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Sunday, February 18, 2018

Supper at The Black Sheep

To say we have been trying to get to this restaurant for a long time would not be an exaggeration. We know the Chef Owner Jonathan Japha from his days at Fork Tapas restaurant in Long Street. It says on their website that he has a love for UK gastropubs "that inspire his love for honest, uncomplicated good food made with the best local ingredients". But time and tide had washed us to other shores. So when friends phoned to say they had a reservation but family had postponed and were we free, we jumped at the opportunity. It is their favourite restaurant in Cape Town, probably because there is a good selection of vegetarian options on this large menu, which changes regularly

It’s right at the top of Kloof Road, on two levels and busy, which is why you need a reservation. We saw several people try to get a table, who either had to wait or were turned away. And they do two sittings: we had been booked for 6.30 and had to be out by 8.30. Not our favourite way of dining, it is not relaxing, but seeing how popular it is, understandable. This is the bar area which does get crowded as the evening draws on

The menu is chalked up on the board, the wine and beer list comes on a clip board

If you wish to BYO, you may only take one bottle of wine with you and share with four. Corkage is R70. We think this is fairly reasonable if you have an expensive bottle of wine you need to try; there is a good choice on the extensive wine list. Anima Chenin Blanc, given to us from Avondale to sample, certainly went well with all our choices; it is a versatile wine

The Amuse Bouche we were served (they called it that) was this delicious whole meal bread served warm and made with herbs, cheese and yogurt. It disappeared in a heartbeat

The Starter menu of the day

The Main course menu. You can check it out on their website before you go, but do expect changes as popular dishes may run out

You can just see Devil’s Peak and the table cloth forming on Table Mountain through the large open window, which was closed as the evening cooled

Lynne's starter of Jellied Pork Terrine with pickles, mustard and toast. Sadly, it was a disappointment. She adores a good terrine, especially if the meat and liver are layered with a good stock jelly. This was a brawn, aka known as head cheese. Not a favourite dish, layers of pork skin and fat and a few herbs and very little jelly. Nothing wrong with the dish if you happen to like Brawn. Sadly many of us grew up hating this dish, as it often contained whiskers and gristle. This did not; but it does not resemble the terrines she loves. No mustard was served

John chose the Roast Sardines, served with tender stem broccoli, hard boiled egg and chilli. The sardines had been filleted and came with a chilli and tomato sauce

Our friends love the desserts here so they skipped starters and went straight to the main course. This was the Lentil Coconut curry, with butternut and sweet potatoes, and wilted spinach. It was topped with grilled halloumi cheese and enjoyed. The main course dishes are large and the food is substantial

The other vegetarian main was the Roast Aubergine and basil tomato ragout stack on spinach and steamed courgettes, with goat’s cheese and balsamic caramel. It was a very popular dish that night; we saw many servings in the restaurant. A table neighbour asked what it was, ordered it and said they too loved it

Lynne chose the South Indian Yellowtail curry, which came on a bed of grilled aubergine, with a poppadum, rice and sambals. Very substantial, more a mild Cape curry in style, very filling, even with the rice donated to the other curry! The large portion of fish, served in chunks, was fresh and perfectly cooked

John chose the Roast Rabbit Loin which was wrapped in bacon - we have seen a similar dish on Masterchef lately. Lynne suggested that he have it, he likes rabbit, as you so seldom see rabbit on Cape menus. There is always a risk that this dish may be dry, but it was perfectly moist with the bacon crisp, a skilled dish indeed. It was also nice and hot in its peppercorn sauce. It came with deep fried and beautifully crisp potato rosti, peas, broccoli and fresh spinach, something you also don't see much and which we love. Not chard, real spinach. They do serve good vegetables, properly cooked

Dessert time for our friends. A chocolate Brownie topped with a huge scoop of vanilla ice cream and smothered in a thick chocolate sauce. Ronnie had a large smile on his face after this

And for Lolly, a Pavlova of broken meringue, strawberry, rhubarb and cream, with a nicely tart rhubarb sauce. She loved it

The bill. We did ask for water and didn't ask the price. It comes in glass bottles with the restaurant’s own label at R32. It was a warm night and we were thirsty. Dinner came to approximately R300 per person for two courses, including gratuity

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Friday, February 16, 2018

This Week's MENU. Grande Provence, Glenelly's Lady May, Madame May's Glass Collection, Essence of Tomato Soup, Wines of the Week

Clouds forming over the mountains in the Winelands

How wonderful it is to start this week’s MENU on a note of optimism. Clouds have appeared and a cloud has lifted.

