There are possibly too many fantastic wine regions and farms in the Cape to visit all of them, but I will try my utmost to get around to most! The Robertson Wine Valley has been on my radar lately, and I am happy to say I am making headway. I can now add De Wetshof to the list of Wine Estates I have visited, in Robertson. [Read more…]
The Winter Food and Wine Festival
Calling all food and wine lovers in Jozi!!! I thought I would give you a heads up on The Winter Food and Wine Festival, hosted by Boucheron Wines, happening in Johannesburg later this month.
The festival will be held at a private lodge, just 10 minutes’ drive from Fourways, Johannesburg and will take place on the 26th of July from 11:00 am until 17:00pm.
You can expect a wide variety of artisanal foods, wine tasting from many premium wine estates plus lunch and dessert are included. You will also receive 2 free bottles of wine (including the white merlot) and a gift hamper full of delectable delights for just R365 per person.
You can bring the kids along, as there will be plenty of fun for them too! R50 per child under 12 years and R100 per child between 12 and 18 years of age (No alcohol served to under 18s). Puchase 10 or more tickets at once and enjoy a group discount of 10%.
Festival Details:
Date: 26th of July 2014
Venue Address: 132 MacGillvray Rd, Lone Hill
Times: 11:00 am – 17:00 pm
Pay by credit card or EFT. We’ll take your credit card payment over the phone:
CLICK HERE for tickets or call 011 708 3444!
No tickets available at the door!
Your ticket price of R365 per person includes:
• A gift hamper filled with goodies and a wine glass
• Delicious lunch and dessert included and served from 12:30 …
• Free bottle of White Merlot 2013
• Free bottle of ZenMaster 2013 (red blend)
• Meet your favourite winemakers
• Live Bands
• Kids Zone for under 12 years
• Taste foods from top artisanal producers
Disclosure Ranking: 2
Beau Joubert Wine Estate
I was recently invited to spend a Stomp and Sip Day at Beau Joubert Wine Estate, in Stellenbosch, Cape Town. We were advised to bring our swimming gear along – as we would be “swimming” in grapes! I must admit I was a tad nervous of what we actually be doing but we were promised a fun day in the vineyards!
First a bit of history:
Beau Joubert wine farm, in the renowned Stellenbosch Wine Region, dates back to 1695. Governor Simon van der Stel originally granted the land then known as Veelverjaagt, to Coenraed Visser. A century later, in 1795, the farm was bought by a French Huguenot descendant, Dirk Daniel Joubert, who divided it between his two sons. One of them retained the Veelverjaagt name while the other named his portion La Provence, to honour the birthplace of his forefathers. Five Joubert generations have since placed their unique stamp on this mountainous 80-hectare estate.
An exciting new era dawned at the turn of the millennium when a group of families from Wisconsin, USA fell in love with the grandeur of the Cape.This led to a vibrant American-South African joint venture and a change of name for the farm. The name BEAU JOUBERT combines the French for ‘beautiful’ with the name of the family who originally put the farm on the wine map. Adding to the sense of history is the fact that the dwellings built in the 1700s as well the splendid historic manor house built in the late 18th century still grace the estate.
Stomp and Sip Day:
The day began with grape picking, which we actually missed as we arrived a bit late but we did get to see the grapes being loaded up and transported back to the cellar for sorting.
After grape picking we wandered back down to the cellar to get ready and change into our swimwear, for some grape stomping! As we were advised not to take any cameras or cell phones near the grape tanks, will have to take my word on this one! You could choose from three levels of submergence – being a complete scaredy cat, I opted for the 1st tank, which on reached waist height! There was quite a bit of hysteria and grape throwing which ensued, it was as promised lots of fun and definitely a memorable experience!
Once we had rinsed off and removed grapes from places they should not be, we were treated to a tasting of the first ever bubbly produced by Beau Joubert. The bubbly is still in its infancy stage and is yet to be named. I was rather impressed with the flavour of the bubbly, even in its young state and cannot wait to taste it, once it has been released to the public.
After tasting a few more young wines we were treated to a lovely alfresco lunch.
During lunch we had the opportunity to taste a few of the estates red wines – the highlight for me was definitely the Beau Joubert Shiraz. I liked it so much, I bought a few bottles to take home 🙂
A wonderful day was rounded off with a delicious apple desert and cream, paired with the Beau Joubert Fat Pig Port.
Thank you to Beau Joubert for an awesome experience! What a lovely day, spent with great people, in an stunning setting, eating and drinking delicious wine!
For more information on the farm and their wines please visit the Beau Joubert Website.