“Time flies when you are having fun”, so they say. It sure has. It is 6 months since my first blog, since I stumbled into the limelight with a new passion. The Cape Wine Lovers’ Society is developing. Together, we have already achieved much from nothing:

• 6,049 blog views
• 2,984 blog visitors
• 472 wines tasted
• 120 FaceBook members
• 89 blog posts
• 65 vineyard and festival tasting reviews published
• 54 countries explored the blog
• 36 Instagram posts
• 6 tasting evenings held
• 3 training courses completed
• 1 passion!

It has been quite a journey and quite an adventure. I have sought purpose and a direction for a while since arriving in South Africa from England in 2010. My love of wine has given me both. This love so effortlessly blends all my passions: for learning, for sharing, for people, for entertaining, for fun and for adventure.

The writing becomes easier and my palate more acute and refined. My aims have nonetheless remained unchanged from the start. I seek to demystify what, at times, can be a snobbish or esoteric past-time. Another popular saying is “The more I know, the less I know”. It certainly applies to wine. But, as I have learned, it is not always so complicated. We like what we like and we drink what we like with the food that we like. That is ok. Theory matters not when it comes to personal preference.

I aim to bring open and honest opinion. I do not pretend to be an expert or know all. I am as likely to praise or critique as I see and as I taste. It does not always make me right. That is also ok. My independence, and that of the Society, is another passion. It is the reason I started. I did not wish to be tied to any vineyard or supplier or region or even country. The more I visit and the more I taste, the more assured and more confident I have become in my opinion. I notice more and am more attuned to my preferences and styles of the wines I enjoy. I have become more sceptical of wine ratings and vineyard reputations.

This is my first 500-word “Reflections in a Wine-Glass”. I shall write more, informally and infrequently, as I open my thoughts and experiences of this beautiful country and its wines. The diversity – whether quality or price or cultivar or scale or producer – is staggering. I am conscious too I have barely scratched the surface. I am enthusiastic about all, especially the small, boutique vineyards with their individual wines. The story behind the winemaker or owner is every bit as fascinating as the wines they produce.

One reflection is here to last, of that I am sure. It is my passion for wine and all associated with it. It is my passions of passions – all in one glass!