Painted Wolf Tasting and Keenwa Peruvian Food at the Rooftop Bar in De Waterkant

Join my next Western Cape Wineries wine tasting on the 26th of November at 6.30pm with Winemaker Jeremy Borg from Painted Wolf.

Jeremy Borg, the winemaker of Painted Wolf wines will be there to introduce us to his wines. Not only are his wines fantastic and there is a great story behind his wine (the wild dogs) but Jeremy has a ton of stories, so you are up for a treat!!

We have an awesome venue for this months tasting at The Rooftop Bar at 71 Waterkant Street, Cape Town.
 

For this tasting I have arranged for Keenwa (awesome Peruvian restaurant across the road from the Rooftop bar) to do the catering. They will be making several snacks for us to enjoy on arrival and at half time, these will include:

Welcome tapas -

Choros a la Chalaca (mussels with onion, tomatoes, corn and lime, served cold)

Main -

Rocotos (pepperdews stuffed with lamb mince, served with a creamy cheese dressing) AND

Enrollado de quinoa - fresh fish and peppers rolled in quinoa (sushi-like)

Tequenos - Cheese and pastry sticks with guacamole

The cost for this evening is R250 pp. This includes the wine tasting, venue and snacks.

To book please make payment in to the following bank account using your name + 26 Nov as the reference:

Christine Andrews
FNB
Account #: 62401949013
Branch #: 250655.
Savings account

Please send your proof of payment to westerncapewineries@gmail.com. If you pay for others then please include their names in the email so I can add them to the guest list.

Anyone is welcome to join my wine club, so please don't hesitate to get a group of friends, family or colleagues together for a fun wine evening.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me on westerncapewineries@gmail.com.

You can also follow the WCW wine club on https://www.facebook.com/pages/Western-Cape-Wineries/149234295153096?ref=hl

Fondue and Holden Manz wines - 6.30pm on 16 October 2014 at I Love My Laundry on Bree St

I am happy to let you all know that I have arranged the next Western Cape Wineries (WCW) wine club evening for the 16th of October at I Love My Laundry for a fondue and Holden Manz wine evening!!

Schalk Opperman is the winemaker at Holden Manz, and lucky for us, he will be attending the evening and taking us through his range of wines.

We will start the evening off with the Holden Manz Rose 2014 on arrival, followed by a tasting of the Holden Manz Chardonnay 2013.

While enjoying the decadent three styles of fondue we will taste the Holden Manz Merlot 2011, Shiraz 2010, Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 and Visionaire 2012.

My wine club evenings are ideal for beginner to intermediate wine drinkers, and for those who are keen to try new wines on a monthly basis in a comfortable and unpretentious manner. This month we will get to taste Holden Manz wines with Schalk Opperman, try four different Holden Manz wines with three different fondues and then see if there is a consensus as to which wine was the "ideal wine to enjoy with fondue".

Price: R200 pp
When: 16 October 2014
Time: 6.30pm starting with arrival drinks.

To book please make payment in to the following bank account using your name + fondue as the reference:

Christine Andrews
FNB
Account #: 62401949013
Branch #: 250655.
Savings account

Please send your proof of payment to westerncapewineries@gmail.com. If you pay for others then please include their names in the email so I can add them to the guest list.

Anyone is welcome to join my wine club, so please don't hesitate to get a group of friends, family or colleagues together for a fun wine evening.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me on westerncapewineries@gmail.com.

You can also follow the WCW wine club on https://www.facebook.com/pages/Western-Cape-Wineries/149234295153096?ref=hl
 

Rickety Bridge - second visit

My friend and I went to Rickety Bridge for a wine tasting and had a very nice experience.

It was a beautiful day so we sat outside on the patio to enjoy the tasting. I can't remember how much we paid for the tasting, but it would have been around R25/R30 per person.

If you like to eat something while tasting wine, or need a break from all the wine tasting, then you can enjoy a cheese platter here for R60 or a meat platter for two for R100.

There are lovely views from this wine estate, the service was very good and there is a nice selection of wines to try. Personally these wines were not my cup of tea, but I have enjoyed their MCC at a wine event on a previous occasion and loved it.

