Gin

Gin is a spirit which derives its predominant flavour from juniper berries (Juniperus communis). From its earliest beginnings in the Middle Ages, gin has evolved over the course of a millennium from a herbal medicine to an object of commerce in the spirits industry. Today, the gin category is one of the most popular and widely distributed ranges of spirits, and is represented by products of various origins, styles, and flavour profiles that all revolve around juniper as a common ingredient.

Prepared to be blown away by these amazing, truly South African, gins!

Jorgensen’s gin is handcrafted in small batches from fine traditional as well as contemporary African aromatic botanicals, featuring wild harvested tuscan juniper, angelica, orris and calamus roots, naartjie, cape lemon and cumcuat, grains of paradise, rare African ginger, exotic ohondua, coriander apricot kernels, liquorice, cardamom, nutmeg and clove.

This exception-to-the-rule gin is hand crafted in tiny batches in a copper pot still.  The botanicals for each batch are suspended in the still above the purest wine spirit to bathe in its vapours.  This gentle bathing gives the gin delicacy and finesse appreciated by almost nobody as they only make small amounts for one-in-a-million individuals.

Inverroche is an independent and family run distillery which lies at the confluence of the Goukou River and Indian Ocean on the southern shores of Africa.

Here, mellow summers and misty winters create the rich Cape Floral Kingdom from which Inverroche gins are made.

Inverroche premium pot still gins are handcrafted in small batches.  What makes them unique is the addition of aromatic varieties of Cape fynbos botanicals which are found only along the southern coast of South Africa.  The dynamic environment at the tip of Africa brings forth subtle seasonal variances in the botanicals.  Therefore each year, Inverroche gin has it own nuanced identity.

 

You can taste and buy Inverroche and Jorgensen's Gin at Wine Village.

Please email us for further enquiries.

 

Bubbly

Champagne first gained world renown because of its association with the anointment of French kings. Royalty from throughout Europe spread the message of the unique sparkling wine from Champagne and its association with luxury and power in the 17th, 18th and 19th century. The leading manufacturers devoted considerable energy to creating a history and identity for their wine, associating it and themselves with nobility and royalty. Through advertising and packaging they sought to associate Champagne with high luxury, festivities, and rites of passage.

Sparkling wine is wine with enough levels of carbon dioxide to make the drink bubbly. Sparkling wine produced in the Champagne region of France is called champagne.

Methode Cap Classique (MCC) denotes a South African sparkling wine made by the traditional Champagne method. Sauvignon Blanc and Chenin blanc have been the traditional Cap Classique grapes but the use of Chardonnay and Pinot noir have been on the increase. 

The carbon dioxide may result from natural fermentation, either in a bottle, as with the méthode champenoise, in a large tank designed to withstand the pressures involved (as in the Charmat process), or as a result of carbon dioxide injection.

The most common method used in France for producing is by ‘methode champenoise’ or the champagne method. This process basically consists of the secondary fermentation happening in the bottle. After the primary fermentation and bottling certain amount of selected yeast and sugar are added in the bottle and it is closed with a crown cap. The wine is then left to age for a minimum prescribed period. On completion of this period the bottled are taken out and placed in special racks at a 45 degrees angle. They are taken out every few days and slightly shaken and then replaced in the racks at a slightly steeper angle. This process continues till the bottles are pointing straight down. This process ensures that the sediment of the yeast settles in the neck. The neck is then frozen and the cap removed pushing the sediment out. The bottle is quickly topped up and corked.

The sweetness of sparkling wine can range from very dry "brut" styles to sweeter "doux" varieties.

The cork flies at such speeds when released because of the pressure built up behind it.

The second fermentation process of champagne, also known as, en triage is where the pressure is built up. During the second fermentation process of champagne, cane sugar and yeast is added to each bottle. The cane sugar and yeast produces alcohol and carbon dioxide, which is the source of the pressure in the champagne. This is also the reason why all champagnes have extremely thick corks.

The pressure of champagne varies from different champagnes. The sources I encountered ranged the pressure of champagne from 4 to 6 atmospheres.   

A pressure of this magnitude is only seen from double-decker bus tires and champagne. 

Ambeloui

We do not need a reason to drink bubbly...especially not when Ambeloui is concerned!

Chardonnay and Pinot Noir vines were planted at Ambeloui, situated in the picturesque valley of Hout Bay, in September 1995 when the Christodoulou family moved from Pretoria to settle in Cape Town. The house and wine production facility with maturation cellar surrounded by a garden of lavender and roses was established in 1996.

The cellar produces only Methode Cap Classique, a bottle fermented sparkling wine in the true Champagne tradition. Grapes are harvested primarily from their own and other vineyards in the maritime climatic valley of Hout Bay, supplemented by a limited quantity from the cool areas of Elgin. Harvesting takes place in late January and early February and carefully timed for optimum berry maturity and balance. Winemaker Nick and his assistant winemaker Alexis, together with the cellar staff of Alfred and David attend to the production, while Ann manages the sales and marketing.

