Where The Water Flows

WATERKLOOF

There are times when one has the pleasure of meeting a wine that would pair with just about anything – this tasting in particular held a wine that would match “ribs, body parts & spaghetti Bolognese” – how very versatile!

WHITE:

• Circumstance Sauvignon Blanc (2013): 3 – 4 months to ferment (vs std of 1 -2 weeks), natural ferment partially in tank, partially in barrel, hand picked, whole bunch press. Lime & flint, lime zest, lime marmalade with a sprinkling of sugar, orange rind, sour Jelly Tots.

• Circle of Life (2011): Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin, Chardonany & Semillon, 50% barrel ferment, bottled for 1 year to integrate, 600l barrels. Honey & orange jam on crumpets, dried apricot, smokey grilled caramelized orange & apricot, Mr Bennett. (**)

ROSE:

• Circumstance “Cape Coral” Mourvedre (2013): Whole bunch press, 5 – 6 months on lees. Rose Sparkles, slightly salted watermelon, hint of Marmite, melted Marmite with butter

RED:

• Circumstance “Seriously Cool” Cinsault (2012): 45 year old bush vines, name refers to the serious palate & cool climate, 1^st vintage produced, wooden fermenters vs barrels, basket press. Cherry squashed in sand, cherry jam, cherry gummy bears, Velcro tannins, slight bitterness, pretty ginger biscuits.

• Peacock Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon (2011): Wooden fermenter. Sweet cherry syrup jam with a spritz of nutmeg, cherry mince pies, shot silk velvet, could be cold.

• Circle of Life (2009): Cab Sauv, Cab Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Shiraz, Mourvedre, Grenache, Cinsault. Tinned strawberries, velvety, baked strawberry jam with cream in mince pie pastry & nutmeg.

Notes:

• Farm is organic & biodynamic
• Use horses to plough vs tractors – each horse has 600kg of pulling power. The soil is not compressed by the weight of the tractors & the roots can grow deeper (5m vs 1m)
• Screw cap with whack = no oxygen
• Leave airspace in bottles for CO2 levels & expansion (heat)
• Peacock Ridge is a food-driven range
• Cinsault was most widely planted grape in SA until 2009 (now Chenin)
• Cinsault = Poor man’s Pinot Noir
• “Female winemakers produce more elegant wines”
• Rose is made from Mourvedre – bigger berries = less skin contact & tannins
• “Show the consumer in the bottle what you tasted in the vineyards”
• Cows are sacred in India because their hooves and horns keep energy in
• 500 Preparate = Nettle, camomile, dandelion tea, egg shells, manure, volcanic ash.

Salty Salivations - SA Cheese Fest 2014

Dear Friends,


As we approach the first repeat of an event to be documented upon my dear little blog, it seems fitting to encourage my fellow enthusiasts of The Good Wine supported by The Good Food to visit the 2014 SA Cheese & Wine Fest over a pending weekend.


Below, I have revisited my favourite experience of the day (which I am led to believe will be recreated at this year's festival):


Fleur du Cap’s Pinotage & “salt” pairing:

o   I expected us to receive little ramekins of exotic salts to dab on our tongues & then taste The Wine but was most pleasantly surprised to find out we were instead being treated to actual food – small bits of very delicious food at that – and learned some grains of wisdom around salt as well (I was mostly too enthralled by my wine & tiny food to take notes of this). The notes I did take include the following review of The Food & The Wine – regarding The Salt – there were a bunch of cool ones, The Food & The Wine were far more remarkable:

o   ’05 Pinotage + Steak tartar with poached quails egg& a garlic cream: I like people who feed me poached eggs, especially tiny ones. With wine. I liked this pairing + the Pinot was rather lovely (I may have been too distracted by the tiny poached egg to notice more about the wine).

o   ’09 Pinotage + Braised beef samoosa with hummus& a sea vygie jam: The food was, again, most enjoyable. But I did take a few notes on the wine this time – meaty, venison, silky beef stew, salty, cheddar on a burger, banana yoghurt. French & American oak.

o   ’11 Pinotage + Venison, beetroot puree, mustard cream & rocket: Such a pretty teensy dish with so many colours. I also remembered to take notes on the wine (*Note to self – don’t pretend to taste wine in the vicinity of tiny poached eggs): Smokey nose, game meat, smoked coconut, green peppercorn, stronger tannins. French & American oak


For those detail-oriented enthusiasts of The Wine, one can enjoy an experience similar to the above as follows this current year:

"Salt Aficionado Chef Craig Cormack will treat festival goers to exciting tastings with three Fleur du Cap Pinotage vintages paired with delicious nibbles, dusted lightly in exotic salts from around the world. This Fleur du Cap experience in the Food Theatre is a collaboration with the Pinotage Association.

