Tasting Italian Cultivars South African Style – No Need to Buy Italian Wines!
Thursday 24 August 2017
Italian wines were the theme for our 9th Society Meeting. I like to vary the monthly themes between regions and cultivars, other topics too, and so this made a perfect choice. I had been inspired to choose Italian wines after tasting wines at the Vineyard Hotel by Italian importer Nobile Collezione, based in Somerset West. However, I soon realised from tasting visits to Waverly Hills, Morgenster and Steenberg estates that there was no need to buy expensive Italian wines. Why not explore instead the Italian cultivars grown and made into wines from our very own vineyards in South Africa? And so, a seed was born.
Meeting: Learn about Italian Wines – SA Style
24 August Italian Wines – SA Style
Italy is the new France! South African wine styles are changing. There’s a move from away from some classic Bordeaux to Rhone varietals/blends to wines using the excellent Italian cultivars.
Learning about How Wine and Food Pair
Thursday 15 June 2017
Did you know how our sense of smell affects taste? Perhaps you have a blocked nose or been a heavy smoker? Try pinching your nose and then eating an orange segment. Can you taste the orange? Most likely not or not much. Open your nose and you will feel the rush of orange taste flooding your mouth. Did you know that our tongue and mouth have about 9,000 taste receptors and that these are replaced every 2 weeks? Or that a quarter of people are ‘supertasters’ with a heightened sense of taste, particularly for bitter foods?
Learning about Wines with the Cape Wine Lovers is Super Cool
Thursday 18 May 2017
The regular wine tasting evenings are a highlight of my month. Today was no exception. I had chosen the wines of Elgin and Hermanus for a mix of reasons: I was unfamiliar with wines of the area; the wines are high quality; and Walker Bay had been suggested to me for a future tasting evening.
Vertically Challenged Amid the Big 5!
Tuesday 9 May 2017
I had long been excited for this meeting. ‘Vertical tasting’ is one where wines from successive vintages, usually consecutive ones, are tasted and compared side-by-side. They are usually offered at specialist tastings and typically for red wines with their more pronounced ageing process. I had never undergone a ‘vertical tasting’ of white wines.
Blind Drunk!
Thursday 16 March 2017
The ‘blind’ tasting of low and high priced wines was one I had been excited about for a long time. I shall repeat the evening again so this will be a short article and hence the SPOILER alert. The concept is easy but great for learning and great for fun: 1. take 8 bottles of wine (4 whites, 4 reds); hide in ‘blind’ tasting bags; pour, taste and evaluate; discuss style, variety, price and preference; reveal, and enjoy!
Grape Fun with Chardonnay and Shiraz
Thursday 16 February 2017
The Argentinean Chardonnay was the winner of the night. It was the last of the four Chardonnays but stole the show by popular acclaim.
Next Meeting – Thursday 16 February – Chardonnay and Shiraz
It’s been a lot of fun thinking about and planning our next meeting – tasting and choosing the wines is such a hard task!
Many thanks to all the new members who have asked to join via FaceBook. We are growing fast but please do ask your friends to join, follow and share widely too.
Another Fun Evening of Tasting and Learning
Monday 30 January 2017
Our first tasting meeting was so successful that I ran it for a second time. The Cape Wine Lovers’ Society blends together many passions I have: a passion for wine, a love of learning, pleasure from sharing and entertaining, and a strong sense of fun and adventure.
The Cape Wine Lovers’ Society is Up and Running – and Tasting!
Thursday 19 January 2017
We had our first meeting last night and what fun it was. The moment had come after all the planning and research. I had visited 9 of the 14 vineyards in the Constantia Valley and surrounds to select single variety wines for the evening. Yes, can you name them all? Please comment here.