Wednesday, February 01, 2023

A Day in the South Peninsula

We had been rather housebound for the Christmas and New Year period,
during which Cape Town fills up with lovely tourists,
but the roads and restaurants are so busy that locals just wait for the 'season' to ameliorate
Schools started again, the roads calmed down and we decided to take a lovely tour
of our favourite summer places which we love to visit

We stopped for a sight of Muizenberg from Boyes Drive
It bought back so many childhood memories of days she spent on the sands as a small child
A little further along the drive, a view of St James and Kalk Bay, where we were headed for lunch
Lots more childhood memories of swimming in these waters,
which are a bit warmer than the sea on the other side of the mountain


Two women with ice cream cones, window shopping in Kalk Bay
There are so many fascinating shops that we explored. Lynne splashed out at Quagga, the famous Rare bookshop
and bought an art book she had been looking for for years

A man and his wife, stopped on the seaside path, pointing at something of interest

The harbour wall at Kalk Bay, viewed from outside

Wonderful curios, local and from other African countries

The fishing boats were coming in and this is one of the only places you can buy freshly caught fish
These long monsters are Snoek (Thyrsites atun), a long, thin species of snake mackerel

Three freshly caught yellowtail (seriola lalandi) for sale on the quayside
One of John's favourite fishes but too large for us. It is advisable to eat yellowtail on the same day it is caught

Two freshly caught red snapper fish (Lutjanus agennes) one of which became our supper
We had it cleaned and the head removed. Not an easy fish to cook as it is very bony but the flavour was good
Lynne cooked it stuffed with lemon and thyme and roasted briefly in foil

A boy with a sandy back in a blue bathing costume

A man photographing his wife and child on the harbour wall

Listening to a fisherman describing the catch

A man standing on the pier, holding a fishing rod in hope of a catch
New housing developments are being built on the coast across the bay

A charter fishing boat discharging clients

A green and white fishing boat with green water and a blue sky

We headed for our favourite fresh fish restaurant, Kalkies
You need to wait for a table as it is very popular and then queue to place your order; only cash is accepted
It is a friendly place and we shared a table outside

Lynne opted for Hake, Calamari and Chips. Far too large a portion for her, so half of this was supper too
 The fish is so fresh, pearly and flaky

A woman working on a water colour painting of people in Kalk Bay harbour
She is a professional from Johannesburg and very quick at sketching
We shared a table with her and her friend while we had lunch

We then drove through the gap to the other coast at Noordhoek
and decided we needed a wine tasting at Cape Point wine estate, as we had not tasted their wines for a long while

A stone pine (pinus pinea) by the dam. You can order their picnics to eat on the lawn

Looking from the restaurant at Cape Point Vineyards toward Noordhoek beach

The wine tasting menu. We did the full R80 tasting, sharing each wine
and we bought a case of Sauvignon Blanc which was on special offer

A quick stop to photograph the stupendous Noordhoek beach with Kommetjie in the distance;
more childhood memories of that smaller bay. Many people take their horses onto this beach to enjoy a long ride

White foam as the blue water of Hout Bay hits the rocks below Chapman's Peak

Heat mist coming into Hout Bay from the cold Atlantic, masking the Sentinel mountain at the entrance to the bay

Looking across the bay to the beach and hillside houses

and a stop for a nostalgic look at Llandudno and its beach, where Lynne’s family lived from the late 1940s to the 1970s
A wonderful place in those years. She was one of the first pupils, briefly, at the primary school here

and another beautiful place to stop and gaze at the beauty of our coastline, our mountains and where we live
The sea mist was coming in to the warm land and by the time we got to Camps Bay it was right in
We are so grateful for the privilege of living in this wonderful place

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Elgin Chardonnay Colloquium



We were very excited when we were invited to attend the Elgin Chardonnay Colloquium
It had not been held since 2019 because of the Covid hiatus
Elgin's cool climate and excellent soils produce some of the best South African Chardonnays in several different styles,
some of which we were to taste in the four flights