What a week. On Tuesday night the heavens announced loudly a possible change in the weather, which sadly, violent though it was, didn't last. On Wednesday night we all finally got what we had been waiting for. No, not rain, we live in hope for that, but a new President. It was a day like no other; at times we thought we were in cloud cuckoo land, there were so many twists and turns, steps forward and back, stand offs and threats of possible gunfights at the OK Corral, but at near midnight, when most of the nation was tucked up on bed, Zuma resigned and has been followed by a man whose first speech in Parliament was statesmanlike and gives us hope that we may at last have a government that works for the people. Lynne wanted to rush out and blow the car horn to alert everyone. There is euphoria in the air. Now we have to watch carefully, to see what happens next.

An Expression of Chenin Blanc at Grande Provence

It has been a while since we last visited this farm, and in the interim period wine maker Hagen Viljoen has joined. We were invited for the release of the new 2017 Chenin Blanc, Grand Provence's new single varietal wine. He says “For many, Chenin Blanc is one of South Africa’s top wine varieties and has a strong claim for pole position when it comes to being the driver for brand South Africa. The ready access to a rich heritage of old vineyards, as well as the variety’s versatility of styles certainly re-enforces this claim”. And Chenin would be the main focus of the wine with lunch

A Celebration of Glenelly’s flagship wine

What an invitation, one we were very keen to accept, as this opportunity does not come often on wine farms. Not many farms, in making their top wines, celebrate the vintage and let the wine express it, rather than trying to fit into an annual 'recipe'. On Glenelly in Ida's Valley in Stellenbosch, winemaker Luke O'Cuinneagain told us they often have vintage variations and he has to let the wines speak for themselves. And they certainly do, in a very good way, while still being recognisable as themselves

A Tour of her Glass Museum with the owner of Glenelly, Mme May de Lencquesaing

We thought this deserved an article all on its own as the museum so captivated us - as does Lady May. It is an extraordinary collection of glass from different periods in history and from all over the world. It is one of the largest privately owned collections in the world. She has been interested in glass for almost her whole life, and there is rare early glass from the 1st and 2nd centuries as well as modern contemporary classics. Her mother collected and some of her mother's collection is now in the museum

Wine Concepts Craft Festival

It’s almost impossible not to feel the pull of the craft-drinks revolution. Wine Concepts will host their inaugural Craft Festival on Friday 23rd March from 17h00 to 20h00 at The Vineyard Hotel, where they’ll showcase a fine selection of diverse and enticing Beers and Ciders along with creative Spirits including Gin, Vodka, Tequila, Rum, Brandy, Absinthe, Grappa, Vermouth etc. The Festival offers the opportunity to taste a range of craft beverages from over 20 of the country’s top producers. All the showcased products will be available for purchase at special prices from Wine Concepts on the evening. Cost: R200.00 per person – includes tasting glass, tastings and light snacks. Tickets can be purchased via www.webtickets.co.za, or at any of the Wine Concepts branches or at the door on the evening subject to availability http://www.wineconcepts.co.za. We will see you there.

What’s on the Menu this week. Essence of Tomato Soup

Tomatoes are in season. This is not quite Christophe Dehosse's amazing tomato soup (illustrated above) which we wrote about this week, but you can add what he did and make this more complex. If you use good flavourful tomatoes like Roma or huge beef tomatoes, you will capture the flavour. This cold soup, which does not require any cooking, is a light starter for 3 or 4 people, not complicated to make and looks very pretty. There are lovely ripe tomatoes in the markets at the moment.

1 kilo of ripe red tomatoes, beef or Roma - 1 small clove of garlic - 1 tspn each of fresh marjoram, basil and parsley - salt and pepper - 1 or 2 extra tomatoes - 10 cm fresh cucumber - 1 dessertspoon chopped chives, - some torn basil - a few micro herbs - good green extra virgin olive oil

Cut a small cross in the top of each tomato. Drop them into a litre of boiling water for just a minute or two, then remove them and put into iced water. You can then easily remove their skins, their cores and their pips. Liquidise the remaining tomato flesh with the chopped garlic and the herbs. Then put them into a muslin or very fine mesh sieve or jelly bag to drip, and you will have essence of tomato, which you will then need to season gently with salt and pepper. You can make this a day in advance and chill. Skin, core and deseed the extra tomato and cut the flesh into tiny 1 cm squares. Do the same with some slices of cucumber; you can leave the skin on. You only need about 2 to 3 tablespoons of each. When ready to serve, adjust the seasoning and add the tomato and cucumber squares. Top with the chives and other herbs and a drop or two of good green olive oil. You can also add some cold cooked or ceviche peeled prawns. Do not use raw, it is too dangerous. If you want to stretch this further, add some clear sieved vegetable stock.

