Stellenbosch

As I previously said, on Friday we traveled to Stellenbosch which is about an hour's drive from where we were in Cape Town.  We are staying at the Stellenbosch Hotel (http://www.stellenboschhotel.co.za/) which is in a great location in town, with many cafes and restaurants within just a few blocks of us.

Unfortunately we made a poor choice in where to eat on Friday night, as Dad and I got food poisoning.  Upon further investigation, we've found out that Cape Town Fish Market is a chain and other people have had less than stellar meals there as well.  Basically, avoid it if you want to get to your wine tastings the next day.

So Jack and Mom got to enjoy the wineries on Saturday, visiting 4 of them (one was just for the olive oil tasting).  I'll just transcribe what she wrote for each:

* denotes that someone liked the wine significantly more than the others

Rustenberg
- Sauvignon Blanc
- Unwooded Chardonnay
- Wooded Chardonnay
- Red Blend (Shiraz heavy), young
- Bordeaux Blend
- Cabernet Sauvignon

Thelema
- Sauvignon Blanc
- Mountain Red
- Sutherland (their other winery) Pinot Noir 2010*
- Thelema Merlot
- Thelema Rabeluis, big flavor, Jack purchased *

Tokara
- Olive Oil

Ernie Els (Most Corporate)
- The Big Easy, Shiraz 60% Cab 20%
- Merlot
- Cabernet Sauvignon 2009
- Proprietor's Blend 2009

View from one of the wineries, even if you don't drink you should visit just for this

Dad still wasn't feeling great last night and Mom wasn't hungry, so Jack and I went across the street from our hotel to this tiny little restaurant called Cafe Lafayette (Facebook page) for something light.  And then I looked at their menu.  After browsing through the selection of handmade pasta dishes, I settled on the ravioli filled with sage and ricotta that was topped with a cream and bacon sauce.  Needless to say, it was rich and delicious.  Jack had a calamari steak simply seared with some lemon that he said was wonderful.  I would definitely recommend this place for its cozy atmosphere and well thought out menu.

Our wine tour didn't start until afternoon today, so I naturally had to go to a bakery to get something to snack on beforehand.  Mom had seen this little hole-in-the-wall earlier, so we went to check it out.  Die Oude Bank Bakkerij is definitely a small place, but as we were walking in loads of people were running out with the bread so we knew it had to be good.  I got a fresh made sandwich that consisted of Black Forest ham, mozzarella, spinach, sun-dried tomato, and pesto, which was freakin' amazing.  I ended up not being able to finish the sandwich, so I'd definitely say that two people could go there and split a soup and sandwich for a light lunch.

My sandwich and a cup of pear and orange juice. Delicious

This afternoon, we had three more wine tastings:

Delaire Graff
- Cabernet Franc Rose 2010
- Sauvignon Blanc 2010
- Coastal Cuvee Sauvignon Blanc
- Shiraz 2009
- Botmaskop 2008
- Cape Vintage Port 2008

Tokara
- Shiraz 2009
- Cabernet Sauvignon
- Director's Reserve Red 2007 *
- Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 *

Muratie
- George Paul Catz Pinot Noir 2009
- Merlot 2007 *
- Cabernet Sauvignon 2007
- Ansela van de Caab 2008 (Bordeaux Blend) *
- Shiraz * (Both Jack and the Jylkka family bought bottles of these last two wines)

Note: [It seems that many of the wineries here are having trouble holding onto their younger bottles (that is, choosing to sell them before they're ready to drink), so many of the wines we were served at the tastings were about 6-18 months too young.  This may explain why not as many of the wines grabbed us.  If many of these were left to maturity, we're sure that they would have been much more appealing.]

My personal favorite winery was Muratie for several reasons, first and foremost that I enjoyed more of their wines than any of the other vineyards that we visited.  It also had a very nice ambience (for my tastes at least) and was the least corporate.  Our wine waiter was the most engaging and had an actual conversation with us during the tasting which was much more appealing than the way some of the larger tastings were being run.  They also had the coolest way to carry wine around that I have ever seen.

Now I know what to do with my old tuba case

That was basically our weekend in Stellenbosch.  We also walked around the town a few times, which was very pleasant during this nice weather (although it is very funny seeing people bundled up in winter coats when the temperature is in the mid-60s).  Tomorrow we're flying to Johannesburg, and from there we will be going to Pilanesberg on Tuesday for some safaris.  I may not post for a few days if nothing of note happens.

Peace