They were kind enough to lay on transport from Pinelands for us, a place at which we could safely leave our car
It was an early start, the bus leaving at 8 am

A lovely warm day and a warm welcome with tea, coffee and cheese scones to begin the day

 It was attended by fifty invited members of the trade, media and Chardonnay buyers

Malu Lambert and Bubs Hyland getting the message out to their readers

The tasting was held in one of the barrel cellars at South Hill wine estate

The first flight of four was poured

The water was sponsored by the new owner of South Hill, Aquasky, who condense water from the atmosphere

James Downes of Shannon welcomed us all and told us some of the history of Elgin,
including a few things that we had not heard before
The South African Navy used terroir in Elgin which belonged to James' father for their training ground
The Naval camp was called Oscar Browne. Sadly, Naval personnel caused a fire that cleared much of the wild bush
Mr Downes, as a farmer, saw the potential of the slopes once they were cleared after the fire;
soon apples, pears and then grapes followed. And he was so right
That is why their Chardonnay is called Oscar Browne 

Paul Cluver gave us some more history of the wines of Elgin
Elgin grows just 2% of the national crop of Chardonnay, just narrowly beating the Hemel and Aarde valley
But in the past few years, they have been carrying home some of the most prestigious wine awards
from South African and abroad
Which speaks to the quality of these wines and the talent that is making them

The winemakers would explain their wines when we had finished tasting each flight
One in each flight would be a foreign Chardonnay and we were to guess which it was

Time to taste the first flight of four Chardonnays

Idun consultant winemaker Kobie Viljoen, Cathy van Zyl MW was the moderator, Michael White of Highlands Road and James Downes of Shannon

In this flight the first wine was the Larry Cherubino Chardonnay 2020 from Margaret River in Australia
A classic nose, a hint of oak, lovely fruit aromas, lime lemon crispness, then wood, long warm flavours

Wine two was Highlands Road 2020 Chardonnay. Great elegance on the nose, stone fruit, melon, apricot
Round on the palate with oak first, then ripe cling peach, nectarine and warmth

Wine No.3, Shannon's Oscar Browne 2020 was sensational; Very French in style, sophisticated with a hint of smoke
Full and layered on the palate, lovely crispness with wood appearing on the end
Well done to winemaker Gordon Newton Johnson

No.4 was Callipyge 2020 from Idun – named for the goddess of eternal life, apples and fertility
Idun is owned by the Rousset family
Smoke, limes, Seville marmalade on the nose; clean crisp lime lemon grapefruit with long flavours on the palate
A food wine. Their consultant was there to talk about the wine

Second flight

Paul Cluver cellarmaster Andries Burger, Cathy van Zyl MW, Bobby Wallace of Paul Wallace Wines
and Warren Ellis of Neil Ellis Wines

The first wine was Paul Wallace 2021 Reflection; clean, flinty, lime profile with wood notes
Clean grape, lemon lime roundness and depth, lime cordial on the long end

No.2, Paul Cluver 2020 Estate is rich, complex with a hint of oak on the nose
Crisp, with salty minerality, layered, very complex and lasting with some dry tannins
This is one of Lynne’s favourite Chardonnays and she did recognize it

No.3 was the foreign one: Mercurey Blanc, "En Pierrelet" 2020 Chateau de Chamirey, France, just south of Burgundy
Wood then sweet ripeness, ripe melon and peach on the nose
Rich and full on the palate with stone fruit and ends with more wood

No.4. Neil Ellis 2021 Whitehall Chardonnay (is it drunk there?)
Classic, elegant, a little shy on the nose. Lemon lime, crisp apple. long flavours, clean and chalky

Andries Burger told us that the Paul Cluver Estate wine is from 35 year old vines
Their top Chardonnay, Seven Flags, comes from two very old vineyards