The mainly hand operated specialist equipment used in the cellar was imported from France and Italy. Riddling still takes place in traditional wooden riddling racks and disgorgement is meticulously managed to produce the hand crafted fine wines offered by Ambeloui. In a normal year 7000 bottles are produced and aged on the lees for 2 to 3 years before release. 

Ambeloui is very proud of its bubbly and as the label says “enjoy every drop…you never know if you will find another bottle.”

To enquire about Ambeloui please click here.

Platter's South African Wine Guide

South Africa’s first and still best-selling wine annual, Platter's Guide is the comprehensive, up-to-date and authoritative guide to who's who and what's what in the winelands. Featuring hundreds of producers, negociants and brands, and thousands of individual wines, Platter's Guide packs everything you need to know about the South African wine scene into an informative and entertaining format.
The Platter star ratings gives you a good indication of what to expect from a wine, where five stars is the highest rating a wine can get.   

Platter's Guide was conceived in 1978 by wine lovers and print journalists John and Erica Platter, after reading Hugh Johnson's ground-breaking Pocket Wine Book. The couple wryly recall that the first (1980) edition – an attempt at assembling a local version of the Pocket Book, recording as many of the why, where, when and how specifics as possible – was dismissed as “boring” and a “waste of their money” by a compositor employed by the very company commissioned to do the printing! But three decades, two Best Wine Guide Worldwide awards, and well over a million copies later, we’d like to think the Platters were onto something.

Veritas

After almost two decades the Veritas Awards has earned its reputation as one of South Africa’s most authoritative and credible competitions for market ready wines.

The Awards with its coveted Veritas emblem, has become synonymous with top quality wines. The results are trusted implicitly when international as well as local wine buyers use them to assist in their buying decisions and also when the ordinary wine lover simply selects a bottle from the shelf to enjoy with dinner.

The first National Bottled Wine Show in South Africa was introduced by the SANWSA in 1990 and renamed the Veritas Awards from 1991.

Gold and double gold awards are of significant value to the wine industry as well, as it offers a prestigious image for the wine, winery and winemaker and contributes to growth in sales.

Veritas is the only wine competition in South Africa for the industry by the industry and there is no commercial gain for the organisers, the South African National Wine Association (SANWSA).

Creation Wine and Food Pairing

Wine Village is situated at the foot of the Hemel-en-Aarde (Heaven and Earth) Road. This road has become known for its’ natural beauty and award winning wines that are produced from the clay-rich, stony soils, and cool climate being unusually close to the South Atlantic Ocean.

One of the many wine producers that stand out is Creation Wines, situated 18km from the Wine Village on the Hemel-en-Aarde Road (the R320). 

Our team attended one of the famous wine and food pairing experiences at Creation Wines. They have put one of the most remote cellars in the Hemel-en-Aarde Ridge on the map as a gourmet destination - by offering some of the most sublime wine and food pairings.  

The winemakers, JC Martin and Christoph Kaser, along with Carolyn Martin and the rest of the team give you an experience that is close to heaven on earth! Their tasting room shows how it should be done and the views and welcoming atmosphere makes the trip out there worth it!  

André van Vuuren, owner and chef of one of the local restaurants in Hermanus, Season To Taste, is responsible for the delectable food creations that make their way on to the plate with the wine and food pairing and the rest of the menu for Creation’s tasting room. 
For bookings to Season click here.

You can look forward to Asian salmon dumplings,  spicy chicken and apricot satay, cauliflower soup, springbok rillete with cherry jelly, bobotie spring rolls…to name only a few.  Each of the wines is paired with a particular bite to enhance both the flavour of the wine and the food. 

To book a tasting or for directions to the farm click here.

 

QR Codes

The wine industry has always been innovative and in today’s fast moving world you have to keep up or you will quickly fall behind in the masses!

QR Codes are the latest craze in the wine industry as more and more wine producers are adding these codes to their labels.

QR-Codes are being used world-wide to provide information to consumers in a quick, easy and accessible format. QR-Codes are an image which is printed on a product or label which can be photographed or scanned by a (smart) mobile phone and is then a quick link to a web page/mobi page, without having to type in the website address.

By placing a QR-Code (Quick Response Codes) on say a back label, a wine producer can supply much more detailed information about their wine, directly to the consumer, at the time of purchase.

If you do not have a QR or barcode reader on your mobile phone you will need to download one from your ‘Android Market’, ‘BlackBerry App-world’, ‘I Phone Store’ or similar site depending on your phone.

You then hold your phone’s camera over the square until your phone beeps.  Within a few seconds, the home page will open on your phone’s screen and you can scroll through the information on the web pages.  Hence the name Quick Response Code

Many of our local wine producers have now added these codes to their labels. Ataraxia, Creation and Hermanuspietersfontein are just a few who have taken the step in their marketing approach. 

 

Under the sea

Following the fascinating experiment into the benefits of ageing bottled Southern Right Sauvignon Blanc in the sea versus on land in the cellar, the team at Southern Right decided to repeat the experiment this year (the 2004 vintage was taken out of the Walker Bay waters on 16 September 2010).