 

The Fleur du Cap Pinotage and Salt experience in the Food Theatre is presented daily during the following time slots:

·         Saturday, 26 April: 11h00 to 12h00

·         Sunday, 27 April: 15h00 to 16h00

·         Monday, 28 April: 12h00 to 13h00

·         Tuesday, 29 April: 12h00 to 13h00"




Revisit the rest of my 2013 experience here:


http://findingwining.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-festival-of-cheese-strongly.html

From the Source of the Chardonnay

De Wetshof

Most often, I am rather chuffed to be drinking wine of any sort but when the tasting consists solely of bubbles & Chardonnay, I am especially in my element. Even more so when it is produced by the farm first to plant Chardonnay in the country.

MCC:

• Brut 2008: 3000 bottles produced, 60% Chardonnay, 40% Pinot Noir. Appletizer, slight apple cider vinegar, lemon curd on crack, yeast sherbet, lurking lime zest, smidge of apple cider. (*)

• Brut Rose 2008: 3000 bottles produced, 100% Pinot Noir. Cherries in apple cider, berries in balsamic reduction, sharpness, sour cherry sherbet, whiff of Cherry Coke, bubbles tickle the intestines. (*)

CHARDONNAY:

• Bon Vallon (2013): Planted on a farm called Bon Vallon – beautiful valley, unwooded, lees contact. Mango & orange juice, roast aubergine, slight boiled cabbage, toasted cashew brittle, burnt caramel popcorn, nutty crème brulee sugar, silky tulle, slightly overripe strawberries. (*)

• Finesse (2013): 1/3 1^st fill, 2/3 2^nd fill, 6 months on oak. Orange Dynajets, Super C’s, drop of peanut butter, chicken liver pate with orange & grapefruit, I’d like to eat it on crackers. (*)

• Bateleur (2011): 12 months 1^st fill French, barrel selected. Buttered kiwi croissant tart, baked peaches on puff pastry, croissant Tiramisu, slight sharpness, mouthwatering grapefruit, spicy baked orange pith. Lots of aging potential! (**)

Notes:

• Danie De Wet was the first to plant Chardonnay & Riesling in SA

• Famous for the fountain on the farm

• Family run farm

• Pieter de Wet is the winemaker currently

• Pieter started making MCC at 16 years of age

• Wines are made to age for 10 – 20 years

• Use clear bottles to show the colour of the wine – bottles are kept in the cellar so light exposure is limited

• “You should play with it more often”

• Bateleur – Danie visited France & was chosen to plant Chardonnay

• Brought the vines into the country illegally

• First vintage won Best Wine in the world

• 28 year old vines, single vineyard

• The Eagle (Bateleur) – fierce but elegant

Sauvignon From The Stars

Sterhuis

From the farm who produces my sweetheart love of wine, I was not surprised to enjoy even the Sauvignon Blanc.

MCC:

• Blanc de Blanc (2010): 6 000 bottles produced, 100% Chardonnay, 36 months on lees in bottle, 0% dosage. Rye honey, marmeladey honey, pithy malt, flinty gravel.

WHITE:

• Sauvignon Blanc (2013): 15% natural ferment in old French oak. Green pears & apples, whiffs of apricot, passion fruit, soft, peach juice concentrate, gentle roundness, ladylike but intelligent (**)

• Unwooded Chardonnay (2013): Lees contact. Peaches & banana, apple & orange cream, stewed apple, orange & lime zest & pith. (*)

• Chardonnay (2012): Oxidizes for 5 days. Whole bunch press. Jasmine with digestive biscuits, whiffs of homey, pineapple cream tart, peach & orange honey, pithy, Elizabeth & Mr Darcy, burnt sugar, caramel, Juno wine. (***)

RED

• &Pino(tage) (2013): Exclusively made for &Union, accidental wine, older French oak. Berry chocolate fudge, pretty dark haired lady, sweet cherry syrup, spun sugar, big nose with shy palate, purple Chappies, Pinot Noir like soft tannins. (*)

• Astra Red (2006): 80% new French oak, 24 months,  flagship wine, 30% Merlot, 70% Cab Sauv. Purple jam, blueberry jam, tart grape Chappies, smoked balsamic, slightly over caramelized balsamic on pork.

