Tuesday, July 12, 2016

Mimosa Lodge, Montagu

Off to Montagu with the wine lovers

Once a year Lynne organises a trip to some part of our rich Cape winelands for members of our wine club the Oenophiles. Last year we stayed at Laborie’s in Paarl, the previous year we were in Wellington at Dunston and this year we ventured to Montagu to stay at Mimosa Lodge. Montagu has lots of good accommodation but, nowadays, not so much wine, so the weekend featured some trips through the pass to Robertson and Bonnievale. Montagu is a lovely old country town filled with beautifully restored houses and lots of pub restaurants
We travelled down during the day and made a couple of stop along the way, other members did the same, and others came after work and arrived on Friday evening. Mimosa Lodge is well known and is owned by much awarded chef Bernard Hess and his wife Fida. They were overseas this month, but we were well taken care of by their enthusiastic staff
The original part of the hotel has the service parts of the hotel on the ground floor and several rooms off the top balcony
We booked an ordinary room but were given this rather dark garden room instead
It is a very long room, with a cavernous tiled bathroom, rather retro
With this small seating area on the side. The weather during the day was lovely and sunny but the nights were very, very cold
We did sit out in the garden on arrival and enjoyed the late afternoon light. Montagu was in the grip of a day-long power cut but, luckily, it came back on at about 7.30pm and we were not troubled again during the weekend
Late afternoon in the garden
The swimming pool, but not at all tempting in the middle of winter
An owl carving
One of the other garden cottages
Lynne was entranced by this very tame olive thrush
Warming ourselves in the bar in front of the roaring fire, so appreciated
Gathering for the welcome Muscadel cocktail ,we moved on to some bottles of De Wetshof Bon Vallon, their crisp and delicious unwooded chardonnay
Soft early morning light on Church Street, from one end ...
... to the hotel ...
.... to church at the other end
Some of the newer garden rooms
Another part of the garden
An aloe garden, very suitable in the Karoo
Another of the garden cottages
has its own plunge pool and hammock
Dietes grandiflora, our local indigenous iris
First down to breakfast. There were 15 members of the club, so we had our own long table
Besides a cooked breakfast, there were lots of the usual options
All the art is for sale
With the omelette came a really good venison sausage
Lynne had one on her conventional bacon and eggs
On Saturday night we all opted for the four course menu paired with the Mimosa House wines. It costs R450 pp
The first course was a puree of peas with a parmesan crisp, small tomatoes and balsamic reduction
Then a hot spicy and sharp tomato soup with rather a lot of fenugreek
Small duck breasts in a very savoury gravy with pommes puree and some vegetables
Dessert was a whipped mousse on macerated and fresh strawberries
© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2016

Lunch at Melissa's, Du ToitsKloof winery; Ye Olde Tavern, Montagu

The trip to Montagu takes about 2 to 2½ hours and we wanted to stop along the way at Du Toitskloof winery near Rawsonville to buy some of their Nebbiolo, an Italian grape that produces wildness and richness in this cherry and spice supple red wine. It was also a chance to stop for some lunch
Next door to the winery is a branch of Melissa's
There was a staff lunch taking place
We spotted this (new to us) craft beer on the menu and decided to order it for lunch. Its hoppy and robust, rather similar to a good English Bitter and we enjoyed it. Very good value, too, at R25 for 440ml
If you are a fan of Melissa's you will find a familiar menu and most of the normal Melissa products, with a few others which are produced locally. We sat at the table in front of the fire
Lynne opted for the smoked salmon and cream cheese open sandwich on toasted rye, which came rather swamped with a tomato and raw onion salsa. A crime in her eyes was the raw onion, as it completely overtakes the delicate salmon, and it can make one burp for hours afterwards. The avocado was an optional addition
John ordered a pizza with caramelised onion, avocado, rocket and crispy bacon. Our bill was R200 with service.
After we had checked in at Mimosa House, the group moved just across the road to the local Pub restaurant, Ye Olde Tavern
We had reserved a table for 15 and even though they had a power cut all day long, they were ready for us with a very wide menu
They had a special of the day which was this beef pie with chips, and creamed spinach for R89. If you gave up the chips and spinach you could have a plate of soup and follow that with Malva pudding. Most people including John, just went for the pie, with the chips and spinach. Others had lamb shanks and we drank some local, inexpensive red wines, not all of which were great. Everyone enjoyed the food and the ambience and the staff were amazing sorting out our complicated bills at the end for which we are very grateful. It was a very busy evening for them. We got the feeling it usually is as this place is popular
Lynne chose the sticky pork spare ribs which were a bit mixed. Some of the ribs were succulent, others dried out and sadly overcooked. Perhaps the power cut was to blame? The sauce was very good. This came with onion rings which she donated to others at the table, and creamed spinach
And then we walked back across the road, lit by the street lights, to bed
 It was indeed a very cold moonlight night. We slept like logs
© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2016

Friday, July 08, 2016

This Week’s MENU. Vietnamese village, Hanoi, Leaving Vietnam, Anatoli, Cecilia Forest walk, Den Anker, De Wetshof Limestone Hill at Charango