We were very fortunate to have received 180 of these bottles last year and they sold out in a few days at R60 per bottle.  We have kept a couple of these bottles for ourselves and they are currently on display in the shop, but not for sale.

On August 3^rd, 2011, the second consignment of Southern Right Sauvignon blanc was floated out into the cold Walker Bay waters and sunk in approximately 10 meters of water. This time they have submerged two vintages – 200 bottles each of the 2010 and 2011. They have sealed each vintage with a wax capsule of a different colour, to avoid confusing the vintage with barnacle and seaweed encrusted bottles and to minimize the risk of seawater getting around the cork.

With this trial they will be able to determine (with the 2011) the possible benefits of submerging the wine immediately after bottling. Having two vintages ageing together will help get an idea if different vintages react differently to sea ageing versus land ageing.

Both vintages will be tasted once a year and compared to the same vintages ageing in our cellar. All the wine will be raised from the sea for sale in local restaurants (barnacles, seaweed and all) in September 2016.

We hope you will get a chance to taste the wines then!

Sulfites

We get so many requests for "sulfite free" wines and organic wines.

This might come as a shock to some people, but unfortunately there is no such thing as a sulfite free wine.

Totally sulfite free wines are an accident of nature; but wines low in sulfites or free of added sulfites do exist. Let me explain. Sulfites are a natural byproduct of the fermentation process. Fermenting yeasts present on all grape skins generate naturally occurring sulfites in amounts ranging from 6 to 40 parts per million.

An organic wine is first and foremost a wine made out of grapes that were grown organically. Organic wines are produced using organically grown grapes. No pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, chemical fertilizers, or synthetic chemicals of any kind are allowed on the vines or in the soil. Strict rules govern the winemaking process and storage conditions of all imported and domestic wines that acquire certification. Moreover, organic winemakers often avoid many of the chemical substances used to stabilize conventional wines.

Even if no sulfur dioxide is added to wine, fermenting yeasts will produce SO₂ from the naturally occurring in organic sulfates in all grape juices. It is impossible for any wine to be completely free of sulfur dioxide. Although technical advances permit the industry to add much less sulfur, most serious winemakers and enology professors concur that to make a consistently stable wine, some sulfites must be added to those naturally present. A handful of winemakers go beyond that; they use no added sulfites at all. However, sulfite agents, when properly handled, are not intrinsically toxic to humans or to the environment, and many feel they are essential in order to prevent oxidation or bacterial spoilage. Therefore, American and European organic winemaking standards allow for the addition of strictly regulated amounts of SO₂.

Sulfur has been used as a preservative in winemaking for quite some time. To prevent wine spoilage, European winemakers pioneered the use of sulfur dioxide (SO₂) two hundred years ago. Unfortunately, freshly pressed grape juice has a tendency to spoil due to contamination from bacteria and wild yeasts present on the grape skins. Not only does sulfur dioxide inhibit the growth of molds and bacteria, but it also stops oxidation (browning) and preserves the wine's natural flavour.

According to doctor’s studies, only about 0.4% of the population, is considered highly allergic to sulfites.  Sulfites pose no danger to about 99.75% of the population; the highest risk group is asthmatics (about 5% of the population) and only about 5% of this group is allergic to sulfites.
Many people, however, have little tolerance for sulfites. They are considered sulfite-sensitive.

Even for moderate wine drinkers, the average level of sulfites found in many commercial wines can cause heartburn or other side effects. Unpleasant reactions include burning sensations, hives, cramps, and flushing of the skin. For them, organic wines are an especially good choice since they contain minimal amounts of sulfites that will in most cases lie below their threshold level.

Sherry

For many people sherry is a sweet sticky thing they stole from a half forgotten bottle when they were young. While there is sweet sherry - and it can be particularly delicious with cheese or desserts - a lot of sherry is quite dry and also delicious on its own.

Sherry will not last forever in the bottle after opening. While some of the richer and sweeter styles will last for a while once opened, all sherry tastes better the fresher it is. Lighter, dry sherry such as fino & manzanilla are best drunk within days of opening.

It is best to keep sherry chilled. Not only does sherry keep better when chilled it also tastes fresher.

Sherry is a fortified wine, originally made from white grapes that are grown near the town of Jerez, Spain. In Spane, it is called vino de Jerez. The word "Sherry" is an anglicisation of Xeres (Jerez).

After fermentation is complete, sherry is fortified with brandy. Because the fortification takes place after fermentation, most sherries are initially dry, with any sweetness being added later. In contrast, port wine (for example) is fortified halfway through its fermentation, which stops the process so that not all of the sugar is turned into alcohol.

Sherry is produced in a variety of styles, ranging from dry, light versions such as finos to darker and heavier versions known as olorosos, all made from the Palomino grape. Sweet dessert wines are also made, from Pedro Ximenez or Moscatel grapes. Sherry is regarded by many wine writers as "under-appreciated" and a "neglected wine treasure".

