Hazendal

Today my boyfriend and I went to Joostenberg for a picnic lunch with friends. After that, we decided to visit Hazendal for a wine tasting.

The service at this winery was very good. The male serving us was very informative, polite and friendly.

The De Haas Range is their lifestyle range. They have the De Haas White, Red and Rose. All three were very nice, easy drinking wines. The red was light and had a lovely fruity flavour and the Rose I felt was perfect for a braai wine. Then again, I am always a fan of roses at a braai :-)

I would have to say my favourite white wine we tried was the Hazendal Chenin Blanc wood matured 2007 at R45 a bottle. I thought it was rounded and very nice to drink. The Hazendal SB 2010 (R47) was nicely balanced and had a subtle tropical fruity flavour. We also tried three red wines: the Merlot 2007 (R60), Reserve Red 2008 (R50) and the Shiraz 2008 (R64). All three of these red wines were lovely!

I would put this winery on your list if you are out this way. The wine was nice, the service was good and the experience was a complete thumbs up.

Wine tastings cost R10 for a tasting of 5 wines here.

Oh, and they were setting up for a wedding at the time we were there, they charge around R7500 for hiring the venue for a wedding reception and R1500 if you have your ceremony outside on the premises.

Grande Provence

We visited this winery to meet friends for lunch. While waiting for our friends to arrive, we did a wine tasting. The wine tasting room was quite full when we got there, and only one person was serving, but she did a good job. There was a great vibe in this tasting room.

 
It costs R30 to taste 4 wines and R50 to taste 6 wines. You are served bread and olive tapenade when you sit down for a tasting. I thought this was a nice touch.

We tried the Sauvignon Blanc 2011 at R99 a bottle. This was delicious, it has lovely tropical fruity flavours, with very fresh lime flavours coming through on the palate, which lingered nicely afterwards. The Chardonnay 2010 at R170 a bottle had a nice buttery texture, was balanced, had a nice smell and had pear tones. I also thought this wine was nice. The Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 was R140 a bottle. It had slight spicy tones, good body (medium body) and nice flavour. I also liked this wine. The Shiraz 2008 at R140 a bottle had cherry, dark chocolate and berry tastes. The Pinot Noir 2010 at R190 a bottle had a very berry taste to it, was medium bodied, which I found a lot heavier compared to most Pinot Noirs. Last of all we tried the Grande Provence 2007 at R350 a bottle. It was full bodied, had great flavour, with hints of licorice, deep plum/berry flavours. I loved it!!!

I would definitely recommend doing a wine tasting here. It was a great experience.

We had lunch at this winery after the tasting. It was a beautiful day, so we sat outside and enjoyed a three course meal. This restaurant only does a three course menu. They do not have a A La Carte menu.

It is quite pricy to eat here. Its R320 for the three course, which includes extras in between meals. You can view their menu on http://www.grandeprovence.co.za/fine-dining-franschhoek/menu.html.

This is what you get to eat to start with, it is one of the extras you get with your three course meal (it was very yummy):

This was my entree. It was a pork salad if I remember correctly:

We were given a sorbet before having our main meal. This was my main, it was delicious:

After our main we were given a small dessert, which was a lovely yet small piece of chocolate brownie. Then for dessert I had the Banana Parfait: banana, roasted macadamia nut salsa, rocky road ice cream … patron anglaise (this was very nice):

I just had a look on the website for the description for my entree and main. But I cannot recognise them on the current menu online. I am guessing they change their menu frequently? As you can see from the photos above and on their website, the chef makes fine dining cuisine.

On a nice sunny day, with good company, a nice bottle of wine and this great food, it makes for a pretty memorable occassion.

Vrede en Lust

We visited this winery after going to Allée Bleue and Plasir de Merle. We enjoyed a nice lunch at the restaurant. We started with entreés, followed by a main. We drank the Vrede en Lust Sauvignon Blanc with our meal, which was very nice.

After lunch, I wanted our friends to try the Viognier at Vrede en Lust, so we went in to the tasting room to try some wine. The Viognier 2011 sells for R130. This is by far my most favourite Viognier I have tried in SA, and the 2011 is as good as the 2010. You must try the Viognier if you come to Vrede en Lust, and, if you pass Vrede en Lust, you must come and taste their wine.

This winery has done a really good job to create a great vibe and provide a great wine tasting experience. The ladies all wear red dresses, which looks stunning. The outdoor seating provides you with an awesome view. If you sit inside, you ideally want to get a seat near the window so that you still get a nice view. The service is very good here and you can see they pay a lot of attention on training their staff.

I highly recommend visiting this winery. If you want to do two wineries in this area I would suggest Vrede en Lust and La Motte. If I was to suggest three for this area, it is hard to choose between Glen Carlou, Noble Hill and Anura. This is a great area to do a wine tour if you only have one day for visiting wines!!! Especially as the wineries are so close in distance, you don't waste time travelling from one to the next.