Wacky Wine Weekend 2013 Wrap up: Day 2

We woke up on the chilly, but sunny Sunday morning in Mcgregor, as hungry and wolves. After draining my bottle of water, waking up my friends and getting dressed and ready for the day we went for a walk down the main road in search of breakfast. I was silently whispering thanks for my lack of a headache and for finding Deli Girls and Bistro just a couple blocks away with a big sign saying: ‘English Breakfast’.
The deli is packed chock-a-block with amazing ingredients, European sweets, Thai spices, homemade truffles – almost anything your heart could desire. So this is where Mcgregor residents do there shopping.
We walked through and warmed ourselves by the fire and ordered our food.

Breakfast at Deli Girls and Bistro in Mcgregor

English breakfast at Deli Girls and Bistro was served with farm bread for R50

After breakfast I took my friends to the Rhebokskraal Kombuis and Farm Stall across the road for some olive tasting. The garlic and herb olives were my favourite.
They make the most delicious 100% grape juice from the Rhebokskraal estate, but unlike any other grape juice, they make it from wine varietals. I loved the wooded Merlot juice, but other varietals such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Hanepoort are also on offer. The cloudy sweet liquid was such a treat that morning.

Delicious olives from Rhebokskraal in McGregor

Merlot grape juice from Rhebokskraalin Mcgregor

For more information on the town of Mcgregor and it’s shops and restaurants, visit: http://www.mcgregorvillage.co.za/

After packing up our goodies and paying for our stay we were on our way and ready to do some wine tasting.
We stopped at a farm called Tanagra, which also offers a range of grappa for tastings.
We decided it was still a little early for grappa, but went straight onto the wine tasting.
I loved both vintages (2011 and 2012) of the red blend called Heavenly Chaos. Each year the blend is slightly different, depending on the grapes produced that year. They also had the wines on a very good special of R35 and R40 per bottle. They aren’t available in Cape Town, but do deliver.
For more information on Tanagra, visit http://www.tanagra-wines.co.za/

Range of wines from Tanagra Winery at Wacky Wine Weekend

We decided to spend the remainder of our time at Graham Beck Wines. After the whirlwind of missioning the day before, it was nice to just sit back and relax while sipping on great MCCs, eating oysters and listening to some live music reminiscent of Michael Bublé.
The setting at Graham Beck is simply stunning and as it is on the road back towards Cape Town, it’s an ideal last stop. I love the Brut Rose and Blanc de Blanc and got to taste some of the vintage bruts upstairs in the tasting room. I also tried their white wines – the Waterside chardonnay is smooth and very easy drinking.
There is an intriguing collection of art in the tasting room – just another reason to visit the estate.
For more information on Graham Beck, visit: http://www.grahambeckwines.co.za/home

Graham Beck Brut Rose MCC with scrumptious oysters

Live entertainment at Graham Beck Winery during Wacky Wine Weekend

My husband loved the roasted pork belly wraps at Graham Beck

Enjoying the afternoon at Graham Beck Winery

The view from the Graham Beck tasting room is absolutely gorgeous

Tasting Graham Beck Wines

I always hate leaving... but when it’s time to go, it’s time to go and at least I have some wine from the different wineries we visited at home to remember my fun weekend by.
Until next year then...
For more information on Wacky Wine Weekend, visit: http://www.wackywineweekend.com/

Wacky Wine Weekend 2013 wrap up: Day 1

I feel like each year I say this, but this year was by far my best Wacky Wine Weekend. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that I didn't camp, and instead snuggled in a nice warm bed in a cosy cottage in Mcgregor on Saturday night. Maybe it was because I brought a bunch of my favourite people with me (including some first-timers). Maybe it's because of the new wines we discovered... Let's just say it was a winning combination.

R60 to Robertson

The drive to Robertson from Cape Town is a beautiful trip – the waterfalls were in full flow and landscape green with splashes of fynbos. Loaded with coffee and excitement we left just after 9am. 

Of the three cars headed to Robertson, loaded with eager, thirsty friends, ours was the first to arrive. So hubby and I went to collect our passes and started tasting wine at the La Verne Boutique in the town of Robertson itself while we waited for our friends. We tried some nice reds from Burgershof and Bushmanspad - 2 wineries I hadn't heard of before. Once everyone was altogether and had sampled various wines, we decided it was time to plan our route.