There are four different styles of Sherry: Fino (Dry and light in colour), Oloroso (sweet and fairly dark), Amoroso (lighter in colour and sweeter than Oloroso) and brown (dark and sweet) blending different wines.

Sherry is traditionally drunk from a copita, a special tulip-shaped Sherry glass.

 

 

Wine Glasses

Not sure of which wine goes in what glass?

Just keep in mind that wine glasses were not designed to merely impress your guests.

A bit of history...The Pleistene age saw the Iberians and later the Britons using baked clay goblets to drink from. The Phoenicians taught the Britons to make a copper alloy giving rise to the Bronze age, timber and bronze tankards came into existence. The Romans introduced silver and pottery goblets characterised by (in the early days of the Roman Empire) by ornate scroll work of pairs of leaves with buds. The Romans also produced some lead goblets.

The 5th century AD saw a shallow cup with a fine stem used by the upperclasses down to sturdy pottery goblets for the lower classes. The invading Saxons from the north brought with them not only fine glassware, gold jewel encrusted goblets but also horns. These, having no legs, had to be finished in one drink so they could be laid down. The horns were also used as titles to property, a legal document in the past.

The 700-800’s AD saw horn and silver flagons used, the Church disallowing horn cups to be used in communion. Wooden tankards were in common use by the late 900’s and clear glass tumblers appeared in the late 1000’s throughout England.

There is no shortage of quality wine glasses. The most famous being Reidel glasses, specially shaped for each variety to put the wine onto the correct area of the tongue to taste the best. 

More that 250 years ago Claus Riedel was the first person in the long history of the glass to design its shape according to the character of the wine. He is thus the inventor of the functional wine glass.

Red wine
Red wine should be served in a glass with a large, wide bowl. This allows air to circulate more freely within the glass, which releases more of the aromas and allows the flavours to distribute more evenly. A wider opening means your nose can get closer to the wine before drinking. Some red wines, such as Pinot Noir and Merlot, can do with a slightly narrower opening, while more robust wines are generally better drunk from wider glasses.

White wine
For white wines, a narrower bowl helps keep the wine cooler for longer because less of the surface of the glass is in contact with the surrounding air. Additionally, a narrower glass slows down oxidisation as less air can circulate within the glass. A narrower opening guides the more delicate aromas of white wine up to your nose.

Champagne
Champagne is traditionally served in a “flute”, a tall, narrow glass specially designed to enhance the flow of the bubbles and to concentrate the aroma. Champagne can also be served in a narrow, tulip-shaped white wine glass. Provided that the rim of the glass is narrower than the midpoint, maintaining effervescence, this type of glass may be a good choice as it allows for the drink to be swirled and the aroma to be better appreciated than in a flute.

The curious case of the cork

There is no best way to seal wine, there are only better ways under different circumstances with different trade-offs.

There are all sorts of ways to keep wine in and air out of a wine bottle.  Wineries can choose between natural corks, composite cork stoppers, screw caps with tin liners, screw caps with plastic liners, plastic corks of many types and elegant glass stoppers.

Natural cork closures have a centuries-long heritage; however, they allow for a bottle of wine to be “corked” as the saying goes or suffer from TCA contamination (a substance used to sanitize the natural cork prior to bottling). A “corked” bottle has a musty smell and taste. The result is a flat, moldy flavour devoid of fruit-filled taste and aroma.

It is estimated that about 5-10% of wines available on merchants' shelves are “corked.” Some winemakers use certified corks that are treated to be bacteria free. This is a necessary expense as they can not afford the negative publicity and in today’s economic climate, winemakers can not afford to loose 5%.

Well over the last couple of centuries the wine industry has been using more and more cork, however as cork is harvested from trees that are approximately 6 to 9 years old the supply has not managed to keep up with the demand, this has led to a much higher use of pesticides and wood preservatives to get the cork ready sooner. These treatments on the trees are what most people are pointing at to account for the large increase in corked wine.

Synthetic corks, derived from plastic, appeared to be a viable alternative to traditional corks. However, their track record has been tarnished due to their inability to keep oxidation at bay for any real length of time, significantly decreasing the shelf life of a wine and short-changing the maturing process of select wines. Plastic corks usually won’t contaminate the wine, but they don’t always seal tightly over time, so the wine can be oxidized after a couple of years. The eco-friendly debate also comes into play here.

Screw caps provide the best seal for bottled wines, and eliminate the “corked” and oxidation problem in one fell swoop. While, screw caps do diminish the drama and romance of bottle opening it is well worth the sacrifice to ensure a taint-free wine that offers consistent aging, maintained flavour and freshness with optimum quality control. Screw caps are TCA-free, but they, can seal too tightly, with the result that the wine can suffer sulfur reduction, which gives it a rubbery or rotten egg smell, and screw cap wine can fail to develop as it ages.

Corks seem headed for the endangered species list for all but the most precious age-worthy wines.  Non-cork closures including screwcaps were nearly invisible just 10 years ago (with perhaps 1 percent of the bottled wine market), but this is changing quickly.

