Thursday, June 20, 2019

Robertson Wine Valley's Wacky Wine Weekend 8. Silverthorn


A visit to Silverthorn, where talented winemaker John Loubser and his wife Karen have recently moved to their farm on the banks of the Breede River in Bonnievale, to set up a cellar where they will make his range of very special MCC bubblies. The 10.5ha family farm was bought over by the Loubsers in 1999. We are big fans of these wines and asked if we could call in briefly while we were in the Robertson area to see their new Tasting Room, which is nearly complete, and the new wine cellar, which was about to be erected

Thorns of the Fever Tree (Vachellia xanthophloea) which form the Silverthorn wine logo
John was at Steenberg winery in Constantia for over 15 years as cellarmaster and then General Manager and has produced some of South Africa's finest bubblies. He is a member of the Cape Winemakers Guild and now wanted to concentrate on making more of his own brand, Silverthorn, which he launched in 2004, and which currently which has four MCCs. John qualified at Elsenberg as the Dux student and went on to work first for Môreson in Franschhoek and then back near the family farm for De Wetshof in Robertson. Two years working at Graham Beck's Robertson cellar with Pieter Ferreira followed. In 2001, he was offered the position of Cellar Master at Steenberg. Since then, John has never looked back. He won the prestigious ‘Diners Club Wine Maker of the Year’ in 2003
This is the new Tasting Room, almost completed and it will have one of the best views over the Breede River
of any of the wine farms we have visited. It will also be disabled friendly, with ramps
The family house. They currently have four Cap Classiques, namely The Green Man (Blanc de Blancs), The Genie (Rosé, from Shiraz), Jewel Box (Cuvée of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir) and, for the Cape Winemakers Guild Auction, John has produced Silverthorn Wines Big Dog Méthode Cap Classique (Chardonnay and Pinot Noir)
It is a family business: Karen, John's wife handling the sales, marketing and administration side of the business. Daughter, Faine, handles their social media, while son Tivon helps with wine shows and deliveries
We walk to look at the skeleton of the new cellar
Which now, a week later, already has its roof going on
Note the Green Man hung over the front door, portrayed as a human face surrounded by dense foliage;
he is a symbol of growth and rebirth
He appears in many forms in British, Celtic & Wiccan myth and is known right across Europe. Not unlike depictions of Bacchus
A potent emblem for Silverthorn and the Loubsers
John was busy painting and renovating the windows when we arrived. They are now installed
This is where you will get the marvellous view of the river below
We take a tour of the vineyards and see the limestone in the shale which helps to produce the best wines for bubbly
The sloping vineyards. John has some 75 year old Colombard vines that he intends to use for an MCC in the future,
as well as other vines which are more typically used for MCC
Thena the Rottweiler plays a supporting role. She is the Big Dog on the label
In the 2018 Tim Atkin Report on SA wine, Silverthorn wines scored impressively:
The Genie NV – 92 Points, The Green Man 2015 – 94 Points, Jewel Box 2014 – 95 Points
They treated us to a glass or two of The Jewel Box, named for the 100 vibrant stars called Kappa Crucis near the Southern Cross area of the Milky Way. They were nicknamed Jewel Box by the early 19th Century astronomer Sir John Herschel (1792-1871) who worked in the Cape between 1834 and 1838. It is a blend of 70% Chardonnay and 30% Pinot Noir. And magic does come out of the bottle. Nutty on the nose with hints of strawberry and cherry and some citrus zest. On the palate it is classic with crisp creamy notes of brioche, crispness of citrus & apple with some richness from the reserve portion of Chardonnay which spent 12 months in old French barrels from the partial barrel fermentation on the reserve, exciting bubbles and a nod to good French Champagne in style
And John showed us the enormous bill (in Dollars) from an historic meal he had in the US in 2006
at the famous French Laundry Restaurant in California. He was a guest. Thankfully
The hospitable Loubsers

That view. Thank you both, we cannot wait to see the finished buildings
when you are open and up and running an a few months time
Posted by MENU at 3:50 pm 0 comments

