Hot at this time of the year is not unusual. Not for this part of the world at least. In Edinburgh it would be quite unusual. The heat makes sleeping difficult, work
uncomfortable and can do a lot of harm to the grapes. I am concerned about the wine while it still hangs
on the trees so we went to Riebeek-Kasteel and Riebeek-Wes to do a pre-harvest
inspection. And relieve some of the
warehouse pressure the producers suffer from.
The Runner drove. I
recommend good looking chauffeurs that drive faster than you do. It simplifies the tasting procedure (for me),
gets me there faster, makes the return journey easier (for me). Also, should the road be unredeemed by a
vista, you could look at the driver.
The longest established and well known winery in the area,
Allesverloren, was our first stop. Last
time I visited here the tasting room was run by a battleaxe whose sole purpose
seemed to be the discouragement of any purchase. Very good news indeed is that now the award
winning wines are sold by Bernie, who was helpful, friendly and knew the
wines. The view from the tasting room is
very good, but then again, it is like that for most of the villages. From the slopes of Kasteelberg you look out
towards the Witzenberge with a lush agricultural valley in between. Amongst the well known Port (1),
Shiraz and Tinta Barocca there was a lesser known wine named for the winemaker,
Danie Malan, called Danie’s Backyard Blend.
This will make a good eponymous gift for a friend. Yes, we have a friend called Backyard.
Back through Riebeek-Wes to Pulpit Rock where patriarch
Brink entertained us. He is the owner of
the most expensive dogs I know of. He
went all the way to Hoopstad (2) and back in one weekend
to collect them. All in all about R5000
per Staffordshire terrier. Yes two of
them. Normally I frown upon people
spending this much on pets, but Mr Brink does not suffer from my
condemnation. As a man of 72 he lost 5kg
in the past week, because he was still packing grapes for export himself. It was well over 40 °C in the shade during
the week in the Riebeek Valley, so it must have been unbearable inside, never
mind doing physical labour. Seeing
that’s how he earns it, he can spend his money on dogs.
I was not familiar with their wines and we didn’t taste all
of them for they are numerous. Great
bargains with Chenin starting at R25 and even the reserve wines are a bargain
at R60. I bought Chardonnay, unwooded
and barrel fermented, Shiraz and Port (yes, still calling it that). The Runner bought some grape juice, Pinotage
Rose, Chardonnay and Port.
An hour sped by talking and tasting before we went in the
direction of the other Riebeek. Kasteel
this time. For some reason although both
villages are Riebeek-something, they are referred to as The Castles. We parked at The Royal Hotel and ambled
across the street to the gloriously cool cellar of Mullineux wines. We enquired from the proprietor how much he
charged per night to sleep in the 20 °C cellar, but he was afraid we would be
drinking his still fermenting masterpieces.
The White blend was still suffering bottle shock so I will have to wait
a bit to taste it. Two bottles of Syrah
(I still call it Shiraz) joined our quest and the hot outside beckoned.
Strolling down the blistering square(3)
we came upon the Wine Kollective. Outside there were three bored, smoking women
keeping watch. We made our vinous
intentions clear to the seeming disappointment of the one with the cooky
hat. On her back was a tattoo in a fancy
font saying “Rachel”. It is probably
still there. I never determined if she
was named Rachel or if Rachel was a significant person in her life. To simplify matters I will just call her
Maybe-Rachel.
The Swartland Revolution currently forms the vanguard of
wine culture and you can buy and taste their stuff as well as other small
producers at The Wine Kollective.
Tasting bottles vary, but you should not expect a bottle of Eben Sadie’s
Columella to be open for tasting. For
R550 a bottle you can open one for yourself. The store’s decoration is Ye Olde Country
Shoppe stuffed with Soviet memorabilia. I
doubt you can find old tin milk can (now earning a living as a spittoon) under
a Soviet star anywhere else. Although we
surprised Maybe-Rachel at 11 o’clock with non working fridges she tried to show
off what she had. Wine wise. We tasted Babylon’s Peak Chenin, an
altogether more serious Chenin from Santa Cecilia and Tres Estrallas El
Presidente, lovingly labelled and wax sealed by Miss Maybe herself. She led us through a series of unfamiliar
producers (unfamiliar to me anyhow.
Quite sure they are familiar to themselves) and the initial reluctance
soon dissolved in her passion and knowledge about the wines.
I’ve long been a fan of Kloovenburg’s Chardonnay. Previously I’ve also stocked their Cabernet
and Shiraz. We pulled into the leafy
surroundings of the cellar/tasting room and received very personal attention
from Willie. As with all the tasting
room staff encountered on this trip he was charming, friendly and passionate
about his product. We tasted a Bubbles
Rose, Sauvignon Blanc from the highest vineyards in the area, Merlot, Shiraz,
Cabernet and a red blend. So what about
the Chardonnay? Turns out they were
snapped up by a big UK client. That’s
good for them and as it turns out good for me.
Kloovenburg also now makes a barrel fermented Chardonnay. A style I first learned to like from the work
of Abre Brouwer at Springfield. It still
has that oaky, buttery mouth feel typical of wooded Chardonnay, but for some
reason this type is slightly sweeter. No
guessing then that I my inventory grew with this and the Shiraz. The
Runner procured a bottle of bubbles for Thai food in winter. The fig mampoer with a lime green hue was a
good palate cleanser but not quite needed in summer.
Like so many places in the valley Kloovenburg also produces
olives and olive related products. I
like their lemon infused and the chilli version of oil. Lots more oils and fruit versions are available
and Willie was quite good at matching them with the wines. The fact that I can’t remember the
combinations is also a good indication that we were in need of lunch. The recommendation here was for Cafe Felix,
he even produced a menu! I’ve read about
the Cat’s Cafe, but we went with Maybe-Rachel’s suggestion. The Jolly Olive has the same view across the
valley that most of the village have to endure.
It is a real local joint and I
don’t mean that derogatively. It looks
like the place to hang out on a Friday night.
We both stuck to M-R’s suggestion of the ribs. The rack was THIS
big. Look at my hands! This big!
For only R80 we ate this happy pig(4) with
small chips, salad and vegetables. Kola
Tonic and soda delivered the necessary rehydration and yet another new
experience for me.
Worn out taste buds meant we skipped Riebeek Cellars. On previous occasions I have found the staff
to be friendly, the wine very good value.
Their produce is available at one of my local bottle stores, so not too
big a loss. I am sure the myriad of olive related products at sale from Het Vlock Kasteel have their proponents, but as mentioned, we were tasted out and
did not linger.
We’ve filled the boot, stretched our gustatory organs and placated
the credit card machines. The news from
the vines is “OK, for now”. So
home. Inside the Nissan the air
conditioner struggled to keep up a comfort level, while outside the sun dealt
harshly with the unwary or the unwise that eschewed the shade.
(1) I
still call it that
(2) Hoopstad. A misnomer of a town hundreds of kilometres from
Riebeek-Wes
(3) Square
is a rather glamorous
(4) Anything
tasting that good in death must have been happy in life.