MENU’s Wines of the Week. There are two, a white and a red that both impressed us so much

Grande Provence Chenin Blanc 2017

is Hagen Viljoen's first wine for Grande Provence. A dusty nose with hints of English gooseberries, at first it is dry on the palate then the fruit powerfully bursts through, golden apricots, passion fruit, guava and a nice citrus shot of acidity. We were served some good sourdough bread and an unusual nut dip, the wine was very special in this combination

The Glenelly Lady May 2012,

which is just being launched. It has incense wood notes with layers of deep cassis, cherry and berry fruit, fresh and slightly warmly alcoholic. It was a poem with the roast lamb we had for lunch and is also one to put in your cellar for a year or three

16th February 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 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 me

MENU's Wines of the Week. Grande Provence Chenin blanc 2017 and Glenelly Lady May 2012

Grande Provence Chenin Blanc 2017 is Hagen Viljoen's first wine for Grande Provence. A dusty nose with hints of English gooseberries, at first it is dry on the palate then the fruit powerfully bursts through, golden apricots, passion fruit, guava and a nice citrus shot of acidity. We were served some good sourdough bread and an unusual nut dip, the wine was very special in this combination

The Glenelly Lady May 2012, which is just being launched. It has incense wood notes with layers of deep cassis, cherry and berry fruit, fresh and slightly warmly alcoholic. It was a poem with the roast lamb we had for lunch and is also one to put in your cellar for a year or three

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What’s on the Menu this week. Essence of Tomato Soup

Tomatoes are in season. This is not quite Christophe Dehosse's amazing tomato soup (illustrated) which we wrote about this week, but you can add what he did and make this more complex. If you use good flavourful tomatoes like Roma or huge beef tomatoes, you will capture the flavour. This cold soup, which does not require any cooking, is a light starter for 3 or 4 people, not complicated to make and looks very pretty. There are lovely ripe tomatoes in the markets at the moment

Cut a small cross in the top of each tomato. Drop them into a litre of boiling water for just a minute or two, then remove them and put into iced water. You can then easily remove their skins, their cores and their pips. Liquidise the remaining tomato flesh with the chopped garlic and the herbs. Then put them into a muslin or very fine mesh sieve or jelly bag to drip, and you will have essence of tomato, which you will then need to season gently with salt and pepper. You can make this a day in advance and chill. Skin, core and deseed the extra tomato and cut the flesh into tiny 1 cm squares. Do the same with some slices of cucumber; you can leave the skin on. You only need about 2 to 3 table spoons of each. When ready to serve, adjust the seasoning and add the tomato and cucumber squares. Top with the chives and other herbs and a drop or two of good green olive oil. You can also add some cold cooked or ceviche peeled prawns. Do not use raw, it is too dangerous. If you want to stretch this further, add some clear sieved vegetable stock

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Wine Concepts Craft Festival

It’s almost impossible not to feel the pull of the craft-drinks revolution. Wine Concepts will thus be hosting their inaugural Craft Festival on Friday 23rd March from 17h00 to 20h00 at The Vineyard Hotel, where they’ll showcase a fine selection of diverse and enticing Beers and Ciders along with creative Spirits including Gin, Vodka, Tequila, Rum, Brandy, Absinthe, Grappa, Vermouth etc. The Festival offers the opportunity to taste a range of craft beverages from over 20 of the country’s top producers. All the showcased products will be available for purchase at special prices from Wine Concepts on the evening. Cost: R200.00 per person – includes tasting glass, tastings and light snacks. Tickets can be purchased via www.webtickets.co.za, or at any of the Wine Concepts branches or at the door on the evening subject to availability http://www.wineconcepts.co.za

Telephone Newlands at 021 671 9030 or Kloof Street at 021 426 4401

Email: admin@wineconcepts.co.za

http://www.wineconcepts.co.za

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Thursday, February 15, 2018

Mme May-Éliane de Lencquesaing shows us her Glass Collection at Glenelly, Stellenbosch

She told us how she had started slowly when she was young and the collection has just grown. There are some very important pieces in the collection. If you have an interest we would encourage you to go and see this very varied important collection of glass. For details of when it is open see http://glenellyestate.com/#museum

