Bake the Perfect Bastille Weekend
Posted by ymartiny | Filed under Wine@ventures
- in the winelands of Franschhoek -
How else do you celebrate the storming of that infamous fortress-prison than with the storming of the rolling hills of Franschhoek with only your wineglass in hand and a few good friends to help you ‘share the burdon’ that is Wine Tasting?
Franschhoek is where a young group of wine-whores found themselves this weekend. Yes, that’s right. They sold themselves, their trade and their dignity for a decadent weekend of absolute indulgence. Here’s the recipe …
One part majestic mountain range
Two parts cellar extravaganzas
A constant, soothing river-flow
Sprinkle with a collection of the finest hosts and hostesses; and mix with South Africa’s biggest names in wine until you have a firm understanding of beauty
Remember: For every measure of expense, add a measure of humility
Bake with warmest, welcoming fireplace and instantly cool down with icy mountain air. Repeat 9 times and stretch out in front of a sunset. Melt the best cheese in the world over two days of lazy bread and enjoy at your desk on a Monday morning while you reminisce of a weekend gone so fast.
One part majestic mountain range
Don’t be surprised if you arrive back home only to find more pictures of the mountains than that of your family and/or friends. I made that mistake as can be seen here … here … here … oh, and here, etc.
Two parts cellar extravaganzas
Delightful Dieter from Lynx took us for an updated tour of his cellar and we got to taste some pre-bottled Chardonnay and Grenache which “was like off the hook” (said in teenage voice, that’s how excited I was). We started Saturday with a cellar tour and ended it with another unplanned one at Haut Espoir with the Mr Gentle Giant himself treating us to a vertical tasting of his Shiraz’s.
We were Hustlin’… and so were the wines!
For some strange reason I recall that it was also at these two farms that we got to taste some of the best wines of the weekend … strange …
After a quick visit to the dungeons of Shire-inspired Chamonix and a sunset from their neighbours’ lawn, it was back to our Holiday Mansion.
A constant, soothing river-flow
We spent the night at the Ou Hollandse Molen. The the crackle from a lonely braai and the gushing of the Berg River added the final symphony to a perfectly composed day. This same river, I believe, and not the wine, was the reason we had an early night and abnormally early Sunday morning.
Sprinkle with a collection of the finest hosts and hostesses
Don’t tell Stellenbosch this … you know how they get, but I think the cellar/tasting room attendants, even at the bigger conglomerates like Graham Beck and L’Ormarins in Franschhoek, have more approachable and friendlier demeanors than some of the more ‘boutique’ style farms in other areas (how many toes and eggshells did I destroy right there?). Seriously, go have a look. Joy and her SABC-repeat stories of the history of the winemakers at Stony Brook is another example of this and how charming and open these people are.
I mean, you have the world’s drunkest collection of people and wine snobs falling over each other with their glasses stretched to the neck of yet another one of your wines when they have already exhausted your entire range, and yet you remain calm and strangely sane while tipping the bottle one more time … I saw a few of them over at Noble Hill. They were once again the prefect hosts, by the way. I applaud you ladies and gents of the stained grape counter, floors and walls!
For every measure of expense, add a measure of humility
Another area they do well in and for some mathematical-psychological reason, get right every time, is to add humility according to the amount of money spent on the tasting room, or in some cases the wine. This leaves you never confused, intimidated/ing or ignored. Instead, it makes you feel right at home … whether it is theirs or yours. Vrede en Lust is a perfect example of this.
Melt the best cheese in the world over two days
At Anura, our last stop on Sunday, we had some … actually, a lot of their cheeses. We sat on the stoep listening to one last poem, took one last photo and took in one last breath of freshly produced air. Our journey back home was a long and sad one. Even with the cold (I’m not bitchin’ – the cold added to the magic you can only find in this corner of South Africa) our hearts stayed warmed by those we encountered in the richest (of everything) place on earth.
My descriptions and opinions are purely based on the limited amount of farms visited and does not at all represent my opinion of any other farm or collection thereof in this area. Herewith a list of the awesome farms visited which are rated and reviewed on South Africa’s official and unsoiled authority on Wine Consumer Opinions – Spit or Swallow:
2 Responses to “Bake the Perfect Bastille Weekend”
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Tweets that mention YmartinY » Blog Archive » Bake the Perfect Bastille Weekend -- Topsy.com Says:
July 20th, 2010 at 09:46[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Martin van Oordt, Martin van Oordt. Martin van Oordt said: Baked the Perfect Bastille this Weekend in Franschhoek http://wyn.cc/ep4no >> A @YmartinY point of view [...]
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Haut Espoir – Bastille Reflections Says:
July 22nd, 2010 at 11:20[...] we got a mention on YmartinY for a similar experience. We started Saturday with a cellar tour and ended it with another [...]