Dan the Man. Daniel of ProCon Audio Visual, responsible for the electronics

Guests enjoying the tasting and at the end of the row, a renowned expert on Burgundy, Remington Norman MW

Winemaker Richard Kershaw MW - smiling

and serious

Third Flight

Oak Valley winemaker Jacques du Plessis, Cathy van Zyl, Rudi Schultz, winemaker at Thelema
and Werner Muller, Iona winemaker

No.1 was Iona Highlands 2021. Incense wood, elegance, smoke and citrus notes on the nose
Dark wood first then butteriness, intense flavours of lime lemon grapefruit and lots of wood

No.2, the foreign wine, Dom Marc Morey Rully Blanc 2020 from Côte Chalonnaise, France
Shy with stone fruit, well made and obviously foreign
Saline, citrus, lots of wood, dried and cooked apple and a bit sickly on the end

No.3, Oak Valley Groenlandberg 2021
Perfume, white fruit, fig leaves, classic and classy, initially, the wood is there, but nicely integrated
Lime citrus, sour plum then heavy wood appears on the end

No.4 Thelema Sutherland 2021
Fruit forward on the nose, cling peach, apple. Lovely mouth feel, almost caramel wood,
bottled Tart Tatin with nuts and apple. Another food wine

Flight four

Joris van Almenkerk, Cathy van Zyl, Richard Kershaw, Carl Lambour, GM of Tokara

The first wine was the foreign example. Sandhi Santa Rita Hills Chardonnay 2019 from Santa Barbara in California
Elegance and quality, spice, apple, cooked and fresh on the nose
Clean, crisp, layered lime, lemon and Granny Smith green apples; the flavours go on and on
It could have been an Elgin wine!

No.2. Almenkerk Chardonnay 2019
An elegant, nuanced, and expensive nose with apple, calvados notes and a hint of oak
Full on the palate with chalky tannins, lime, apple & long flavours

No.3 Kershaw Clonal Selection 2019. A dive-in nose, ripe fruit and maturity
Apple in all its modes, with lime to spice it up, some salinity and subtlety; so well made
Lynne’s favourite of the tasting

No. 4. Tokara Mèthode Cap Classique Blanc de Blanc 2014
Good initial mousse, hints of brioche, nice and crisp with lime, lemon and green apple; some butteriness from the lees

Jacques de Klerk, winemaker of Radford Dale, who brought the imported wines from their selection

Joris van Almenkerk

Karl Lambour, General manager of Tokara

Moderator Cathy van Zyl MW

A view through the cellar door of Elgin magic: Grape vines, Apple and Pear orchards and forestry plantations

A few final words from James Downes who thanked the hard-working people who put the event together

Jacques de Klerk for sourcing the imported wines

Oak Valley Tasting room manager Carissa Moutsoyannis for her organisation of the event

and a bouquet for a deserving lady, Cathy van Zyl MW
 who is such an important contributor to the South African wine industry

Nicky Wallace of Paul Wallace wines, Carissa Moutsoyannis of Oak Valley and Jacqueline Lahoud of Winemag.co.za

Lunch consisted of mezze starters, 

lots of Mediterranean dishes

and then the main courses were served family style to each table
Elgin wines, not only chardonnays, were available for tasting in the next room,
so some guests spent quite a lot of time there,
which is why many of the seats at the tables were unoccupied when this photograph was taken

Spicy couscous, roasted new potatoes, rare beef, chicken, salad and a warm ham croquette
There was a huge selection of wines to taste and drink with our lunch

Dessert was a delicious panna cotta topped with a berry coulis and a light chocolate mousse
to finish off a wonderful day tasting Elgin wines

This is definitely one of the top tastings on the South African wine calendar

All the stories we have published can be seen in the Blog Archive near the top of the column on the right

If you do not wish to receive e-mails from us, please email menucape@gmail.com with the word 'UNSUBSCRIBE' in your email


Posted by MENU at 1:42 pm 0 comments
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