Rickety Bridge Sauvignon Blanc 2014 at R62 a bottle was quite zesty, had lovely aroma, a round feel, and nice lingering finish.

Rickety Bridge Chardonnay 2013 at R85 a bottle had a stunning aroma, lovely round mouth feeling, lacked a bit of flavour, quite a zesty aftertaste. I actually felt this wine left a rough feeling on the tongue; like the feeling when you have burnt your tongue on a hot cup of coffee. It was strange!!

The Foundation Stone White 2013 at R85 a bottle had a lovely aroma, taste and finish. It was a little floral and had a round mouth feeling. I didn't like the aftertaste, it had a powdery finish.

The Foundation Stone Rose 2013 at R50 a bottle, was pleasant, had a light strawberry taste, was a little zesty on the finish. It was ok.

Paulina's Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2011 at R85 a bottle was less offensive than the SB above, it had lighter tones and was nice/ok. It had that stinky wash rind cheese smell on the nose. Thankfully the taste of the wine wasn't the same as the smell!!

Paulina's Reserve Chenin Blanc 2011 at R75 a bottle had a little pineapple on the nose, quite a lot of fruity flavours (like a fruit salad) on the palate. It was ok.

Paulina's Reserve Semillon 2010 at R95 a bottle had a beautiful fruity nose, was soft on the palate and oak on the finish.

Overall you can see these weren't my kind of wines, but I can recommend visiting this winery for a relaxed tasting with lovely views!!

Mooiplaas

This winery is on Bottelary Road on the outskirts of Stellenbosch. This road of wineries is one of my favourites in Stellenbosch because it is not on the main drag, so they are usually quiet when you visit them, they are old, traditional and rustic. I actually find it quite sad that more marketing is not done to get more people to the wineries on this road as they are true gems to visit.

Please note the photos on this page are from the internet as I cannot find the photos I took on my visit.

Mooiplaas was one of those wineries I was putting off visiting because it is a mass producing, commercial winery. But finally I decided today that it was time to visit.

The winery is very nice with the horses on the estate, the option to enjoy a picnic outside on the lawn under the trees and you can sit inside or outside for a tasting.

What started my experience off wrong here is that the lady in the tasting room was busy doing some sort of admin, oh yes, she was paying staff at the time, so I was asked to wait. I waited about 5 minutes and finally was given a price list and explained how the wine tasting works here. It costs R10 to taste 4 wines here and R50 to taste the MCC.

I then asked the lady, as we can only taste four wines, which would she recommend tasting. This is how I ended up tasting the following wines:

Langtafel White 2013 at R40 a bottle. It is a blend of Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc and Semillon. It was quite smooth on the palate, had nice fruity flavours and a slightly acidic, fresh finish. This wine was nice.

Mooiplaas Chenin Blanc 2012 at R60 a bottle had an old musky and fruity smell, it was quite thin with no body, and was smooth. I didn't really like this wine.

Mooiplaas Pinotage 2012 at R69 a bottle was very soft. It is quite light, easy drinking, had slight chocolate tones and was fruity. This wine was ok.

Langtafel Red 2012 at R40 a bottle is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Shiraz. It had a Christmas fruit, earthy, poey, and prune aroma. It was fruity, easy drinking, a little dry on the finish and a nice wine. I felt this wine was value for money.

I have to say, I was pretty disappointed with the wine here. I think this winery is a nice option if you want to enjoy a picnic on a winery and easy drinking wine for low prices.

Service was not so friendly nor did the staff know much about the wine. As always, this has an affect on my overall experience and opinion of a winery.

On the back of the price list I see they have a number of activities to enjoy on the farm also. These include the following:

Picnic by reservation only at R220 a basket which is for 2 people.

The Langtafel Luncheon at R275 pp. "Join the Roos family in the manor house for an unforgettable experience. Welcome drinks, canapes, 3 course lunch/dinner and 6 wines included".

Supper in the Cellar at R150 pp. A wine tasting hosted in the cellar followed by a light supper.

Private Cellar Tastings at R25 pp. Tutored tasting in the Mooiplaas maturation cellar.

