Van Pepper Wines

Stunning new wine shop in Paarl

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 08:01:00 +0000

I was invited to a ladies brunch at the 10 Chapters restaurant and wine shop in Paarl on Saturday. What a great discovery!

As a person who is quite passionate about branding, I really appreciate a brand with a great story. And this is the cutest story ever...

10 Chapters is named after the (WOSA) ten terroir regions in South Africa. Each area has its own logo and wine made by 10 Chapters. They have also selected other wines from each area that are sold in the shop. The ten terroirs then each represent a chapter in the 10 Chapters of South African wine.

The interior is beautiful and they serve light meals and tapas and wine per glass (or bottle).

The beauty of simple food and great wine

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 10:45:00 +0000

Yesterday was one of those fabulous Cape Town days where it felt good to be alive. Had a meeting with Cape Royale to finalise the last arrangements for the Women's W(h)ine Night Out* on 24 June and then I was going to head back to Stellenbosch.

Got to the intersection of Green Point main road and Buitengracht, and realised SuBarShi is just round the corner. I pulled in there for a quick bite of sushi... Dragon rolls - my favourite! The chef makes them perfectly, with just the right balance of succulent tuna on the outside and fresh prawn and avo on the inside. Culinary delight. I decided on a Kanu (wooded) Chenin 2007. I'm not really a big fan of Chenin, but I have to say lately I'm quite enjoying some of the wooded ones. We tried Kanu's wooded Chenin at CWA certificate course last year and I remember liking it a lot. The balance of the soft, juicy tuna and crispness of the Chenin worked so well...

Back at home I prepared some lamb shank for friends for dinner. Had to choose a wine to compliment the prepared-with-love-and-lots-of-patience dish served with mediterranean potato mach and a salad of cucumber, mint, yogurt and pomegranate. Then my eye caught my much-loved bottle of Cirrus Syrah 2006 and I just new that would be the perfect match.

Fact: Food prepared with love tastes good.
Fact: Food prepared with love and served with an excellent wine, tastes divine!

*Don't miss out on Van Pepper Wines and Cape Royale Luxury Hotel's exquisite dinner party for women on Wednesday 24 June!

Women buy the most wine

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Fri, 15 May 2009 08:59:00 +0000

An UK study has found that ladies buy eight out of 10 bottles to drink at home.

Females are now the major buyers of wine, prompting experts to urge wine brands to cater for feminine tastes.

Their love affair with white wine - typified by Bridget Jones’s affection for Chardonnay - has faded. Instead 55 per cent say red is their favourite, followed by 35 per cent who favour white wine and seven per cent rose.

More than half (54 per cent) of the 1,300 British women questioned for Vinexpo said they were not put off by health warnings Some 4,306 women across the UK, France, Germany, Japan and the USA were questioned.

I think that these women wine buying trends also holds true for the South African market. After the easing of wine sale restrictions the general retailers (Checkers, Woolworths, Pick & Pay etc. ) has taken a huge part of the wine sales market. This contributed to the increase in wine buying by women and it will continue to increase in the future.

Source: Daily Express

http://boschendal.blat.co.za/2009/04/02/women-buy-the-most-wine/

More articles relating to Women and Wine:

- Women more affected by price of wine than men

- What do women want, wine-wine?

First Wine Trivia Evening a huge success

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Fri, 01 May 2009 15:10:00 +0000

The stars of the evening: Lovane's Cabernet Franc 2006, Hermanuspietersfontein's Die Martha 2005 and Lovane's Petit Verdot 2006.

On Saturday 25 April Lovane's first Wine Trivia Evening, organised by Van Pepper Wines, was held with Bartho Eksteen from Hermanuspietersfontein.