Screwcaps have long been associated with inexpensive wine, but this is no longer the case. Some of the top wines in South Africa have switched to screw caps. Paul Cluver, Tokara, Constantia Uitsig, Fleur du Cap and Iona are just a few of the premium wine producers that have been using screwcaps, and they have been raking in the rewards.

Economics is behind the move away from cork. Screwcaps are not remarkably cheaper than cork, but they avoid the loss of good wine to cork taint. A shipment of tainted cork almost ruined one of the American wineries some years ago and destroyed forever the reputation of its Chardonnay wines. It had to rebuild (successfully) as a Pinot Noir maker.  In Great Britain, it is apparently getting somewhat harder to find a natural cork in a popularly-priced wine because the supermarket buyers, who wield such market power, are strongly biased in favour of plastic and screw top closures. Like many in the business, they have been burned too many times by problems they associate with bad corks.

No matter what stopper winemakers use, they can never be sure that the wine they put in will be the wine that you pour out.

You might think that global wine market competition would have produced a “best practice” solution for wine closures, but the market is too complicated and diverse for that. The science may be universal, but the people (both producers and consumers the middlemen in between) have their own quirks. In France, for example, it is hard to sell a screw top wine, at least for now, because of the strong attachment to tradition.

Tradition, ageing of wine, quality and price aside the sound of a cork being pulled out of a bottle is still music to our ears.

To drink or not to drink...that is the question.

How do you know if a wine is not drinkable anymore? So many people ask us this question.  There is a difference in wine that does not fall in your taste and wine that should be poured down the drain. Here are a few guidelines to look out for.

Corked
The most common flaw in wine comes from a defective cork that infects the wine and turns the aroma to a mildewed, wet-cardboard smell and the taste to a flattened, dried out sensation. The wine is called “corked” or “corky.” You should send it back in a restaurant or ask the wine merchant who sold it to you to exchange it for a good bottle.

Oxidized
The oxygen in air makes a good wine go bad in a day or two if an opened bottle isn’t properly looked after. An oxidized wine smells like stale bread or weak vinegar. This is a particular hazard with wines by the glass at restaurants, where half-empty bottles are often kept on the bar overnight. Refrigeration helps, even for reds. Another preventive measure is pouring the wine into a smaller container like a half-bottle (375 milliliter) with a tight lid so that it fills to the top and excludes any air.

Cooked
We often recommend to people who will travel far with wine to keep it in a cool place. Wine can be “cooked” if kept in hot attics or trunks, above stoves or in frugally minded corporate offices where the AC is turned off over the weekends. It’s a slow simmer, but the wine gets ruined before long. It will look brownish around the edges of the glass (whether red or white) and may smell caramelized. If you also noticed that the cork in the bottle was pushed up and partway out, it’s probably cooked. This often happens when you travel far with wine in the car.

Going through malolactic
Winemakers put most red wines and many whites, especially Chardonnay, through a mild secondary transformation in addition to the yeast fermentation that turns them from grape juice into wine. The conversion is called malolactic. But if a winemaker isn’t careful, the malolactic can happen after the wine is bottled. The result can vary from a mild effervescence to a totally stinky aroma and bizarre flavours. One frequent sign is an unusually cloudy or hazy appearance.

Sulphury

Here I can write a book. All wines contain sulphites, whether they are added or not, because it is one of those extracurricular products of yeast fermentation. Sulphur dioxide is added to virtually all wines in very small quantities (10 to about 100 parts per million) to help prevent oxidation and bacterial growth. That’s why you see the note on the label that says “Contains Sulphites.” Sulphur is a good thing in moderation, but if the winemaker adds too much, then the wine smells like matchsticks and can prickle the inside of your nostrils. Some people are allergic to sulphur and then a “Low Sulphite” or “No Sulphites Added” wine is recommended. We recommend that you try the Stellar Organic range.

Bottle Shock

This is a reaction that occurs in wine immediately after corking, resulting from oxygen being absorbed during the bottling process. This small amount of oxygen introduced during this process will not usually oxidize or ruin your wine, but rather in the long run it helps during the maturation process. Bottle Shock is characterized by muted or disjointed fruit flavours in the wine. The wine may have a flat flavour and aroma, and may sometimes be accompanied by an off-putting odour. Bottle Shock can also be caused if sulphur dioxide is added during the bottling process, also affecting the flavours and odour of the wine. It is a temporary condition and your wine will need time, 8 to 10 weeks, to get over the shock of being transferred. The wine must rest and recover, working inside the bottle to reach a new equilibrium.

Storing wine

It often happens that we receive wines from a private cellar to sell on behalf of a client. In order to resell the wine it is very important to look at the storing conditions.

Short Term Storage:
This is wine you will consume within 6 months. These may be bottles that are just home from the store and destined to be consumed shortly or bottles that have been pulled from longer storage to be accessible for spur of the moment consumption.

The closer you can duplicate the conditions required for long term storage, the better. However, in many situations, keeping the wines in a box in an interior closet is a satisfactory solution.