Mooiplaas Nature Reserve Hikes at R50 pp.

Horse riding is by appointment.

They have guest accommodation on the farm. It is self catering and sleeps two adults. In low season you pay R600 pn and in high season you pay R750 per night.

I personally wouldn't recommend visiting this winery as there are others on this road I would recommend over this one. However, if you have time to visit them all, then you might as well visit this place. If it is a nice day, perhaps reserve a picnic to enjoy under the trees.

Middlevlei

This was my second visit to Middlevlei. The last time I came here was for a fun run/walk with a wine tasting afterwards. It was over two years ago so I figured it was time I revisited the place.

Lizzie Groenewald is the tasting room manager here at Middlevlei and conducted the tasting with me. She had a group outside enjoying a tasting and boere braai while I was there, but she managed both groups smoothly. Lizzie was able to provide an informative tasting, was polite, professional and friendly, which made for an enjoyable experience here at Middlevlei.

The tasting room is in a simple building as you can see below however it is on a lovely farm with lovely views and farm animals to look at, adding charm and character to the place.

To taste wine here costs R15 pp for 5 wines. You can enjoy a boere braai for R145 pp or a light braai at R75 pp - for both these options you need to book at least 24 hours in advance. On Fridays they do pot brood (I am actually not sure what this is) and burgers. With either of these options you get a glass of wine all for R75. If you want something even lighter, then you can enjoy a braai broodjie at R15 each. I enjoyed a braai broodjie when I visited this place last time and it was delicious!! If you are from overseas and won't have the opportunity of eating braai food while in SA, then this is a must. A braai is the SA version of a BBQ and the braai broodjie is a toasted sandwich which usually has sliced tomatoe, onion and cheese inside. Braais are a true part of SA culture and a visit to SA without a braai is like going to NZ without enjoying a pie, fish n chips, tip top ice cream and a hangi.

While here, I tasted the Chardonnay 2013 at R59 a bottle. It had strong buttery, butterscotch and honey tones. Medium-full bodied wine yet it is unoaked. It was delicious and very much value for money.

Pinotage/Merlot 2012 was R69 a bottle. It was fruit driven, soft, a little dry on the finish. It had a lingering fruity finish, was nice, good quality and yet easy drinking.

Free Run Pinotage 2012 at R89 a bottle was smooth and soft. It felt lighter than the Pinotage/Merlot but is light-medium bodied. It was fruity and a little dry on the finish. I prefered the Pinotage/Merlot.

Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 at R98 a bottle had hints of mint and eucalyptus on the nose and palate. This wine was dry.

Shiraz 2012 at R98 a bottle had nice spiciness on the nose. It was a little sweet, fruity and spicy on the palate.

Momberg 2011 is R225 a bottle and I believe it is not normally for tasting, but if you show real interest in the wines they will open one for you to taste. This is a blend of 35% Shiraz, 28% Pinotage, 24% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon. It spent 15 months in barrel with 50% in new oak and the other 50% in 2nd fill barrels. It had a beautiful nose, was a little sweet on the palate, soft and smooth. I could taste the Pinotage in this wine with its slight chocolate hints. It is a medium bodied wine. It has an interesting mix of flavours. It has 10 years aging potential.

I have enjoyed my experience at this winery on both ocassions and therefore can recommend this winery. I would highly recommend tying your visit with a braai!!

Avondale

Today we went to Avondale to collect a bottle of wine for market research for my work. I am so glad this brought me out here to discover such a fantastic winery.

The place is beautiful and the setting is lovely. The building is nice, the garden is nice, the interior of the place is elegant and beautiful and the tasting room is grand.

 
The service here was very good, the lady was friendly and welcoming.

We had a very nice tasting here. I thoroughly enjoyed the Rose here!! I bought a bottle and have still not opened it yet. It is pricy but I do think its worth it.

La Vierge

Today I was showing some people around the Hemel en Aarde wine route and I decided to take them here for the view.

We did a tasting while here and I have to say, overall, the wine really isn't that good. Again, this is just my opinion.

