Cape Town Wine » Cape

Red wine, luck or lose.

admin — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 17:59:43 +0000

Yesterday evening, the warm north west wind was blowing which is always a sure sign that twelve to twenty-four hours later a serious Winter storm will blast the Cape Of Storms. We simply had to get down to our jetty to enjoy a glass of red wine and the full moon on this Indian Summer night.

Red wine substitute

After unpacking the wine cupboard and closely examining dozens of bottles of white wine we came to the realisation that we were clean out of red wine. Not even a bottle of plonk was on hand.

Then inspiration struck. After ransacking the not-to-be-disturbed, keep for a special occasion wine stash in the bedroom cupboard, two bottles of splendid red wine were unearthed – Steenberg Nebbiolo 2008 and Steenberg Catharina 2007 no less.

Sure, the Nebbiolo was to be relished at a future dinner party when I would serve it with osso buco to wine fundi friends and sure, we had decided that the Catharina was too young to be appreciated fully and needed more bottle maturation.

The decision as to what last night’s special occasion was, seemed too great for either of us to take.

Let lady luck decide – heads and we crack open the Nebbiolo, tails we make two mugs of hot chocolate.

Did the coin land on its side?

We drank our hot chocolate in silence in the balmy night air and then went to bed.

P.S. Watch this space for that Nebbiolo review.

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Baboons lay waste to Franschhoek vineyards

Glenda — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 14:45:43 +0000

According to Mark Dendy-Young, owner of La Petite Ferme, his vineyards have lost 40% of the annual crop and as much as two to three tonnes a week, enough to make 2,000 bottles of wine.

Male Chacma Baboon

The troop of about fifty marauding baboons have been driven closer to farm lands in search of food because recent bushfires have driven them down from the mountains surrounding the Cape’s wine district, Franschhoek. Dendy-Young told Decanter.com that the animals know just when the fruit is about reach optimal ripeness and scavange the vines just before they are harvested.

Also affected are the Moreson Pinot Noir vineyards which are situated on high slopes.

These primates are agressive, invasive animals and thrive in the Cape Town mountains where they seemingly have few, if any natural predators to control their numbers.

An ongoing problem is that people feed them in spite of many warnings and the baboons associate a human being with food. This results in cars at sight-seeing stops and picnic areas being trashed. Many homes in areas bordering on the mountain reserves have been ransacked and people have been attacked while the baboons attempt to snatch away food.

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Wellington Western Cape, Wine Harvest Festival 2010 – 20th, 21st, 22nd March

Glenda — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 19:55:35 +0000

Just 45 minutes drive out of Cape Town lies Wellington on the banks of the Kromme River surrounded by the majestic Groenberg and Hawequa mountains. Known for fruit production, grapevine nurseries and home of an historic religious seminary and college, Wellington has 26 wineries

Wellington Wine Harvest Festival

within a short distance of each other. Some of the Wellington wineries stretch over alluvial terraces towards the Swartland’s rolling hills and

wheat fields, while others are found in the foothills of the towering Hawequa mountains, where folds and valleys create unique meso-climates. The predominate varieties grown here are Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinotage, Shiraz, Chardonnay and Chenin blanc.

Happening this weekend is the annual Wine Harvest Festival from Saturday until Monday with all of valley’s wine farms offering events such as musical entertainment; wine, brandy and grappa tasting; vintage cars and cricket; gourmet food tasting and much more.

The participating wine farms are 5 Mountains, Alkmaar Boutique Vineyard, Andreas, Bontebok Ridge, Bosman Family Vineyards,Bovlei Winery, Diemersfontein, Doolhof Wine Estate, Douglas Green, Dunstone Wines, Mont Du Toit Kelder, Nabygelegen Private Cellar, Oude Wellington Estate, Schalk Burger and Sons, Val Du Charron, Wamakersvallei Winery, Wellington Cellar and Welvanplas.

My wine recommendations? Don’t miss the Andreas Shiraz and Dunstone’s award winning Shiraz. Schalk Burger & Sons have a big Bordeaux blend, Cricket Pitch and in the Meerkat range Burrow Blend is fantastic for everyday drinking. The Meerkat Chenin blanc is made from grapes off extremely old vines and has character you won’t expect from such a well priced wine. Diemersfontein wines are bold, beautifully crafted wines and offer an excellent example of pinotage.

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