MENU
The weekly Cape Food, Wine and Lifestyle E-Journal
A kelp gull in a Sea Point winter storm
Another exceptionally cold week, but with cloudy days and not enough rain to make a significant difference to our water supply. This weekend, we’ll be in Montagu and Robertson with our wine club friends. It will be very cold but we are looking forward to the warmth of companionship and Robertson hospitality  
@MyVoiceMap Elfin Trail in the Cecilia Forest with TravelMassive     A walk with the fairies and elves and one was dwarfed. We are members of Travel Massive an international travel networking organisation and were asked if we would like to go on a walk through Cecilia Forest one Saturday afternoon. We don't often do walks these day, we have both done a fair amount in the past and love them but time and work has taken its toll.
You take your phone on the walks and download the software from VoiceMap. There is a charge, which can see on their website. Then on the walk GPS triggers a commentary that tells you about your surroundings and gives directions. You need an iPhone or an Android phone. We have Windows phones, so an Android phone was provided to us for the walk. It was very interesting. And for Lynne, a bit challenging. VoiceMap walks can be done all over South Africa and internationally too. Some are in the country or seaside, others are city walks. Check out their website on https://voicemap.me/
Turkish meze and atmosphere at Anatoli, Cape Town      We have been meaning to go back to Anatoli for literally years. This Turkish restaurant in Napier Street in Green Point has been open since 1984 which goes to show if you have a good formula and do excellent food, you can survive that long, which not many Cape Town restaurants can say. We had been yearning for some Turkish food and had a great time with our friends.
Lunch with the Winter Specials menu at Den Anker, V&A Waterfront      We had to postpone Father's Day this year because daughter Claire had flu and this meant we were able to take her with us to Den Anker the following Sunday where they had invited us to come and sample their winter menu. This is another great and worthy restaurant having been in the V & Waterfront for 21 years. They have one of the best locations there too and a great international menu as well as local specialities.
De Wetshof Limestone Hill Chardonnay with lunch at Charango Peruvian Bar and Grill, Cape Town      This was the release of the 2016 vintage of Limestone Hill, De Wetshof's unwooded easy drinking Chardonnay from the De Wetshof stable of 6 different Chardonnays. Charango is in4 Bree Street so we took the bus and enjoyed the welcome Pisco sour. Then over lunch we discovered that Limestone Hill is the perfect wine to go with all sorts of different foods, heat levels and tastes. And great to quaff.
MENU goes East - Leaving Ha Long Bay, a visit to a Vietnamese village     On our way back to Hanoi, we were taken to a village to see the traditional Water Puppets. We also opted to take another tour to see how people of the village live and farm.  It's a small village, quite middle class and very clean, especially when compared with the streets of Hanoi. We finished the day with a meal which we helped to make. A lovely experience
MENU goes East – In a Vietnamese village; a visit to a home and supper with a family      Our Vietnamese Odyssey came to its close with a family meal in the country. We finished the day in the village, visiting an historic house and then enjoyed a delicious meal, which we helped to make. A lovely experience
MENU goes East - and comes South West. Last day in Hanoi and home to Cape Town     Then, our last day in hot and steamy Hanoi, where the Monsoon was heralding its arrival. We had our last taste of the street life and street food, the night market and a one in 90 million chance encounter. Then we began the arduous 37 hour trip back home
Recipe of the week - Jalapeno and Peppadew Dip      A new dip was needed for entertaining; we found we were becoming a bit staid. Lynne had a pot of Mascarpone cheese and a cupboard filled with pickles, relishes, chutneys and flavours. This is what she made. Use as many peppers as you like, according to your own and your guests’ taste preference or heat tolerance. The brand we used for both was Peppadew's bottled peppers, but there are others on the market
250g pot of Mascarpone cheese - 3 mild or spicy Jalapeno peppers - 1 or 2 mild or spicy Peppadew peppers - 1 t pickle juice from the Jalapeno jar - salt
Roughly chop the two kinds of pepper. Put all the ingredients into a liquidiser or a deep container and, if using your stick blender, blitz them all together. Do not do this for too long or the cheese will turn to butter. Use the juice from the Jalapenos and/or Peppadews to make it a little more liquid, but do not add too much. Taste and add more peppers if you think it needs it. Add salt as necessary too. It doesn't matter if you have bits of the peppers in the dip. Serve with Banting crackers, corn chips or hot Panini rolls. It goes nicely alongside some guacamole
Wine of the week. De Wetshof Limestone Hill Chardonnay This clean crisp unwooded Chardonnay, full of limes, apples, lemons and good minerality is a superb food wine. It goes with delicate dishes and those that are more robust, rich and spicy. The 2016, just released, sells for R97 from the farm





7th July 2016
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
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.

Thursday, July 07, 2016

MENU's Wine of the week. De Wetshof Limestone Hill Chardonnay 2016

This clean crisp unwooded Chardonnay, full of limes, apples, lemons and good minerality is a superb food wine. It goes with delicate dishes and those that are more robust, rich and spicy. The 2016, just released, sells for R97 from the farm
© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2016

MENU's Recipe of the week - Jalapeno and Peppadew Dip

A new dip was needed for entertaining; we found we were becoming a bit staid. Lynne had a pot of Mascarpone cheese and a cupboard filled with pickles, relishes, chutneys and flavours. This is what she made. Use as many peppers as you like, according to your own and your guests’ taste preference or heat tolerance. The brand we used for both was Peppadew's bottled peppers, but there are others on the market
250g pot of Mascarpone cheese - 3 mild or spicy Jalapeno peppers - 1 or 2 mild or spicy Peppadew peppers - 1 t pickle juice from the Jalapeno jar - salt
Roughly chop the two kinds of pepper. Put all the ingredients into a liquidiser or a deep container and, if  using your stick blender, blitz them all together. Do not do this for too long or the cheese will turn to butter. Use the juice from the Jalapenos and/or Peppadews to make it a little more liquid, but do not add too much. Taste and add more peppers if you think it needs it. Add salt as necessary too. It doesn't matter if you have bits of the peppers in the dip. Serve with Banting crackers, corn chips or hot Panini rolls. It goes nicely alongside some guacamole
© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2016