Hearing the story

Glass from all over the world, brightly coloured, often with inclusions of gold

Ancient glass from centuries ago from Phoenicia, Egypt and the Mediterranean, so fragile

This is a statue of Lady May made by the sculptor Maxime Real del Sarte in 1948 and presented to her. It is reproduced on the label of her flagship wine, Lady May

She showed us how well the statue is carved, even on the back. It was suggested that the back view should appear on the wine's back label

Glass from France, made to look like ceramics and finely decorated

A cabinet of French glass made by Rene Lalique, some very famous patterns and some very rare ones

Lynne asking Lady May a question about one of the pieces. Lynne used to buy and sell fine glass when she was in the antique business in London, from English glass to Emile Gallé, Daum, Baccarat, Lalique, Tiffany, Murano from Venice and Bohemian glass amongst others, so she was fascinated

Some early French Opaline glass, some from Baccarat, c 1820

She told us that the white Opaline glass is very rare

The collection is housed in three rooms and is about to expand with some new pieces arriving soon

This is a sensational piece of opalescent glass topped with the statue of a flying elephant and it is entitled L’Esprit du Temps/Spirit of Time by Richard Texier, made in 2009 at the Daum factory in France

Another quirky modern work entitled The God of Crops

And in the collection of old stained glass which she has, Dick Whittington’s Cat, not black as usually depicted, but yellow

The stained glass window panels are cleverly back lit

A guide to the stained glass panel

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Lady May - A Celebration of Glenelly’s Flagship Wine

A Celebration of Glenelly’s flagship wine

Our programme for the day was: 10.30am sharp: Meeting at the winery: Welcome by Nicolas Bureau (Madame’s grandson) and Posy Hazell. 10.40am Grape tasting in the vineyard with viticulturist Heinrich Louw. 11.20am: Lady May tasting with Luke O’Cuinneagain in the barrel cellar 12.20pm: Tasting and unveiling of the Lady May 2012 with May de Lencquesaing in the Glass Museum 1.00pm: Lunch in The Vine Bistro hosted by Nicolas Bureau, Luke O'Cuinneagain, Susan Dehosse and Posy Hazell. 2.30pm: end

The entrance. Glenelly was founded in 2003 by Mme May-Éliane de Lencquesaing, who was the owner of Second Growth Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande in Bordeaux until she sold it to the Roederer Champagne house. She started afresh, planting vines where there had been orchards of fruit trees. It is a valley with good soils and microclimates, with vineyards facing many different directions. They have 60 hectares. The aim always has been to plant Bordeaux grapes and produce fine wines

In the wine tasting area where we gathered and met Madame May's grandson Nicolas Bureau

The views from the modern 6000 square meter environmentally friendly winery - completed in 2008 - are superb

We head out to see the vineyards, taste some of the Merlot grapes and watch the staff picking the Cabernet in the distance. It was HOT

Madame May's grandson Nicolas Bureau, who is their export director

Viticulturist Heinrich Louw gave us the lowdown on the vineyards, the terroir, the soil and the climate. He is passionate about his vineyards, mostly on Hutton and Clovelly decomposed granite soils, topped with a layer of surface clay in some areas. He subscribes to "giving them great attention, minimal intervention and using sustainable techniques"

Really healthy grapes in huge trusses. There was bad hail in the valley during the week, with hailstones the size of ice cubes but, because of the protective canopy and the direction of the rows, there was minimal damage to the grapes

The Merlot was being picked on the East facing slope

Down the rows of neat Cabernet Sauvignon vines. These will probably only be picked in about three weeks time. The grapes tasted of the classic cassis but need more time to gain depth of flavour

Very fecund vines

A shady glade in the middle

Heinrich picked a bunch for us to see how small Cabernet grapes are. These are very healthy

Winemaker Luke O'Cuinneagain joined us. He started at Glenelly in 2007 and did the first Glenelly harvest in 2008

Grapes coming in for crushing

The barrel cellar. Oh, the smell of a cellar with good wine fermenting in it is wonderful. They do not use air conditioning, the building is built in such a way that there is a solar thermal mode, so heat has little impact and they get constant stable temperatures, without spikes and troughs, which is what good wine needs to mature

A tasting of the several vintages of their flagship wine, Lady May, had been set up in the cellar for us. It is a classic Bordeaux blend of Cabernet Sauvignon with just a splash of Merlot and Petit Verdot

