February and March … our city’s most glorious months! With the sweltering heat that accompanies December and January now past, it is this time of the year in particular that us Capetonians seem to revel in the most … the days are still long but not too hot, the evenings are balmy and with the rush of the tourist season finally over, our city is once again our own!

It is also the time of year where our dear wine farms are literally harvesting the fruits of their labours! After nearly a year of tending to the vines and letting nature work her magic, now is the time to pick, sort and crush … and then let the wine makers work their own magic! A magic that, as an end product, sees itself proudly on our menu and one that we are eternally grateful for! We would like to take this opportunity to wish all our friends in this industry well over the harvest period. We have no doubt that your new releases are going to be superb and we look forward to sampling a few with you!

At Caveau, we are in the final stages of planning our wine tasting series for the year. Due to start in April, we have some interesting themes with great food and wines lined up. For those of you not familiar with our ‘wine and dine’ evenings, these are generally held on the last Tuesday of every month at our Heritage Square restuarant , and are extremely popular. Details regarding these should be posted on our site by the end of March, so be sure to look out for them.

Till then... keep swirling!

Au Revoir

The Raats Family Wines team consist of Bruwer, in the role of winemaker and marketer, his brother Jasper, business partner and viticulturist at large, Jasper Raats Senior who was coaxed out of retirement to manage viticulture duties, and Janice, Bruwer’s wife, attorney-at-law, mother of six and, miraculously, the keeper of all things financial, administrative and logistics related.

This small team believe that South Africa’s proliferation of older Chenin Blanc vineyards provide a unique opportunity to position the country as a leading producer, locally and abroud, of this classic, versatile and decidedly stylish variety and together, they are producing some of the finest Chenin’s this country has ever seen!

Their commitment extends to sourcing low-yielding grapes from old Chenin Blanc ineyards, located in the Bottelary Hills, Simonsberg and Blaauwklippen areas of Stellenbosch and then targeting the world’s top gastronomic establishments as well as private individuals – “Because our wines should essentially be enjoyed in the company of good food by people appreciative and knowledgeable of the passion and dedication that go into the making thereof.” As a result, Raats Family Wines are enjoyed in the UK, USA, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Canada.

This particular wine displays pineapple, pear and white fruit flavours with spiciness and aniseed, hints of butterscotch. The palate is intensely concentrated and mouth filling with ripe peach and honey flavours. This massive wine has a good balance between acidity and sugar and the finish seems to last forever. The wine pairs particularly well with oysters with lime, duck with orange and most game fish.

Jean’s Thoughts
Well what more can I say... when a South African winemaker is invited by French winemakers to talk on Chenin Blanc, he is obviously producing a wine that speaks for itself! It has clean minerality, is crispy and has beautiful longevity in your mouth. Bruwer has always impressed me and I am looking forward to his new vintages!

Brendon’s Thoughts
Sorry, I am unable to comment as I am currently skiing on the slopes of Kitzbühel!

At Caveau:  R 220.00 per bottle

Every now and then, Caveau receives stock at a reduced or “special price”. This may either be in order to move produce a little faster or due to wine farm promotions that may be running at the time. At Caveau we feel that our patrons should be the first to experience the benefits of such kickbacks and we have in turn decided to run monthly specials.

This month, our special offering is BWC’s 2005 Pinot Noir.  A wonderful wine that displays fresh strawberry and cherry notes with lively herbal and mineral persistence.  The fruit is supported by cedar and cinnamon oak spice. Can be enjoyed now or cellared for up to 5 years.

Available from Petit Caveau for only R 110.00 per bottle, should you be interested in purchasing this wine for your own private collection or just to enjoy with friends and family, please feel free e-mail your order to:info@caveau.co.za

"Drinking good wine with good food in good company is one of life's most civilized pleasures." - Michael Broadbent