Philip and Gail Gous from Lovane and Suné and Bartho Eksteen from Hermanuspietersfontein

Guests were treated to a 3-course meal paired with Lovane's and Hermanuspietersfontein's wines. Chef Gail Gous did a great job of pairing Lovane's Cabernet Franc 2006 with Grilled Spicy Vegetable Bruschetta with Rocket & Permasan Shavings; HPF's Die Martha 2005 (great Shiraz and definitely one of my top choices for winter 2009) with Korma Lamb served with rice, cucumber sambals, sweet potatoes & curry beans; and Lovane's Petit Verdot 2006 with Homemade ice-cream served with chocolate sauce and fresh berries.

The Trivia itself consisted of six nailbiting rounds with a strong start from the Zilles. In the end, the winemakers' knowledge contributed to Whine's success and they were crowned the winners on the evening.

The winners of the first Wine Trivia Evening, Whine, fltr: Philip Gous (Lovane), Marcolette van Baaden, Kyle Shimmon, Natalie Nel, Mariska du Preez (Van Pepper Wines), Bartho Eksteen (Hermanuspietersfontein), Van du Preez, Johnny King and Andrew Knight.

A great time was had by all, and we are looking forward to the next Trivia Evening on Saturday 30 May with Alto's winemaker, Schalk van der Westhuizen.
For more information, visit the Van Pepper website.

To order some of Bartho's award winning wines, visit the HPF Wine Shop.
For more photos of the evening, visit the Facebook photo album

Good intentions

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 08:42:00 +0000

As with all great intentions, writing this blog has become somewhat secondary to everything else that's going on at the Van Pepper HQ.

So, time for a quick update...

Van Pepper Wines has the great privilege of organising Lovane's Wine Trivia Evenings starting 25 April 2009. Our winemaker/ trivia-master is none other than Mr Sauvignon Blanc himself, Hermanuspieterfontein's Bartho Eksteen. To say that I'm excited about this event is the understatement of the year. Can't wait. Love Bartho, love his wife (who I was priviledge to have dinner with on a recent trip to the city of whales), and love love love his wine!
Die Martha 2005 will be paired on the evening with Gail Gous's cuisine. We still have places available, but book soon to avoid disappointment!

Women of Wines is doing so well. We're fully booked for the next event at Asara, no quicker than 24 hours after the invites were sent out! The women of wines were treating to a stunning night at Villiera, with Celesté and Marí spoiling us with culinary delights. We're looking forward to an extra-ordinary night at Asara on the 30th of April!!

I was also very fortunate to attend the Lagnes (improv comedy) and Gourmet Burger evening at Alto recently. The guys of Lagnes are a scream! Haven't laughed so much in ages. Got re-acquianted with an old friend of mine as well, she goes by the name of Rouge. And this foxy lady is a bargain at R55 a bottle!

Those of you who follow me on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/mariskaza) would know I declared my undying love to Rust & Vrede's restaurant a while ago. Christo and Nick treated us to an unforgettable evening. The food and wines were exquisite, and the company, as always, fa-bu-lous!. If you have something special to celebrate, do yourself a favour, do it in style, and do it at Rust & Vrede!

Events to look forward to this month:
- Jazz it up at Jordan
- Wines of Hermanus and the Overberg Region Wine Festival

Mariska's list of wines to buy for Autumn
- Kaapzicht Shiraz 2005
- Villiera Chenin Blanc 2007
- Asara Sauvignon Blanc 2008

VPW organises Wine Trivia Evenings at Lovane

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 09:30:00 +0000

Van Pepper Wines is organising the first Wine Trivia evening at Lovane Boutique Wine Estate on Saturday 25 April 2009 with Hermanuspietersfontein winemaker, Bartho Eksteen.

Lovane Boutique Hotel’s Wine Trivia Evening will test your knowledge about wine and provide the perfect opportunity to relax with friends and family. The guest winemaker will be the quizmaster for the evening and hand out prizes after each round. Guests will participate in teams of 6, but individual players are also welcome!
The cost of R175 includes a three-course meal, a glass of wine per course, entry fee for the trivia, and lots of prizes!

