Aged Ladies

OLD WHITES

The common perception of white wines is that they must be consumed when young & fresh. This, as a general rule, stands to be true. But as with all things in this wonderful life, there will always be exceptions to every rule.

• Boschendal Grande Vin Blanc (1997): Sauvignon. Citrus, yeasty brioche with old moved grass, noxious honey, bicarby honeycomb, chalky.

• Landua Du Val Sauvignon Blanc (1997): Wet straw with acid, rotten balloon inside, questionable Chardonnay, rotting fennel, like eating a baby naartjie with the peel on, lucern, crushed chalk, sour Jelly Tots at the back of the throat.

• Tokara Sauvignon Blanc (2003): Green Sparkles, asparagus, lettuce, passion fruit cordial, zingy pith, sneeze, grapefruit

• Thelema Chardonnay (1997): Jane Austen, Pride & Prejudice, Elizabeth love, blue gum honey, whiff of crunchies, candied vanilla, dried out naartjie smell, dark chocolate marmalade (**)

• Uitkyk Chardonnay (1996): Marmaladey peels, sharp blue cheese, boiled buttery cabbage, artichoke, yeast, honey, inside of a school shoe, honeyed Vaseline.

• Landua Du Val Semillon (2003): 90 year old bush vines. Zingy balloon, oily, sticky sour honey, like being kicked in the throat by a honey bee, white peach

*Corked bottle of the above: Old dusty granny cupboard, old suitcase, mothballs, like sucking on an orange mothball.

Notes:

• The ‘heartburn’ feeling from drinking some wines if caused by the alcohol

Have Another Sip of Nitida

NITIDA

I have not been especially silent about my misgivings around Ye Olde Durbanville region in terms of their wine offering, but I have also found a few gems worth revisiting – such as the Nitida Coronata Integration. In this tasting we revisited this old favourite.

WHITE:

• Sauvignon Blanc (2013): Lees contact. Soapy lime Turkish Delight, green Sparkles, lime peel, growing acid, nutty, drinkable but lurking acid, slightly weighty.

• Semillon (2013): 50% barrel ferment. Salted green peppercorns, capers, softness, velvety Velcro, Thai curry warmth in the throat, shy, salted honey. (*)

• Coronata Integration (2012): Very salted caramel, honey on buttered puff pastry, baklava, jasmine, peach blossom. 6 – 7 years aging potential. (**)

• Riesling (2013): Platter 5 star. Litchis dipped in Vaseline, lurking petroleum, orange & apricot, crisp green apple, Ruby grapefruit, citrus. (*)

RED:

• Calligraphy (2012): Bordeaux Cab Sauv, Merlot, Cab Franc, Petit Verdot. Blueberry Jolly Jammers, violets, blueberry jam, brambles, Spekulaas, decanter wine.

NOTES:

• 140 5 star wines in 2014

• Platter Guide sales are 2^nd only to the Bible in SA

• “Semillon tastes like ass-paragus”

• Off-dry wines – “the ones you eat with sticky pork”

• Calligraphy named after the diaries that were written in calligraphy made from crushed protea bark

• Use an old milk truck partitioned into tanks for ferment

• 1999 – farm’s first Sauv won double gold at Michaelangelo

• 8 workers on the farm

• Workers used to get paid per lug box

• Nitida now pays the workers for the estimated duration of the harvest

• Harvest 4 – 6 tons per day

The Fairest In the Land

FAIRVIEW

A farm familiar to most due to its scale & Tour d’Cheese, it surprised me to learn they often produce a large array of out of the ordinary varietals.

WHITE:

• Viognier (2013): Paarl & Darling region, 50% French oak, 9 months, batonage. Litchi & pears, green Sparkles, light zest, creamy jasmine with lurking lime marmalade, light & drinkable but pleasantly full. (*)

• Oom Pagel Semillon (2012): Paarl, 20 – 30 year old blocks, 3^rd & 4^th fill French. Just Juice passion fruit & peach, artichoke & asparagus, weed fumes, lurking taste of the smell of my hippie uncle, like an asparagus grew up into an artichoke.