For more info on Le Verne, visit http://www.lavernewines.co.za/

Outside La Verne Wine Boutiqe

Burgershof wines - I liked their Cab Sauv/Shiraz blend

Bushmanspad The Menno was great

Wellies adorned and ready for the imminent rainy weather

I, of course had already printed out my map, made lists of places to go and wines to taste – but the only thing that wasn't on our side was time. Leaving La Verne at 12, we went straight to Springfield to throw our first-timers into the swing of things and sample some excellent unoaked chardonnay.
By this stage it had started pouring with rain, so we crammed in and huddled by the fire as we took turns tasting the range of wines.
For more information on Springfield, visit: http://www.springfieldestate.com/

Kyle - the good guy to know at Springfield Wine estate. Follow him on twitter at @KyleLikesWine

The range of wines at Springfield Wine Estate - I liked the Wild Yeast Chardonnay and the Thunderchild

Wine tasting at Springfield - Wacky Wine Weekend

After Springfield we headed to Excelsior Wine Estate. I hadn't been there before and for ages wanted to blend my own wine – an activity the estate offers during Wacky Wine Weekend.
My work copy editing colleague and I blended a great red: 50% merlot, 40% cabernet sauvignon and 10% petit verdot. We called it Copy Cat Vino and will drink it together once the varieties have had some time to settle and marry in the bottle.
We also ate the tastiest chicken Cape Malay curry for lunch from one of the food stalls.
Gerald Clarke played live music, which created a great atmosphere while everyone huddled indoors avoiding the occasional rain.
I also enjoyed the Paddock Shiraz 2009 and the Cabernet Sauvignon.
For more information on Excelsior, visit: http://www.excelsior.co.za/#

Walking to Excelsior we saw the prettiest rainbow

Curry time at Excelsior

Blending our own wine at Excelsior estate

Bottling my own blend of wine at Excelsior estate

Our blended wine at Excelsior estate

Fun times at Excelsior winery at Wacky Wine Weekend

Next stop was Esona Winery. None of us had been to Esona before, so it was a lovely experience visiting this boutique winery for the first time.
They made a great dairy-free butternut soup, which we bought cups of for R15.
The group of us snuggled upstairs around the fire, sipping on soup and wine and enjoying our afternoon.
They have an awseom Shiraz and a great single vineyard Chardonnay. 
For more information on Esona, visit: http://esona.co.za/

Esona Wine Estate

upstairs at Esona's tasting room

Tasting Esona's wines at wacky Wine Weekend

After Esona we went to one of my favourite boutique wineries, which lies closer towards Bonnievale, called Quando Wines.
The tastings offered here were intimate and unlike some of the wineries where there are masses of people and tastings are impersonal. As we arrived, we sat ourselves down near the fire before Terrence from Siris Vintners took us through a tasting of the estates wine, providing us with information and anecdotes from the farm.
I love their Chenin/Viognier, Pinot Noir and Rose. They also make an excellent dessert wine. 
For more information on Quando, visit: http://www.quando.co.za/

Wine tasting at Quando Wines

Wine tasting at Quando - Yummy Pinot Noir

Wine tasting at Quando - we dried off nicely next to their fire!

Our last wine stop for the day was Arendsig.
By this stage I was certainly a little tipsy and 'in my cups'...
However, I tasted a couple more wines before we made our drive back to Mcgregor where we had book dinner and were staying for the night. I liked their Shiraz and Cabernet sauvignon.
They also had the most beautiful lab who followed us around thwacking us with his excited tail. 
For more information on Arendsig, visit: http://www.arendsig.co.za/wines/

Arendsig Wines

The friendly lab at Arendsig wines

We ended the night with a dinner at a lovely husband-and-wife team Aimee and Ryan (who previously headed up The Cellars-Hohenort's The Conservatory) restaurant called Karoux in Mcgregor. It's a quaint and cosy establishment, with a fair wine list and hearty winter dishes.
I had the mushroom risotto, which was rich, but beautifully balanced and flavoursome. Hubby had the lamb shanks, while others tried the slow-roasted pork belly and the beef steak.
Everyone raved about their food and it was a fantastic way to a fabulous, wine-filled Wacky Wine day....
After dinner we retired to the Overdraught pub, a tiny bar at McGregor Country House (about 2 blocks away), where we spent the night. 