Robertson Wine Valley's Wacky Wine Weekend 10. Arendsig



Sometimes after a good dinner, you awake quite hungry for breakfast. So we packed up at Tanagra, checked out and thanked our hosts by 7,30 to get to Arendsig in Bonnievale where we were invited to breakfast at 8.30. Oops no, Lynne got it wrong, it was 9.30(!), so we arrived an hour early. Actually it was fine as we got the most beautiful early morning winter views of the countryside on our trip there. We risked the short route via the Steenbokvlakte Road skirting the Vrolijkheid Nature Reserve. It is gravel all the way but much, much shorter than going back into Robertson and "all round the houses" for 40+ kilometres. There is a rather vertiginous mountain pass on the way and we were so glad we had not driven that way when the road was wet with rain. But it is a beautiful route. John grew up on dirt roads in Botswana and, later, was in a rally team so he has no problem driving on them
We had encountered freezing fog on our way back from Montague the night before and could see patches of it on this road
as we came down the road into Bonnievale. But it looks so romantic! And it is a very bonny vale
They were still getting things ready for the day but we were happy to walk around, have some coffee and enjoy the early morning and not get in the way
The farm has some lovely views across the valley
At 9.30 people began to arrive and the sun came out to shine. The low temperature of 7.5 we had seen that morning went up during the day to 25 degrees
Is it a Triffid? About to whiplash Lynne? We have one in our garden and had no idea that it could grow a flower stem this long
Called the Fox Tail Agave, aka Lion's Tail, Swan's Neck, official name Agave attenuata
Beautiful late Autumn/early winter landscape over the vines
Across the river, the mountains turning blue
We enjoyed a thorough tasting of these wines after breakfast!
On offer for lunch
All lined up and ready for opening - the White wines. The Sauvignon Blanc is very much in the Marlborough style; they have a lovely Soft Chardonnay which spends 11 months in old oak barrels, and a very good Chenin Blanc. The Viognier is elegant with soft peach notes but dry with long flavours, a terrific wine which spends 10 months in old small French oak. Its very Condrieu in style. Had to buy some
And the Red wines. The pinot noir is tempting and has a typical strawberry raspberry nose with classic cherry flavours and gentle wood. The Granache has wood smoke, dark berry fruit and those lovely wild flavours, Its young and needs time. The Shiraz is complex, spicy dark berry fruit on the nose, Salty with cherry fruit, licorice, pepper and chocolate. The Pinotage grown on shale has leather and salt on the nose and palate. Tight tannins mean this needs to age. The Pinotage grown on chalk has richness, dark berry fruit, chalky tannins and again salt on the end. The 2017 Cabernet Block 9 is classic with cassis berries and leaves, and salty minerality. The Mourvedre has richness, wildness, mulberry and cherry and is full and satisfying, with soft tannins. An amazing selection
And yet more
The farm dog Boerseun (Farmer’s son) a St Bernard, is as soppy as they come and loves being made a fuss of
Across the valley lies Weltevrede where we visited the day before
First cup of coffee for about 6 months! But she hasn’t warmed up yet
Tasting wines but who remembers Bashews soft drinks?
The lads start a cooking fire
And tables are laid for breakfast
Boerseun wants some too
Arendsig spoils its guests. Time for breakfast. To begin with, a selection of lovely fruits with yoghurt
There was also a nutty Muesli and some juices
Croissants and good home baked breads served with jam and butter
And a wonderful cooked breakfast of farm sausage, crisp bacon, tiny seared Roma tomatoes and two very fresh fried eggs. Delicious and just what we needed. 
Lourens joined us at the table and one of his twin daughters also did for a short while
A quick cuddle and she was off. Mom looks on
Another view of farms and vineyards in the area
Lourens and Lizelle van der Westhuizen. They also cater for functions and weddings on the farm and you need to contact Lizelle for information. https://www.arendsig.co.za/contact-us-map
A man and his wine
And suddenly it was busy and lots of people were tasting the wines and buying
We could not resist and came home with a couple of boxes
People arriving for lunch in the the Marquee. We had to leave for our next appointment at Quando
Boerseun was finding it hard going & relaxed for a nap or a tummy rub!
Thank you Lourens and Lizelle for superb hospitality, wine and breakfast
Posted by MENU at 3:06 pm 0 comments