Notes:

• 17^th century inhabitants used to see the house on the hill with fire outside – argues whether it was a star or a house
• Venus rises behind the hill
• When Wine – app
• Stressed yeast – produces glycerol (oiliness)
• Chard likes air – “you could throw it on the floor & mop it up & it wouldn’t be oxidated”
• Sauv & Chard made oxidatively vs reductively
• “Sauv doesn’t need to taste like grass or green pepper – green pepper is for pizza & grass is for smoking”

Otters Clawing Horny Owls

LOTHIAN VINEYARDS

The tasting featured a wine named Horny Owl as well as two showings of yet another varietal I am only now becoming familiar with – safe to say, an interesting experience all round.

WHITE:

• “Otter’s Claw” Sauvignon Blanc (2011): Fresh & slightly sharp, sour zesty lemon, lemony asparagus, shredded green peppers, sharp cheesey pineapple, passion fruit.

• Riesling (2012): Litchis & white peaches, banana, salty, cheek tingling, strawberry & banana smoothie, banana toffees, sharp salted granadilla.

• Riesling (2011): Oiled peaches, sea sand & gravel, bitter pith, Vaseline, pithy diesel, salted unripe peaches, lurking honey water. 7 – 10 years aging potential.

• Chardonnay (2012): 20% new oak for 8 months. Vanilla & banana custard, honeysuckle, slightly pithy honey, orange marmalade on a scone with cream, salted popcorn kernels (*)

• *Chardonnay (2012): We tried an oxidized bottle as well – orangey banana, subtle & soft, flat.

RED:

• Pinot Noir (2012): Cinnamon buns & violets, strawberry milkshakes, dhal with berry sauce, woolly, lingering banana.

• “Horny Owl” Shiraz (2012): Swartland Shiraz & Elgin Viognier. Spicy beetroot & hints of wet biltong, very ripe cherries, rich, full & smooth, breathing in chalk dust, slightly meaty mushrooms in vinegar.

Learning Lothian:

• Otter’s Claw & Chardonnay are the 2^nd released vintages of the varietals
• Otter’s Claw  - name refers to the clawless otter.
• Chardonnay ’12 scored 92 points on Robert Parker
• Pinot Noir is like an iron fist in a velvet glove
• Horny owl named after 2 Cape Horned Owls “fooling around” while the farm house was being built.
• “The horny owl waits for no one”
• Date of pruning to date of harvest – 180 days by Burgundy standards
• 145 days by SA standard
• Average at Lothian = 165 days
• Lost 3 000 bottles of Pinot Noir to bottle faults
• Elgin wine industry is 15 years old
• Riesling = King’s choice
• A Riesling was the most expensive wine ever sold
• Riesling is never made in new oak

Wines for Tea Time & Pregnancy

Siris Vintners – Selection

 A collection of quaffers – some I’d drink for tea, others are less likely to get you drunk than pregnant.

WHITE:

• Waverley Hills Organic Pinot Grigio (2013): 3 months on lees, “European Sauv Blanc”. Soapy lime, tangy & wispy, light buttery orange, Sauv Blanc with gossamer gloves.

• Seven Springs Unwooded Chardonnay (2012): Hermanus area, 3 year old vines, lees contact. Wet plank, honey spritsed with orange juice, teeny baby sprits, light blueish Brie with figs.(*)

• Groote Post Riesling (2013): Darling area. Oiled green apples, soapy, white peaches with sunlight soap shards, red onion & tomato marmalade (*)

• Post House “Stamp of Chenin” (2013): Helderberg, 35 year old vines, 45 days ferment. Limey Turkish Delight, honeyed rose water, crumpets with jasmine & orange cream, tennis biscuits. (***)

ROSE:

• Haut Espoir (2010): Franschoek, 100% Shiraz, French & Hungarian oak for 8 months. Slightly sour cream with strawberry jam, caramel vodka, strawberry Greek yoghurt, Turkish Delight in caramel cream, melted toffee apple. (*)

RED:

• Anura Limited Release Malbec (2011): Stellenbosch. Zambuk, minty eucalyptus, Vicks, like a punch in the mouth with a glove of curried powder, Stopayne, fennel, smoked cherries lurking.

Sentiments on Siris:

• Malbec – first date wine (high alcohol)
• Hungarian oak – adds spice
• Winemaker at Haut Espoir’s mother loved Hungarian wine so the rose was made for her
• “More people have fallen pregnant than fallen drunk on this wine” – Haut Espoir
• “I’ll drink it for tea”
• “Labels used to look like 2 cherubs humping a wreath” – Stamp of Chenin