The Cape Wine 2012 show was a huge success. Where else could you arrive at a good working knowledge of the South African wine industry as it is right now – by tasting hundreds of South African wines region by region and by attending seminars and dinners where you got a chance to chat not only with local winemakers and owners, but also with buyers, sommeliers, masters of wine and the wine media from all over the world?

 But as important as all this may be, just as important is getting out and seeing the lay of the land, getting to know the country itself. For this we had the guidance of John Gorman of Southern Starz. John, as I mentioned in my previous blog, is a Capetonian by birth and so is eminently qualified to introduce us to the sights and sounds and flavors of the Western Cape.

            Our first stop, appropriately enough, was where fine wine really began in South Africa:  Constantia. Grape vines were planted on the Cape when the first Europeans settled in South Africa in 1652, but they did not survive. Vines planted in 1656 produced South Africa’s first wine in 1659. Constantia came into the picture in 1685 when Simon van der Stel, the Cape’s first governor, received a large land grant and founded the Constantia wine estate. By 1692 the wines were noted for their high quality, and by 1699 the Constantia wines were exported to Europe where they soon achieved legendary acclaim – the wine of kings and conquerors!

            Constantia itself lies south of Cape Town on the southeast slope of the magnificent Table
Mountain and facing toward False Bay. The major white grapes are sauvignon blanc, semillon, and muscat; the major red grapes – cabernet sauvignon, merlot, and shiraz. It was a good chance for us to walk around and take in the history of the place, as well as admire the stunning Cape Dutch architecture. And the wines certainly retained a good deal of their legendary status!

     Brad and Bill at Groot Constantia

            Next we took a drive along the coast which was as gorgeous as any coastline I have ever seen, and then back to Cape Town where we went down to the beautiful Victoria and Alfred Waterfront for lunch. Oh, and this was part of our lunch –

 
We sat outside and had a chance to pair this glorious food, while talking with winemakers Mary Lou Nash of Black Pearl in Paarl and David Finlayson of Edgebaston, with their excellent wines. We were to spend time with these winemakers later in the week – you’ll see more in a later blog. But for now Brad and I had to jump in a taxi for yet another wine meeting.

 

                              (Brad and Bill on left, David Finlayson, John Gorman and Mary Lou Nash on right.)

Bill Stobbs, ABC Wine Supervisor

(Follow me on Twitter at abcwinebills)