There are several people who I have spoken to about the experience at La Vierge, and I haven't met anyone that says good things about the wine or food. It is a shame considering their location and lovely views.

The service here was very good. If I remember correctly the lady serving us was doing all the tastings by herself and it was busy when we were there. I therefore think it is impressive that she was able to handle so many people and be able to provide such a great tasting experience.

I would love to recommend this place, but if you are in Hemel en Aarde for good wine, I would not suggest this place. If you are visiting the valley and want to enjoy the views and are not so worried about the wine, then this is a nice place.

Creation

Today we wanted to show our friends the experience one can enjoy at Creation.

They were fully booked but managed to fit us in at 3.30pm. When we arrived the place was bustling and in full swing. We were seated and then it took a good 10 minutes before someone brought us menus and water. Then they very quickly brought some bread out with some rose until they had time to serve us.

We got to order a good 30 minutes later, still no wine came out for the tasting, only when all our food came out did they start the tasting.

Half our table enjoyed main meals for our lunch and the other half did the food and wine pairing at R125 pp.

The canapes (food and wine pairing) is a great experience and if you are not hungry then I highly recommend this option. However, if you come over lunch and are hungry, I recommend you order a main.

The views at Creation are great. The service is very good (when they have time to attend to your table) and the wine is consistently good also.

The experience was heightened today when a group who had come for a wine tasting decided to play the piano and sing. It was awesome, so many tables sang along with the guy playing the piano and it was a happening place.

I highly recommend visiting Creation, but I strongly suggest making a booking in advance especially if you plan to visit on a long weekend. The food, service, views are all very good here and worth planning in advance for.

Domaine Des Dieux

Today I finally got to visit Domaine Des Dieux's new tasting room. It is so refreshingly different to the rest of the wineries on this road. At first when we arrived in the parking area, I was slightly surprised as I had expected something different.

Then when we got inside the tasting room I loved it. This place is so unpretentious and has a very nice relaxing vibe.

It is a basic tasting room with no frills on the outside, but on the inside you feel welcome, at home and you can enjoy the fine wine and view.

As it was a beautiful day we could sit outside on the couches and lounge round for the day (if we had time), or we could sit inside at the long table.

We tasted all their wine and I enjoyed all of them. I am a fan of Domaine Des Dieux wine. My favourites today were the Claudia MCC and the Chardonnay.

Tasting notes:
Sauvignon Blanc - liked.
Chardonnay was creamy with nice acidity. It was soft and nice.
Syrah Mourvedre was soft, pleasant, had good flavour, and a nice finish.
Josephine Pinot Noir  had lovely cherry flavours, was a little dry, nice colour, was a bit "stemmy" and green.
Claudia MCC was very elegant, dry and pleasant.
Rose of Sharon MCC came across as sweeter than the Claudia however the sugar is the same in both these MCC's, apparently it's the Pinot Noir that is making this one seem sweeter.

The guy serving us works permanently in the tasting room and did a great job. He made us feel welcome, he sped up the tasting knowing that we were unfortunately short on time, yet still gave us an informative and relaxing tasting.

Domaine Des Dieux has nice views, so if you come on a nice day, be sure to allow at least an hour to enjoy the whole experience.

I recomend visiting Domaine Des Dieux.

Sumaridge

Sumaridge was yet again busy and couldn't provide the ideal experience. We had this happen last time we visited this estate also. I don't know why they like to short staff themselves on busy weekends.

Anyway, the place is beautiful as always. I love the building and setting.

We got a table no problem, it took a good ten minutes before they got our first wine to us. We got through three of the wines and then had to get going due to a lack of time. We were told we still had to pay for a full tasting, so we asked them to pour the final three wines in our three glasses so we could taste them without having to wait between pours.

I have found on both occassions that this wine estate has been busy yet they only have two staff members on. Both times we have tried to sit down and enjoy the experience, but because they are so busy, it bceomes a frustrating experience. I have found on both occassions that those who stand at the bar get served pretty quickly, so if you get here and it's busy, and you don't want to spend more than an hour to get through the wines, stand at the bar. It's usually a lot quicker and you can always get served everytime they get wine from the fridge.