• Nurok (2012): Viognier, Chenin, Grenache, Rousanne, 2^nd vintage released, components fermented separately in barrel for 9 months. Fresh toasted cheese on brown bread, orange jasmine, orange pith with perfume, Granny’s cheese & bacon quiche crust well baked, baked asparagus with soft cheese & butter & flowers.  (**)

RED:

• Tannat (2011): Paarl, Uruguayan grape, picked early & kept at 2 degrees for 4 days, 15 months in 3^rd & 4^th fill French. Raspberry jam, cherry cereal, sharp but rich, fills mouth with cream at the end, tannic to full & back to tannic – like swallowing but not.

• Sangiovese (2012): From Cianti in Italy, translates to Blood of Love, 3^rd fill French. Strawberry jam, tinned & boiled strawberry, bakes strawberry jam Roly Poly, rare smoked pork, almond essence, sour cherry.

• Caldera (2011): 50% Grenache, 30% Syrah, 20% Mourvedre, 7 months in barrel, 10% new, 90% 3^rd & 4^th fill. Mary Poppins strawberry medicine, strawberry jelly sweets, spikey lace, creamy berries, chalky tea tannins. (*)

Notes:

• Fairview consists of 9 farms

• Fairview was the first farm to produce Viognier in SA in 1997

• Oom Pagel was a descendant of slaves & lived on the farm to the age of 100

• Oom Pagel’s grand children still work on the farm

• Semillon was Oom Pagel’s favourite grape

• Tannat is the only 100% Tannat in SA

• Painting on the Nurok label was painted by the owner’s wife whose maiden name was Nurok meaning Diver

• Caldera is a Catalanian pot used for soulful food – winemakers’ favourite

Drifting Along

Winter’s Drift

Another example of the enchanting Elgin region.

WHITE:

• Sauvignon Blanc (2013):  6 000 bottles produced, released 3 -4 months before tasting. Unripe guava, crispy cheesey pears, unripe white cheese, camembert sauce, cheese fondu on unripe pears, crunchy creamed sharp white cheese.

• Chardonnay (2012):  9 months in oak, 50% 1^st & 2^nd fill 300l barrel, 50% steel tank. Digestive biscuit lemon meringue, salted caramel popcorn, orange zest marmalade with cream on crumpets, dahl-like fullness, fresh & light sharpness. (**)

RED:

• Pinot Noir (2013):  3^rd vintage to be bottled at end of November 2014, 9 months on 2^nd fill oak. Blueberry perfume, violets, blue, cinnamon & nutmeg chocolate Jolly Jammers, creamed fruit tart, rich berries, sour cherry, smidgen of coffee, chalky. (*)

• Shiraz (2012): 8% Viognier. Drunken blueberries with green peppercorns, alcoholised black & red jelly babies, big puff of zesty pepper finely ground, pepper in a silk glove, spice in the throat, lurking paprika warmth.

Notes:

• Winemaker is Koert from Spioenkop

• Brothers bought the farm in 1903

• Farm is managed by trustees of the brothers and all profits go to the community

• Planted grapes in 2004 & sell 80% of their grapes to La Motte & Flagstone

• Farm is 1 600 Ha

• Chardonnay & SWinterhiraz is stocked on BA’s 1^st class & business class

An ACide(r) from Wine

EVERSON’S CIDER

Veering off from my normal foray into gaining an education about  The Wine, on this particular adventure, we explored another fermented fruit beverage – The Cider.

• Apple Cider: Med dry by international standards, blend of 5 apples. Rotting apple, old apple juice, micro bubbles, softens a little, spritzy creaminess. (**)

• Pear Cider: 1^st pear cider in SA. Rotting lemon juice, florally nose, softness, lurking acid, like licking a cracker, growing sweetness.

• Cloudy Cider: Apple cider + ¼ apple juice, apple tart yumminess.

• Brandy Cask-Conditioned Cider: 50% apple, 50% pear + honey, 1^st bottling. Raw defrosted chicken breasts, metallic, cream cracker aftertaste with sharpness.

• Cripp’s Pink Single Varietal Cider: Rotting flowers in vinegar, cream crackers dipped in cider vinegar, lurking flowers (*)

• Gnarrr Scrumpy: 3^rd fill oak barrel ferment, 262 bottles produced. Chlorinated dam water, cleaning an apple farm drain, rotting toffee apple water, still.

Notes:

• Pomm fruiit – pears, apples, persimmons

• “Freshly squozen” apple juice

• Cider is like wine – you pick the fruit, squoze the fruit & ferment it.

• Will separate ferment cultivars in future

• “Yeast on a stripper pole”

• 3 cideries in SA

• 14 weeks to ferment & age for 3 months before bottling

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