For more information about Karoux Restaurant, visit: http://www.karoux.co.za/about-karoux-restaurant.php

lamb shank at Karoux Restaurant Mcgregor

mushroom risotto at Karoux Restaurant Mcgregor

Steak at Karoux Restaurant Mcgregor

Stay tuned for scenes from our next episode....
*ahem* Wacky Wine Weekend 2013 wrap-up: Day 2.

More more information on Wacky Wine Weekend, visit: http://www.wackywineweekend.com/

Creamy dairy-free butternut soup recipe

Many people ask me how I get the texture of my soups and curries to taste so creamy and rich without using dairy. The key is to use coconut cream. I also roasted the butternut in this recipe, instead of boiling it, because the flavours are much more rich this way. Serve with a wheat-free roll for the perfect winter dinner or lunch - yum!

-1 large butternut (around 500g), peeled and cut into chunks
-6 whole baby onions, peeled
-4 whole cloves of garlic unpeeled
-A few sprigs fresh thyme
-cinnamon
-salt and freshly ground pepper
-extra virgin olive oil
-1 cup chicken stock
-1 tin coconut milk or cream
-about 10 leaves of fresh sage

Place butternut in a large roasting tray, sprinkle lightly with cinnamon. Scatter onions and garlic on top. Scatter thyme over and drizzle with olive oil. Season and roast for about 40 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius or until butternut is soft and only very slightly browned.
Squeeze the now-soft garlic out of the cloves into a food processor. Add the butternut and onions and slowly ladle in spoons of chicken stock. Pulse until smooth. A puree texture will form.
Pour coconut cream in and blend until smooth.
Place a large pot on the stove and gently heat the sage leaves in some olive oil. Swirl these around the pot until only just crispy. Pour the soup into the pot and bring to a nice simmer. Serve hot... and with a smile :-)

Wine tasting on Sunday in Franschhoek: Grande Provence, Chamonix, Dieu Donne

It's always great to spend the weekends out in the winelands, but not all farms are open on Sundays, which can be quite annoying as that's is when most people are free. So, a few friends of mine and I decided to head out to Franschhoek in search of wineries open on Sunday.

Our first stop was Grande Provence. It's R50 per person to taste 8 wines (or R40 for 4), of which my favourite were the Chardonnay and Viognier/Chenin Blanc blend. They have a cozy fireplace and a cool intimate tasting room. It was pouring with rain, so we were grateful for the warmth!

The Winery is open for tasting from 10am to 6pm daily with Cellar Tours weekdays at 11am and 3pm (R15 per person).
For info, visit the website:
(http://www.grandeprovence.co.za/award-winning-wines-franschhoek/index.html)

The tasting room at Grande Provence

The tasting room at Grande Provence has a cosy fireplace.

A list of prices on the chalk board at the tasting room at Grande Provence

We then headed to Dieu Donne, which has a great restaurant and cosy tasting room with a fireplace.
The tasting room is open until 4pm, 7 days a week.
The Roca Restaurant offers great hearty dishes on their winter chalkboard menu, such as braised lamb shanks, eisbein and slow-roasted pork belly.  The view from the restaurant overlooking the valley is also phenomenal.
For more information, visit the websites:
http://www.rocarestaurant.co.za/
http://www.dieudonnevineyards.com/

Dieu Donne tasting room

Tasting wines at Dieu Donne

Dieu Donne tasting room with fireplace

eisbein at Roca Restaurant

Lamb shank at Roca Restaurant 

Chamonix was our last stop. They are open 7 days a week until 5pm for sales and 4:30pm on Sunday for tasting. Tastings are located in The Blacksmith's Cottage, built in the late 18th Century and converted into our comfortable tasting venue. Tastings are from R20 per person. 

Their Troika (red blend) and Pinot Noir are absolutely amazing...

For more information, visit: http://www.chamonix.co.za/taste_eat

Troika

Mon Plaisir Restaurant

Mon Plaisir Restaurant 

The wine tasting ladies at Chamonix

Our car boot after the afternoon wine tasting in Franschhoek