Images by Katy Rose
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A day out in wine country, visiting estates and chatting with winemakers, can be a wonderful way to spend a day. Too often however, the tasting room attendant takes you through what feels like a tired and worn out routine.
A few wine estates in Robertson and surrounding towns, are breathing life into the usually tasting room procedure, making each an interactive learning experience!
Van Lovern wine pairings
The tasting room at Van Lovern is bright, modern and welcoming, and the seat outside under the majestic trees are just as inviting. The pairing platters showcase the wide range of wines available from the estate, and offer something for every preference.
For R60 enjoy any of the tasting platters, each featuring between 3 and 5 wines. The wines are accompanied by nibbles such as guava and fig white chocolate, salted cashews, matured cheddar and even charcuterie. There is even a non alcoholic platter for the youngsters. The Cheese Pairing platter is not to be missed!
Zandvliet wine blending
Zandvliet is the home of Shiraz, and its here in their cellars that you are taken through a guided blending class. Combine Cabernet Sauvignon and Grenache with their flagship Shiraz, to make a blend that is truly yours. Laughter, jokes and red wine spills are inevitable as you measure, pour, blend and label your wine to take home with you!
Weltevrede Cellar Experience
Beneath the modern cellar at Weltevrede is a series of underground rooms and corridors built buy earlier generations of the Jonker Family, and long since forgotten, and now rediscovered. The candle-lit rooms host visitors at an unforgettable tasting of the estate wines. Methode Cap Classique, the family and ever popular Simplicity range (featuring the Vanilla Chardonnay), and some of the more special releases such as the 1912 Chardonnay, a classic wooded wine with an elegant structure.
Above ground you can sample a Chocolate and Cheese Pairing platter, while taking in the views of the farm. Cellar Experience and Pairings are R100 pp.
Esona glass tasting
Beneath the charming family owned estate of Esona, underground in the old cement holding tanks, is one of South Africa’s most exciting and revealing wine tasting experiences. Tasting of the Esona wines begins in a standard fashion, from white to red. The most noticeable difference is that each tasting Riedel glass is a very different size and shape for each varietal (Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Shiraz). The pivotal moment in the tasting is tasting the same wine, side by side, in different glasses, some wider and some deeper. This is a tasting which has forever changed my thoughts about stemware, and the interaction between glass and wine.
Image courtesy of Esona
Excelsior wine blending
The tasting room at Excelsior is perched on a deck, overlooking the dam, with views of the farm and its signature horses all around you. Taste the different estate wines (the Viognier is a peachy-packed delight!) while taking in the fresh air of the Robertson countryside. Blend a red wine to suit your palate, jam in a cork and come up with a (sometimes saucy) name for your unique bottle of wine. A wonderful excursion for an outdoor tasting, and the adjacent deli, Graze @ Excelsior, serves tasty casual meals to keep you fueled throughout your day of tastings.
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