Keep the bottles stored so that the cork stays moist, the wines are at the lowest stable temperature possible,the location is free of vibration and the location is not a storage area for other items that have a strong odor.

For example, do not store your wine on top of the refrigerator; it's hot, close to the light and vibrates from the refrigerator compressor.

Long Term Storage:
This is wine that you will keep for more than 6 months before consumption. A good storage location for wine is generally dark, is free of vibration, has high humidity and has a low stable temperature.

Generally accepted 'ideal' conditions are 10 to 13 °C  and 70 percent humidity or higher. The high humidity is important because it keeps the corks from drying and minimizes evaporation. The only problem with even higher levels of humidity is that it brings on growth of mold on the labels or the loosening of labels that have water soluble glue.

Temperatures lower than 13 °C only slow the aging of the wines. There have been wines found in very cold cellars of castles in Scotland that are perfectly sound and are much less developed that those kept at 'normal' cellar temperature. A near constant temperature is preferable to one that fluctuates.

With regard to light, most modern bottles have ultraviolet filters built into the glass that help protect the contents from most of the effects of UV rays. Despite the filters in the glass, long term storage can still allow enough rays in to create a condition in the wine that is referred to as 'light struck'. The result is that the wine picks up the taste and smell of wet cardboard. This is especially noticeable in delicate white wines and sparkling wines. The condition can be created by putting a bottle of champagne near a fluorescent light for a month.

Regular or constant vibrations from pumps, motors or generators should be avoided since the vibrations they cause are thought to negatively affect the evolution of the wines. One additional factor to avoid is storing other items with very strong odors near the wine. There have been many reports of wines picking up the aromas of items stored nearby.

Not all of us have the luxury of having space fo a suitable wine cellar, there are many types of 'wine refrigerators' that will work as well. They differ from common refrigerators in that they work at higher temperatures (10-18 °C range) and they do not remove humidity from the air. 

Port!

From the 1st of January 2012 no new bottlings of South African port may be labelled as port. Instead of being labelled port, future labels will read Cape Pink, Cape Ruby, Cape Tawny, Cape Vintage to describe the style.

The Cape Port Producers have issued a statement whereby all port bottles befor 1 January, may still be labelled as port.

Many local and international wine fundi’s say that South African port is by far the best in the New World, and just as good as the best in Portugal.

Did you know that there are over 8,000 grape varieties harvested in the world, however, only a select few appear in our stores?  

There are 48 authorized grape varieties which can go into a port. The most common are 8 red and 8 white, with tinta rariz, tinta francisca, touriga nacional and touriga francesca topping the list. Port is kept in oak for a relatively short time, and depending on the quality of the year, is blended with other years for a consistant taste. It is then fortified and aged in bottles.

Ports should be stored differently depending on their type. The Standard port, including Late Bottled Vintage (LBV) ports, have a stopper-with-plastic-top seal. These are not meant to be aged, and should be stored upright, so the cork does not have any contact with the liquid within. The plastic seal is not meant to hold in the liquid on its side. Vintage ports, on the other hand, are meant to be aged and have a traditional, "normal" wine-type cork. These should be stored on their sides like any other wine.

A few facts about port:
White Port is made from a selection of white grape varieties, and is then aged and fortified. It is typically a simple multi-year blend of vintages and can be sweet or dry depending on the house style.

Ruby Port is the most basic of port styles. This is made with a blend of red grape varieties and is blended from several years. It should not be aged, and tends to taste of berries, with light tannins.

Tawny Port is a ruby port that has been aged for several years in small oak barrels. This gives the port a tawny colour, as well as a buttery, nutty caramel flavour. If a tawny port is listed as being "10 years" or "20 years", this means that the average vintages used in the blend is that number. A 10 year tawny might include some wine from 8 years old, and some from 12 years old, and so on. These are usually sweet.

Late Bottled Vintage was created specifically for the restaurant market, to give them a vintage type port that did not have sediment and could last a while after being opened. The winemaker filters and fines this port and then pre-ages it for the consumer, usually for 6 or more years. When you buy your LBV port, you should drink it soon - it is not meant for aging. When you open this bottle, though, you can expect it to last for a full month before starting to lose its flavour.

Vintage Port is the high end of port releases. Only the best years are declared a vintage and used for this purpose. All of the grapes from a single harvest are used in a given wine. A 2000 vintage port contains only grapes from the 2000 harvest. This wine is aged in oak and then aged in the bottle. When you buy a vintage port, often you must then age it for another 10-30 years before it is at its best drinking flavour. This is the type of port you find in expensive cellars, waiting for decades to be enjoyed.

Boplaas and De Krans came up with a decadent Pink Port which is a must if you haven’t had the privilege to taste it yet.  De Krans also released the Espresso. Although it is not a port, it has been produced using the classic port varietals Touriga Naçional and Tinta Barocca. It’s not coffee, although it has sweet aromas of freshly ground coffee, perfect for dessert.

Email us for more information about the port we have in stock.

Glühwein

Among the products on our shelves we sell Glühwein spice bags.  