We began with the first vintage 2008. Luke told us it was cold and wet winter and spring and they had to harvest in the rain, just as they have to in Bordeaux. This was 90% Cabernet and 10% Petit Verdot. They often put this wine in a Master of Wine tasting and no one picks up that it is from South Africa. It begins quite austere, but then softens and begins to open up and, suddenly, it is not shy anymore, with the fruit saying “hello” loudly. Dark claret in colour with browning rim, this has cassis, cherries and incense wood with pencil shavings on the amazing nose which keeps opening and evolving in the glass. Silky and full of Cabernet fruit, with chalky, grippy fruit tannins and some leafy greenness which adds freshness, tobacco hints and some violets on the end. A powerful wine. Luke uses medium to medium plus toast 300 litre new oak barrels for 24 months minimum. The 2009 has liquorice and black berry fruit and its very attractive nose has some violets from the Petit Verdot. This was picked in a warm summer and has rich ripe berries, with explosive fruit. Dry chalky tannins, more liquorice and marmite, with long, strong flavours, some graphite, and a slight bitterness (from the wood ?) on the end. Tim Atkin has awarded the 2013 an astounding 95 points.

We then tasted the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon. It has a slightly lactic nose, is dark garnet and opaque.. Cassis and morello cherries, pencil shavings, incense wood and some herbal notes. Spent 12 months in new French oak. Lovely fruit on the palate, intense, attractive and sweet with some soft chalky tannins and no bitterness

We also had a taste of the Petit Verdot. So full of Parma violets on the nose with red and black cherries. So attractive. On the palate, still mouth puckering tannins, chalk and cassis and rhubarb on the end. Some black pepper spice and pencil shaving wood

Luke guiding us through the tasting. And then the Cab Franc. Incense wood, green leaves, berries are shyly in the background and hints of Chanel perfume. As you swirl the wine opens, showing mushrooms and forest floor with some oaty notes from the wood. Tight berries, jujube flavours, like Rowntree’s blackcurrant gums, clean on the palate. Some green notes appear with pencil shavings as the wine opens up. We liked all three and wanted to try to make a blend of them to see what the result might be. But it was time to head to the restaurant for lunch

Lots of questions to answer about the wines and the making of them

The tanks for the two Chardonnays. one goes into oak

The cellar has lovely views over Ida’s Valley

Our table in the restaurant

You can also eat out on the shaded terrace

The menu for the day. The chef is Christophe Dehosse, a Frenchman from Provence who also has a Bistro restaurant at Joostenberg. His food is always exciting and a good blend of French with South African ingredients

The Glenelly Estate 2016 Chardonnay was just what we needed with the first course. A golden nose of perfumed peaches, a hint of the sea, crisp and full in a classic French style, ending with refreshing lime and lemon notes

Oh what an astoundingly good dish this was. Billed simply as Tomato consommé with yellowtail and langoustine, it was delicate but complex and was made with sieved tomato water, small cubes of tomato concasse and cucumber; a cool broth of summer, dressed with green olive oil and fennel, coriander and chive herbs, topped with crisped basil leaves. And in the bottom ceviché of yellowtail and langoustine tails that gave the broth a hint of the sea. There was good sourdough bread on the table as an accompaniment

The Lady May 2012, which is just being launched, was served with the next course. Its incense wood notes with layers of deep cassis, cherry and berry fruit, fresh and slightly warmly alcoholic. It was a poem with the roast lamb ...

... which was the main course. Perfectly cooked fillet of lamb, tender and pink, roast root vegetables, and puffs of light-as-air Parisienne gnocchi, well roasted onions, beetroot, heritage carrots with a thyme jus extraordinaire. And what Lynne thought was a magnificent faggot (chef likes using offal) but Christoph explained was a lamb mince kofta. So nice to see properly roasted onion: onion just seared on one face is what most chefs are serving at the moment and they are mostly inedible

For one guest who does not eat meat, a Seafood Bouillabaisse, which is on the normal menu. Might have to go back and try that, soon

Then the 2010 Lady May, which has soft sweet fruit, is powerful with lovely chalky tannins; this wine is soft and delicious. Drinking at its peak

This was perfect for the final course of local cheeses with fresh figs, nuts and grapes from the vineyards

Chef Patron Christophe Dehosse just making a quick appearance out of his hot kitchen so we could thank him

The beautiful Simonsberg mountains as we left for home after some good double espressos and their trademark Canelle from Bordeaux, which we can never get enough of... Thank you all at Glenelly for a truly marvellous day with great wine and food

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