

Vietnamese rice paper rolls with a noc nam dipping sauce

presented by willing and smiling servers

Wellington Wines had donated wine for the event and there were also soft drinks

Asian style spring rolls

Devils on Horseback, bacon wrapped prunes

and small crisp croquettes

Mini pies

with thanks to

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Saturday, November 24, 2018

This Week's MENU. Elim Wine Festival, Sauvignon-Semillon Blend & Wooded Sauvignon Report 2018, New Leeu Estates lunch menu, Christmas Chestnut or Butternut Stuffing, Aristea Sauvignon-Semillon

The road through the wheat fields, near Bredasdorp, Southern Cape

Black Friday! A great excuse to stay at home. We popped in, very briefly, to our local supermarket yesterday afternoon to pick up a few essentials and it was already a nightmare of aisles clogged with stacks of fizzy drinks and other products we never buy. Shop tomorrow. So here we are, to bring you news which is different from the bombardment of special offers which has been clogging your In Box. We’ve been having fun in the past week and will have a lot more in the short time that remains before we take a year-end break, relaxing at the seaside. So here’s our story…

The 2018 Elim Wine Festival

We were glad we could get to the annual Elim Wine Festival this year; it was an easy detour on our way home from Robertson. We love the area, but it is rather far from Cape Town. The day, thankfully, began with a bit of cloud, which kept the temperature down. The weather forecasts had been promising temperatures in the 40s; it stayed comfortable all day. It was held at Black Oystercatcher winery, which has a great spacious venue…

Sauvignon Blanc-Semillon Blend & Wooded Sauvignon Blanc Report 2018

An invitation to attend the WineMag awards for the sixth annual Sauvignon-Semillon Blend & Wooded Sauvignon Blanc Report, now sponsored by precision agriculture service provider Aerobotics. The awards were held at Uitkyk. It is always a joy to visit this marvellous example of Cape Georgian architecture, which is unique. Uitkyk has been bought…

The new lunch menu at the Leeu Estates manor house, Franschhoek

A lovely invitation to try the new Summer Menu at the Leeu Estates in Franschhoek had us beginning the experience with a glass of their Bas MCC. On arrival they take your keys and park your car for you. Head Chef Terence Morris came to tell us...

On the MENU this week. Christmas Chestnut or Butternut Stuffing

We have adapted our Christmas stuffing recipe for you this year as, sometimes, it is impossible to find chestnuts in South Africa. They do add a lovely texture and flavour and Lynne thinks that by substituting some cubed butternut, you might get a similar result. To get the nutty flavour, she has added 50 g of roasted pecan nuts, roughly chopped. Butternut shines when a grating of nutmeg is added so try that too. If you want some colour, add some dried cranberries. See the whole recipe here…

MENU’s Wine of the Week. Aristea 2017 Sauvignon Blanc Semillon Blend

Wine maker Matthew Krone does it again with his Aristea wines. We tasted the new release of wines over dinner at the Alphen last night and you will read about them next week, but his Sauvignon Semillon Blend is so good we had to list it this week. See it here…

23rd November 2018

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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. 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