So many people do not know what Glühwein is…also known as mulled wine in other parts of the world.

Glühwein is wine, usually red, combined with spices and typically served warm. It is a traditional drink during winter.

It is the traditional beverage offered and drunk during the Christmas holidays. It is usually prepared from red wine, heated and spiced with cinnamon sticks, vanilla pods, cloves, citrus and sugar.  Glühwein is drunk pure or with a shot, which means there is rum or liqueur added.

For the recipe or to order Glühwein spice bags, please contact us.

The great wall or the great wine of China?

Some of you might not know this, but about four years ago Paul was invited to market a few South African wines  in Taiwan. And if you ever get the chance please ask him to tell you about his trip!

In the South African wine industry, the East, mainly China has been the topic of many conversations lately.

So naturally we will bring you up to speed on what all the talk is about. So here is what you should know:

Beginning in 1980, French and other Western wines began to rise in prominence in the Chinese market, both in mainland China and Taiwan. French-taught Chinese winemakers introduced wine to a market dominated mostly by beer, and have quickly expanded in scale such that China, with its immense population, is set to become the largest wine market in the world.

China is a country with an ancient wine tradition. The history of Chinese grape wine has been dated back more than 4,600 years. They also are a new and emerging wine-producing nation.  Grape wine is a decidedly small portion of the total but this is slowly changing.  Local wines account for 90 percent of wine consumed in China.  China already produces more wine than Spain and Portugal combined and some of its brands are already stocked in supermarkets in the West, competing successfully against New World wines from countries such as Chile.

In 2008, it was predicted that within 50 years the quality of Chinese wine will rival that of Bordeaux. At the moment, a few large companies, such as Changyu Pioneer Wine, China Great Wall Wine Co., Ltd. and the Dynasty Wine Ltd., dominate the market.

Statistics show that the main market for white wine is among females, who prefer it over beer, still the main alcoholic beverage for most males; red wine has become a symbol of the elite and rich and is usually used as a table wine. In 2005, 80% of vineyards produce red wine and 20% of vineyards produce white wine, while 90% of wine consumed as of 2007 is red wine.

The move to marketing South African wine in China is one way of countering the 20% decline in sales of wine to the UK, says Neil Pendock, reports the Cape Times.  “The future of South African wines is in the East” he says.  Michael Fridjhon added that the weak Rand is causing export sales at a loss, and that British supermarkets “are absolutely calling the shots to South African wine producers…” A further threat to local wine producers is that supermarkets are increasingly stocking inexpensive imported wines, helped by the weak Rand.

South Africa is the world’s seventh-largest wine producer, and people drinking an average of about 7.5 liters a year, according to South African Wine Industry Information & Systems statistics. That compares with France’s average of 54 liters. South Africa exported about 390 million liters of wine in 2009, of which 4 million went to China. China's wine consumption at 0.4 liters per person a year is still quite low in international terms.  In Australia also a country where wine is a big industry and also a part of many meals, consumption is 25 liters and even in the United States, where wine also is a major industry - 15 liters, according to AT Kearney figures. China is expected to move to seventh place by 2012 with a total consumption of 103.5 million nine-litre cases per year. This figure suggests a staggering increase of 36 per cent in wine consumption between 2009 and 2012, and will see China top the one-billion-bottle mark shortly.

South African bottled wine sales into China have increased by 50 %, albeit off a low base, and this market is estimated to be worth $6 billion by 2014, and about 34 million Chinese could be drinking wine by 2015, reports the Weekend Argus.

A number of leading South African wine brands will be exported into China. The exported wine brands include Alto, Jacobsdal, Neethlingshof, Plaisir de Merle, and Stellenzicht. 

With wines like these we are sure to make a good impression! 

White Blends

At its most basic, vintners blend wine made from different grapes in order to add more complexity to the flavour and texture of a wine. The goal of blending wine made in different vintages is more to balance out the flavour characteristics. 

Some wine blends are made from classic recipes handed down from generation to generation. Other vintners create brand new blends in an attempt to produce a new and exciting wine that has flavour characteristics like nothing else on the market.

Many wine growers in South Africa have been dedicated to producing just a single varietal of white wine, such as Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc. The expertise which is put into producing these wines has allowed the wine industry in South Africa to flourish, but for many wine experts, it is the white wine blends that the country produces which really show the stand-out talents of its wine makers. White wine blends are more difficult to produce than those of red wine, simply because of the more delicate nature of the wine, and the risks of marring the colour through over-blending.

There are perhaps two distinct white wine blends that South Africa is producing, and which are worth exploring further.

The first is a classic blending of Sauvignon Blanc with Semillon, which is then fermented before being matured in barrels made from French Oak. The strength of the Semillon, undercut by the fruit-bearing intensity of the Sauvignon Blanc, provide an elegant and well-rounded white wine blend that grows in complexity as it matures. This wine is a classic, and there is no real change from age-old traditional methods of manufacturing this blend.