Notes on the wine:
Sauvignon Blanc 2013 at R70 a bottle was light, not too acidic with a fresh finish. I liked this wine.
Maritimus 2010 at R115 a bottle was soft, flavoursome, creamy, little minerality, tones of apricot and stone fruit, nice lingering finish. This wine was very nice!
Chardonnay 2011 at R150 a bottle had lovely characteristics and flavour. It was smooth, wooded (but not overpowering), lingering finish. Nice flavour, very nice wine.
Rose 2013 at R60 a bottle. This had lovely flavour, was dry, had a nice finish. It was a very pleasant rose.

I do recommend visiting this winery, but try avoid long weekends when Hermanus is busy.

April 2014 Blind Tasting Notes

Today I was invited to participate in a blind tasting for a restaurant who was deciding which wines to list.

This was a very interesting exercise. It was insightful to see how this restaurant decides which wine to list, through a blind tasting, voting, and finally on discussion of price, varietal (or blend) and the name of the wine.

We tasted 26 wines from 9.30am - 12pm, including MCC, White, Rose and Red wines.

The ones which stood out for me were the following:

Colmont Brut from Franschhoek. I had never tried this before and was really impressed!! This wine was for me the most memorable out of all the wines we tasted. I highly recommend buying a bottle if you see it on a wine list or at a bottle store.

De Bos Unwooded Chardonnay from Bosman winery. I liked this wine and it is a very reasonably priced Chardonnay.

Dornier Rose, I am a big fan of this wine, I buy cases of it at a time and here it was in a blind tasting, where I didn't know that was what I was trying, and, I thoroughly enjoyed it. This wine is truly value for money and deserves more credit and attention!! It sells for less than R50 a bottle at cellar door!!

Air Hawk Wooded Sauvignon Blanc. This had a very interesting nose, had beautiful fruity citrus flavours. I was informed this wine is one of Nederberg's wines. I would definitely consider buying a bottle if I saw it on a wine list or on the shelves at a wine shop.

Granny Smith (Boland Cellars) Nouvelle. So it turns out Nouvelle is a grape varietal (just like Chardonnay is a grape varietal). It was my first time trying a Nouvelle wine and I liked it.  There were green tones, but they were light, so I still liked it. I usually can't stand green wines. It has a fun loving label, which is an old lady wearing a floatation ring/tube device around her waste. You know, the rings you blow up and use in a swimming pool? Anyway, nice wine, and it's very low in price. So if you are looking for a fun, easy drinking white, then this is perfect.

Vrede en Lust White Mischief had lovely flavours and a lovely finish.

Jakalsvlei Pinotage was light in colour, had an interesting nose, was soft and light on the palate, was a little sweet, I liked it. The price of this wine is low and therefore this wine is value for money.

Glen Carlou Cabernet Sauvignon had a nice nose, colour, was soft and I liked it. It was a little dry though.

Allee Bleu Shiraz had a lovely nose, was soft and pleasant.

Vansha Red, apparently from Ridgeback, had good colour, was soft and smooth, and had a nice flavour to it. I really liked this wine. The price on this is also low and therefore a value for money wine!!

Dornier Tempranillo was pleasant, had nice characteristics and I liked it.

Bellevue Wine Estate - Second visit

I just love the wine here, so I went for a second tasting to get some more stock.

Unlabelled Chenin Blanc 2012 was very fruity, nicely balanced, slight underipe fruit flavours on the finish, but pleasant. This sells for only R20 a bottle.

Under their premium collection I tried the Morkel Pinotage 2010 (R95). It was smooth, fruity, very pleasant. It had nice medium body, lovely dark fruity flavour. I liked this wine.

Morkel Atticus 2010 is a Cape Blend (R95). Wow!! Gorgeous aroma and taste. Stunning. Very ripe fruit flavours. Nicely balanced and integrated!!

Morkel Malbec 2010 (R95) had wild berry and spice aroma and taste. It was soft, had a very unique aroma, it was lovely.

Under the Super Premium range I tried the PK Morkel Tumara 2006 (R125) it had grippy tannins, medium - full body. Quite fruity. It was a little dry on the finish. It was a serious red.