Robertson Wine Valley's Wacky Wine Weekend 9. Mimosa Lodge, BluVine Restaurant

We set off from McGregor at 5.30 for Mimosa Lodge in Montague where we were invited for a tasting and dinner at their new restaurant. We allowed lots of time as its a fair old way and the road works are still on going on the road to Montague, We were told by locals there were two "stop and go" traffic lights for one way access. Luckily we got through reasonably quickly. We arrived at the Hotel at a quarter to 7, and were warmly welcomed by the Barman to their new bar; he remembered us from our stay there a couple of years ago. He poured us a lovely glass of Chardonnay which we sat enjoying when we saw Fida Hess, wife of Bernhard the owner/chef who said, "What are you doing here?" "We came to see your new restaurant" we replied. It turns out that it is nowhere near the hotel and we had not been told it was separate or been given its address. "They are waiting dinner for you, you must hurry" she said, and with some instructions, we managed to find the new restaurant which is on the right as you enter Montague from Ashton. It is called BluVines
From the road, it looks like an old Farmhouse building with broekie Lace on the stoep; from the back it is very modern. You park at the back and walk in here. On their website, they say it is a "glamorously refurbished old farmhouse". Very glam and quite sexy with the blue lighting. They have lovely seating for the summer and the windows of the restaurant all fold back to give an inside/outside feel. There are lovely mountain views. The night was perishingly cold at about 7ºC, so we were happy to be inside
The kitchen is open and they have a coffee station and a good selection of the Mimosa wines
There is a separate tasting room in another building which is also the wine cellar
Apparently we had missed the tasting, but were given our table and the evening began
We did explain that we had not been told it was in another place and apologised for any inconvenience caused
The restaurant has been a long held dream of owner Bernhard Hess and had taken three years to open because of
the usual planning and other building restrictions. He and his partner are very happy and relieved to have finally got there
The waitrons are alumni from the Rural Arts Development (RAD) Foundation, a Montagu-based registered non-profit organisation that introduces all forms of visual and performing arts to rural youth in an endeavour to inspire, engage and educate the children of the community. And they certainly are well trained as waiting staff and they entertained us very well during the dinner. Mark Stalmeester has a lovely voice and sang one song à capella on his own with a backing track. He had written this himself; he is very talented
We chose a glass of the Mimosa 2017 Chardonnay, as we had not been able to finish that poured for us at the hotel,
and we enjoyed it very much with the starter. It's a classic, soft Chardonnay, with lots of ripe apple, limes and lemon notes
The wines are made by Lourens van der Westhuizen of Arendsig
We really liked the glass bead chandelier, which gives a good diffused light, not easy to capture on the camera
The starter was three large prawn and chive wonton dumplings served with two dips,
a Teriyaki with Hoisin sauce and a Ponzu - a citrus flavoured soy. Very enjoyable and a good pairing with the Chardonnay
The main course was served with an accompanying salad of small sliced Roma tomatoes with fresh red onion
and was a flame grilled, perfectly seasoned Picanha steak, cooked medium rare. It was fire charred, so full of flavour, with succulent crisp fat and very, very tender. It is our favourite cut of steak. This came with a mélange of fresh vegetables, "Hurray, Vitamins" we exclaimed, so welcome, the first we had seen all weekend, a baked potato and servings of crisp frites (French fried chips). We so enjoyed the first proper meal of the weekend, and the first food we had which was not in some sort of bun!
With it we had glasses of the 2017 Mimosa Cabernet Sauvignon with incense wood, rich cassis and berry fruit on the nose
It has rich, complex dark fruit in layers with some licorice and dark chocolate on the end, a perfect match for the steak
Chef James Mulligan came to see if we were enjoying the meal. He also sings for the diners!
Our neighbours across the way were from Switzerland and it was their first time in South Africa.
They were camping in the area! At this time of year.... so brave to endure the cold nights
And a chance to meet Sous Chef Sean Bassett
More glasses were supplied for the dessert course
We took a short pause and John went to take some photographs. Another view of the terrace and the restaurant
Inside the tasting room they have these large concrete wine fermentation "Eggs"
Wine will be stored here
Lynne was told by the manager Jonine Erasmus to go and check out the toilets
and there she found this waterfall wall! Very unusual, it certainly does encourage a visit
Happy staff in the restaurant
Manager Jonine Erasmus told us about dessert and the wine that would be served with it
The Mimosa Reserve Natural Sweet 2018 (500ml) is made from Gewürztraminer and has rose petals and muscat notes on the enticing nose with hints of honey botrytis. An R/S of 162, it is sticky and sweet with honey and spice, Turkish delight and some nougat on the palate, with good citrus acidity to balance the sweetness, and a little pétillance. 11% alcohol and only 3000 bottles made
Dessert was a very sweet chocolate lava cake with vanilla whipped cream, raspberry syrup, ice cream and topped with a fresh strawberry. John enjoyed it, but it much too sweet for Lynne, especially with the wine. No criticism, just no sweet tooth. John enjoyed a very good double espresso.
Chef James gave us a spirited version of "My Way"; he has a good voice
We thanked all the staff and they sang "It's so Hard to Say Goodbye" to us
We loved the evening and hope to be back in the summer to try out the normal menu
Posted by MENU at 2:09 pm 0 comments
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