A day in Hermanus

Off to the seaside again – a stay in Hermanus

We left Franschhoek late afternoon and headed over the magnificently heady Franschhoek pass to Hermanus via the very full Theewaterskloof Dam. We had been lent a lovely spacious and modern flat on the coast in Hermanus and were amazed to see that we were right on the rocks overlooking the bay and we could see many whales cavorting from the large glass windows. This was to be our home for the next two nights

The view of the southern tip of Africa in the distance on arrival early evening from the flat

We celebrated with a glass of Creation's terrific Sauvignon Semillon blend. Crisp, citrussy, with good minerality and delicious

Sunrise the next morning

The misty mountains

It is Arum time in the Cape Spring. They grow everywhere on the coast and are indigenous

Whales were everywhere in the bay. This one is flashing its tail

Pods of dolphins too

Lots of gulls

A very barnacled head on a Southern Right whale

We saw a mother and baby cruising and blowing in the bay every morning

Honestly, some people have absolutely no idea about how to promote themselves. We decided, on Tuesday, to go and see some of the wine farms in Stanford that we have never visited before. Almost there, we saw an impressive set of gates with a very small dilapidated sign saying wine tasting. But there was no name on the gate. It turns out it was Misty Cliffs who had their signage stolen a while ago. We were welcomed by Angela Kies in the tasting room, who gave us a tasting of their three wines, two Shirazes and one Pinotage, made by consultant winemaker Philip Costandius, who is now at Oldenburg in Banhoek. “No, they have not been busy” she said. With no signage outside, we are not surprised that everyone is driving right past. 

It got worse. We could not find a tasting room on the Robert Stanford farm despite driving all over the estate looking for one and any signage and nearly took a road over a very rickety wooden footbridge that would not have held our car. There is building going on, so perhaps they are closed for a while. We left and then proceeded to Stanford Hills next door. You turn off the main road onto a smaller road and drive at least a kilometre to the small winery. It was lunch time and we were spurred on by the thought of the memorable pork pie they serve, mentioned by Christian Eedes in the Platter guide. When we reached it, we discovered that they are only open Thursdays to Mondays. It was Tuesday. We really would have appreciated this information at the turning from the main road. So it was not a successful trip to taste Stanford wines.

Trying the wines in the tasting room at Misty Cliffs winery in Stanford

One day this might become a restaurant

Their labels

Angela Kies was very helpful, knowledgeable and did a very professional tasting for us

A huge conference of white-faced coots on the Prawn Flats

The tide beginning to go out on the flats on the Stanford estuary

Flamingos  in the distance on the edge of the estuary

Cormorants watching the water

And a tiny abandoned 6 week old (approx.) kitten living on the side of the slipway. We fed it some ham and sausage and it was ravenous. We did report it to Animal Welfare who said they would go and rescue it.

We headed back into Hermanus to find some lunch. Lynne had met the owner of Bientang’s Cave the previous day at Creation so we decided to give it a try. And we were very pleasantly surprised

A lovely close up of a whale from the deck at Bientang’s Cave

This is just next to the old harbour in town

Steep steps down (And up later!)

A view from above of the terrace

Not too daunting

We think these far tables must be the ones for the smokers! They should be

They ring a bell every time someone spots a whale in the bay

Specials of the day

John’s portion of Hake and Chips. Rather a small portion for the cost but very fresh and good

Lynne opted for the Bouillabaisse  and it was delicious and very good value at R95. Two huge prawns on top, and in the soup mussels, calamari, smaller prawns and fish in a light tomato fish/seafood broth

They charge R50 a bottle for Bring your Own Wine and this is one of our current favourites,  a Chardonnay made by David Finlayson at Edgebaston

More cormorants

The Bar at Bientang’s Cave

A last look at Walker Bay before the long road home 

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© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2014

Craig Cormack's Pasta and Pizza menu at Allée Bleue

On Sunday we packed up our overnight bags and headed first to Allée Bleue wine farm in Franschhoek, to which we had been invited to sample Craig Cormack’s pop-up month of Pizza and Pasta for September. It was the most beautiful day and we were given a lovely table on a small balcony apart from the main restaurant, with a view of the vineyards

The manor house with the Franschhoek mountains in the distance

The Restaurant

The shaded terrace part of the restaurant

One of the conference rooms being dressed for a conference on Monday morning

Our table for two on the side of the main terrace

There was lovely bird life in the garden below. This is a bulbul

Bud-break on the vines and all the lovely spring greens of the vines and the trees

The flowering aloe on the side of the stream was a haven for many malachite sunbirds

Our welcoming drink of Allee Bleue Rosé bubbly had been doctored with some Chambord raspberry liqueur. The jury is out on that one. Perhaps better without?

Taking a sip

The highest mountain in the Cape, the Witzenberg in Ceres, is almost another table mountain. When we get snow on the mountain tops in winter, this is the mountain it settles on and it can be seen from the city.

The menu with a small selection of Pizza and Pasta

First came two hot herb rolls with a tomato pesto, a basil pesto and a red pepper pesto.

Then they bring the salad bar, where you get to mix and choose your own salad greens and herbs all from the farms herb gardens. Allée Bleue supplies fresh herbs to most of the restaurants and supermarkets in the Cape

John’s choice was the bacon, chorizo, Parma ham, brie pizza topped with caramelised onions and Dijon mustard and a red wine reduction. This was served with a glass of Allée Bleue Cabernet Merlot 2012

Lynne’s choice was the fried polenta gnocchi with fried sage leaves, mushrooms, mushroom puree and foam and a tiny touch of truffle oil. This was served with Allée Bleue’s very good Flagship white wine, Isabeau 2012, a blend of Semillon, Chardonnay and a little viognier.

We asked for one serving of the baked cheesecake topped with cranberries to share and got a whopping piece, enough for 3 of us!

Look who we found dining there that day!  Geoff and Lynn Grier of Villiera who were great company during an enjoyable lunch

The chef who made our lunch, Ian Laubscher

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© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2014