The Sage of Sauvignon Blanc, winemaker Bartho Eksteen from Hermanuspietersfontein Wynkelder , has been toiling in the cool climate Walker Bay winemaking region since 1993. Here he focuses passionately on further building on Sauvignon blanc’s reputation as the flagship South Africa varietal.

Wine Trivia evenings will take place at Lovane Boutique Wine Estate on the last Saturday of every month. Lovane is one of the smallest wine estates near Stellenbosch. The estate has a 4-star guest house, restaurant and conference facilities.

Van Pepper Wines is a wine marketing company that specializes in wine tastings, events and wine-based experiences.

Contact Mariska du Preez on 082 564 7714, mariska@vanpepper.com, or visit Van Pepper’s website: http://www.vanpepper.com

Event: Van Pepper Wine Trivia Evenings {Quizmaster: Bartho Eksteen HPF}
Venue: Lovane Boutique Wine Estate
Date: Saturday 25 April 2009 at 19h00
Cost: R175 per person
More information: Mariska du Preez 082 564 7714

Van Pepper Honey at Stellenbosch Fresh Goods Market

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 11:23:00 +0000

Van Pepper Wines' honey will be on sale at the Stellenbosch Fresh Goods Market on Saturday 7 March 2009!!

We are truly excited to have a stall at the market. Please come say hi to Mariska and Erina, and sample some of our delicious honey (made by happy bees!)

Products on offer:
* Orange Blossom Honey
* Fynbos Honey
* Honey with pistachio, cashew, macadamia, and pecan nuts (absolutely yummy!!)
* Honey colouring pictures for the kids!

Harvest Events to die for!

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 07:53:00 +0000

I recently received two invitations to Harvest Events that I'm quite excited about...
Beyerskloof's Port-trap event is taking place on 25 March 2009. Only 80 places available! Lovane's Voettrap Festival is taking place this coming Saturday, 28 March 2009. And another exciting event is Alto's Comedy and Burger Evening on 28 March 2009:

Don't miss out on these three awesome events!

GeekDinner at Lovane

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 15:01:00 +0000

The first ever Stellenbosch GeekDinner was hosted at Lovane last night. It was a great evening!
The food was excellent and the people great.

Pity I didn't get to sample more wines, as I only drank the Neethlingshof Sauvignon Blanc. Lovely crisp white with some acidity and lingering aftertaste of grass. The Lovane wines are excellent, by the way, as I have sampled them on numerous occasions in the past, and will do so in future as well! ;)

The rest of the crowd were treated to a cellar tour hosted by Philip Gouws, winemaker and owner of Lovane.

VAN PEPPER WINES wine tastings 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 08:41:00 +0000

The Van Pepper team will delight your senses and create the perfect evening to treat your clients, colleagues or friends.

We supply the wine, glasses, tasting notes, eats and treats.

Van Pepper will make your wine evening a night to
remember!

For more information, contact us:
wines@vanpepper.com
082 564 7714

www.vanpepper.com

Mount Nelson fine dining: Waterford

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 14:19:00 +0000

The highlight of the evening was spending time with Christo and Nick and my other favourite couple, Christi and Jan.
In a close second: this fabulous wine:
Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet franc, Merlot, Malbec, Petit Verdot, Shiraz, Mourvedre, Barbera
www.waterfordwines.co.za

Van Pepper Wines wine tasting 2: 20081009

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 08:23:00 +0000

After our very successful first wine tasting, I was really looking forward to the second one.
Our theme was: Food and wine pairing and the brief was to bring a bottle of wine and a bite-sized snack to go with the wine.
Attendees: Elna, Mariska, Van, Erina, Sarah, James, Wayne, Charlotte, Swo and Hendrik.
We were fortunate to have three winemakers, three foodies and four wine enthusiasts around the table.