I am a big fan of their wine. The experience is quite nice also as it is traditional and rustic. This place is worth visiting.

Saxenburg

I have driven past this winery so many times on my way to and from work and today I had a bit of time so dropped in to taste the wine.

(All the photos used on this page are from the website as I cannot find my photos that I took).

I was the only one there at the time of visiting which was nice as I got a very informative tasting from the guy that was working that day.

I tasted the Shiraz 2009 at R150 a bottle which was soft, smooth and a little spicy. I liked this wine.

The Shiraz 2003 at R250 a bottle was soft, medium bodied, was nicely aged, round mouth feeling, little spicy. I personally felt it was past its prime drinking time however.

Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 at R190 a bottle had a nice tobacco nose, was soft and smooth on the palate, a little spicy and had a lingering finish. It was quite a serious wine so I suggest drinking this with food or aging longer.

Merlot 2009 at R140 a bottle had a lovely nose, was smooth, had an elegant body, with rich berry flavours and fine tannins. I thought this was a good wine until I got to the finish. I didn't like the finish as it was a little dry and I didn't agree with the mocha flavours that came through on the finish.

Pinotage 2009 at R120 a bottle was soft, light, medium body, a bit green, savoury, and marmite tones. I didn't like this.

Methode Cap Classique at R180 a bottle had nice biscuit/yeasty characters, was creamy, nice, had hints of honey and nuts on the palate, with a tropical fruity and dry finish.

Chardonnay 2012 at R100 a bottle had light oak on the nose, a lovely oak, nut and fruity flavour, was soft. I thought this wine was lovely.

Out of all these wines I bought a bottle of the Shiraz 2009 and Chardonnay 2012.

To be honest, I wouldn't go out of my way to visit this winery. If you are driving past and have some time to spare then why not. Even though the service was very good, and the wine tasting experience was fine, the overall experience didn't impress me.

Maison

Some friends and I visited a few wineries in Franschhoek today and this one really impressed me.

We had a look around the place before sitting down for a wine tasting. There is a tasting room and restaurant here.

I was impressed by the length of the long tables outside on the grass and the lovely setting here. The place was quite busy, so it looks like another place which you will be better off booking in advance.

Inside at the tasting room you can enjoy a wine tasting or a wine and food pairing. We all chose to do the latter at R50 pp. The pairing was very nicely done and was truly the best one I have had so far.

We tasted the Maison Chenin Blanc Reserve 2012 at R150 a bottle. This was ok, but it didn't jump out at me. It was a little bit watery, yet fruity. It seemed to lack character that you would get from older vines.

Maison Blanc de Noir at R110 a bottle, was a very pleasant dry wine with lovely fruity flavours and a long finish. It went very nicely with the sweet truffle.

Maison Shiraz 2011 at R140 a bottle, was beautiful on the nose, had stunning spicy and berry flavours, was smooth, light - medium bodied, I liked this wine.

The lady serving us happened to have a bottle of the Shiraz 2010 open and gave us a taste which was very nice of her. This one had heavier berry tones to the 2011, it had more tobacco leaves and leather tones. It was dryer than the 2011.

Maison Viognier 2013 at R180 a bottle isn't usually opened for tastings, but the lady serving us was very kind and gave us a tasting of this wine. It was smooth and silky, had nice soft fruity aromas and taste. It had subtle stone fruit flavours.

Maison Chardonnay 2012 at R120 a bottle, I was not a fan of. It was a little tart, was light in body and again seemed to lack character in comparison to wines from older vines.

Maison Cape Ruby Port at R150 a bottle was stunning. It had very nice fruity flavours. I love the colour of this wine also!

Maison Straw Wine at R180 a bottle was lovely. It was not too syrupy, not too sweet, it was just right. It went nicely with the gorgonzola/blue cheese.

I finished the tasting with a cup of coffee and I have to say it was excellent. If you don't feel like a wine tasting here, then be sure to enjoy a cup of coffee.

I highly recommend visiting this winery. The service was good, the staf were polite, the food and wine pairing was well prepared and the overall experience was very pleasant.