The other white wine blend is a little more of a surprise package, and revolves around the blending of Chenin Blanc with a number of different varieties from the Rhône region. These wines can include Grenache Blanc, Marsanne, Viognier, and Rousanne. Part of the reason for this mix is the large amount of white wine which has been produced by the Swartland area. Not all of it has been suitable for single-varietal wines, and so good blends have been produced in order to absorb the wine lake. These are usually very good white blends, such as the Palladius wine, which used slightly mature Chenin grapes with a mixture of white wines, although it is very costly. Another, Sequillo, is a mix of Chenin, Grenache Blanc, Roussanne, and Viognier.

  

Those of you who know the wines of Adi Badenhorst, will agree with me that his white blend, A.A. Badenhorst is truly unique. The blend contains Chenin Blanc, Roussanne, Grenache Blanc, Viognier, Verdehlo and Chardonnay!  

Making wine is an art and it is amazing to be able to admire and enjoy our own winemakers living out their passion!

#Chardonnay

The Hermanus Wine Route is famous for its award winning Chardonnay's...Hamilton Russell, Bouchard Finlayson, Ataraxia and Creation to name but a few!

The Chardonnay grape is thought to have originated in Lebanon, and in France Chardonnay became the only grape allowed to be grown in Chablis, Burgundy.

These white Bungundy wines were well enjoyed, and the grape is also used in sparkling wines and Champagne. The perfect South African example is Genevieve MCC which is 100% Chardonnay:-) Simply put...an amazing bubbly!

Winemakers love Chardonnay because the vines are easy to grow, and have a high yield. Wine drinkers love Chardonnay because of the wide variety of flavours it can take on.  Depending on where it's grown and how it's fermented, wooded or unwooded. Typical flavours are apple, tangerine, lemon, lime, melon, and oak.

Brandy

A little bit of information about brandy for those of you who want to sound very clever at the next social event:

The name brandy comes from the Dutch word brandewijn, meaning "burnt wine." The name is apt as most brandies are made by applying heat, originally from open flames, to wine. The heat drives out and concentrates the alcohol naturally present in the wine. While brandies are usually made from wine or other fermented fruit juices, it can be distilled from any liquid that contains sugar. All that is required is that the liquid be allowed to ferment and that the resulting mildly-alcoholic product not be heated past the boiling point of water. The low-boiling point liquids distilled from wine include almost all of the alcohol, a small amount of water, and many of the wine's organic chemicals. It is these chemicals that give brandy its taste and aroma.

It is unknown when people discovered that food could be converted to alcohol through fermentation. It appears that the discovery of fermentation occurred simultaneously with the rise of the first civilizations, which may not be a coincidence. At about the same time that people in Europe discovered that apple and grape juice, both containing fructose, would ferment into hard cider and wine, people in the Middle East discovered that grains, which contain maltose, would naturally ferment into beer, and people in Asia discovered that horse milk, containing lactose, would naturally ferment into airag. The first distilled liquor may in fact have been horse milk brandy, with the alcohol separated from fermented horses' milk by freezing out the water during the harsh Mongolian winter.

Welcome!

Welcome to our blog!

First of all a little bit more about the Wine Village.

The Wine Village opened its doors in 1997 and quickly became one of the country’s Top Ten Wine Shops.

It is the first and last stop on the route up the Hemel-en-Aarde Road.  This gives wine lovers a one-stop indulgence in wine browsing and tasting in an atmosphere of serene bliss. The largest collection of South African wines under one roof is elegantly displayed in neat, inviting rows, grouped according to cultivars, styles, new innovations and bargains – a wine library ready to be lovingly browsed and selected.

We are a great team of wine lovers and for those of you who are not familiar with the Wine Village team...let me introduce them to you.

Paul and Cathy are a power couple, the ultimate husband and wife team who started it all...and run the show! Paul, the owner, will always be ready with the next amazing story and his knowledge of wine is something to write home about. Cathy does it all! A multi tasker, driven person who manages the team with passion...and persuasive looks:-)

Hester, is the first person you will probably see as you walk into the shop. She has been with the Wine Village for more than 10 years and with her extensive knowledge of wine, she is always ready to assist and recommend wine that will suit your taste and pocket:-).

Foreman and Ruan are always ready with a smile to assist customers in the shop and at the tasting counter.

Karien is our accountant who keeps the wheels turning, the wine flowing, the lids on the pans...and by the way, is Paul and Cathy's daughter in law. 

Rozanne manages the conference centre and the extensive wine database of over 7000 wines.  Apart from sales and administration she writes the blog and updates our social media and website.

Wine is our passion, our love and we feel very strongly that life is too short to drink bad wine! In the same breath I want to open the topic about the quality and price debate.
Good wine does NOT have to be expensive. And why are you buying the wine, is it to savour and enjoy with a special dinner, or are you and your friends around the fire enjoying an easy drinking red blend? This is a major difference between a R50 and a R150 bottle of wine. This of course excludes those really special wines of Anthony, André, Kevin, Eben to name but a few.............we have them all and then some.  Please join us for a free informative fine wine time!