Warwick Sauvignon Blanc 2008 and Salmon & Avo sushi
(Sauvignon Blanc | 13.2% Alc)
The first pairing was the Warwick Sauvignon Blanc 2008 with salmon and avo california rolls. This was our only white wine for the evening, and it went down a treat! There was a definite taste of guava, some tropical undertones and the acidity more pronounced after the sushi.
The ginger, according to Charlotte provides a spicy freshness and the oily fish cuts with the acidity nicely. We had two contrasting opinions from the winemakers' sides: one said the freshness of the Sauv Blanc went away after the sushi, the other said the freshness seems to come back. Fascinating how people's palates differ, hey.
www.warwickwines.com

Cirrus Syrah 2006 and Biltong
(Syrah 94%, Viognier 6% | 15% Alc)
Let me just start off by saying: If anyone is wondering what to buy me for Christmas, look no further! I think if the Cirrus Syrah were a man, I'd be married by now!
The rest of the guests really enjoyed this one as well.
According to the Cirrus website: This wine was matured for 18 months in a combination of new French and American Oak 300 litre barrels and is made in a typical Rhone style.
The wine has a romantic, dark appearance and I loved the hints of vanilla and chocolate shining through. After the biltong, the wine's spiciness became more apparent and Erina also picked up on the vanilla. James gave this wine a 5/5!! Gotta be good, hey Jimbo.
www.cirruswines.com

Rust en Vrede Estate 2004 and meat balls
(58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Shiraz, 13% Merlot | 14.94% Alc)
We were so spoilt by Sarah and James bringing this exquisite bottle of wine, wow! This wine was paired with some spicy meatballs accompanied by Peppedew and a pepper dip. The meatballs enhanced the spiciness of the wine and here are some of the flavours we picked up on: peachy, cinnamon, cherry, marmite, liquorice.

www.rustenvrede.com

After the bold, beautiful reds, we were treated to some dessert wines...

Asara Noble Late Harvest with Digestive biscuits, blue cheese and preserved figs
Just writing down this combination makes my mouth water! What a superb pairing and what a lovely dessert wine.
www.asara.co.za

Kanu Kia-Ora 2004 with cheese and crackers
(93% Chenin Blanc, 7% Harslevelu | 12.28%)
This NLH has lot of depth and honey characteristics. Not everyone is crazy about sweeter wines, but if you have to drink it, this is definitely an option!
Partner with Pâté de foie gras; Stilton and Roquefort cheese; lemon meringue pie; crème caramel; tiramisu; gratinated summer fruit napped in zabaglione; baklava; or simply on its own after dinner!
www.kanu.co.za

Van Pepper Wines wine tasting 1: 20080918

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 10:02:00 +0000

THEME: Bring a bottle of wine you think none of the other people have tasted before

Attendees: Van, Erina, Mariska, Niek, Elna and Swo

This being our first tasting and all, we had some trouble figuring out how to "hide" the identity of the wines. Luckily Swo came to the rescue and after about 20 minutes of hiding the wines to himself and from Mariska, the party got started.

Guardian Peak Tannat Malbec 2006
(Tannat: 54%, Malbec: 34%, Merlot: 12% | 14.5% Vol)

The Tannat comes from Wellington and the Malbec from Bilton, which is Guardian Peak's neighbour.
It is so funny to see a bunch of wine lovers uhm'ing and aah'ing about the cultivar. Some suggested it to be a Cab/ Merlot, New style Cab, Merlot or even a Pinotage from the Hermanus area!
I've never heard of Tannat before, so according to Wikipedia: historically grown in South West France and is now one of the most prominent grapes in Uruguay.
We all tasted lots of berries, Van tasted some dark chocolate and Erina spicy pepper. I picked up a bit of coffee (for a moment thought it might be a Pinotage - but a blind tasting makes fools of us all!).
According to Guardian Peak's website: "This Cohors based blend is a first for Guardian Peak and South Africa This wine will soften and mature beautifully over the next 5 years".
www.guardianpeak.co.za

Auction Crossing: Syrah Viognier 2005
(Syrah: 93%, Voignier: 7% | 14.5% Vol)

This wine comes from the Hex River Crossing Private Cellar and is made in the traditional Cote Roti style where a small percentage of Viognier is co-fermented with Syrah to to produce a unique wine with complex flavours.
What's always lovely about tasting new wines (or in our case: wines that you think other wouldn't have tasted before), is you get to discover new wine farms! In this case, I had a look at their website and found out that Auction Crossing got its name because the original farm was called "Vendutie kraal" - vendusie means auction in English. The Crossing part is because of pioneers crossing the river.
So, what did our tasting panel make of this wine? I picked up some bacon kips, fruity and spicy with slight pepper. Swo decided it was a Shiraz from a cold area, and Elna picked up some biltong and fynbos flavours. Erina also guessed a Shiraz and she got the vintage right!
www.auctioncrossing.co.za

Lovane Iziko 2006
(Cabernet Sauvignon: 100%)
"Three different clones of Cabernet Sauvignon were seperately fermented and matured in french oak barrels for 22 months. LovanE; being a boutique estate, enabled the Gous family to rate each barrels' tannins, structure, complexity and palate and to then select specific barrels to be blended together - resulting in the 6 different 100% Cabernet Sauvignon".
We all enjoyed this wine very much. Most people thought it was a Pinotage or Cab. I think this wine can be enjoyed around the fireplace, as the name Iziko (Xhosa for fireplace) suggests. We also had it at Niek's 55th birthday party on 29 September and everyone was crazy about it! Do yourself a favour, of you want to go for a wine-tasting lunch over the weekend, do stop by at Lovane!
www.lovane.co.za

First Sighting Shiraz 2004
(Shiraz: 95%, Cabernet Sauvignon: 5% | 14.2% Vol)

Van and Erina spoilt us with this gem of a Shiraz from Strandveld Vineyards: "Strandveld refers to the coastal belt of land which straddles the coastline around the Cape Agulhas. This confluence of maritime climate ad varying sites and soil types create the diversity of terroir that distinguishes the wines of Strandveld".
This is quite a full-bodied wine and it needs to be complimented by some red meat (which we have just had a taste of in the form of Mariska's (in)famous Spaghetti Bolognaise... Swo picked up some pencil shavings and Erina commented on the sweet berry aroma. At this stage myself, Elna en Niek were just enjoying the wine...

Winner of the Evening:
Schalk Opperman 1846 C: Cabernet Sauvignon 2007
(Unfiltered Cabernet Sauvignon | 14.4%)
You might think that we were quite biased because Schalk is a great buddy of ours, but we all really enjoyed this wine before we even knew what it was or who made it!
Schalk wants this wine to be "enjoyed with friends and family", something we did! And the label design is understated elegance in its purest form.
We all thought the wine to be older than it was - a sign of pure greatness! Only 400 bottles were made, we're still waiting for our batch! ;)
Can anybody guess what the 1846 C stands for!?

That's it on our first Van Pepper Wines wine tasting.
Coming up:
Thursday 9 October: Food and wine pairing
Thursday 23 October: Under the influence Premium 6

Welcome to Van Pepper Wines' blog

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 12:22:00 +0000

Hello fellow fine crazy people and welcome to Van Pepper Wines' blog. To find out more about Van Pepper Wines, visit our website: www.vanpepper.com
Coming soon:
- News about our first wine tasting
- Feedback on Cape Wine 2008
- Must-do events for summer

Season of Sauvignon Blanc 20080913

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 12:08:00 +0000

Being a great lover of Sauvignon Blanc, I was really looking forward to spending the day in the Durbanville area and tasting some.
So, off we went to Durbanville. Had a quick stop at Villiera on the way and tried some bubbly, just to get in the mood...
Got to Meerendal as the rest of our group was still on their way from De Grendel. Had a quick taste of the 2007 and 2008 Sauvignon Blanc as we waited.
The Season of Sauvignon Blanc gave each wine farm in the Durbanville ward the chance to showcase their Sauvignon Blanc. Each farm had a little festival going, it was great fun! The clever organisers also offered festival-goers the chance to try each wine farm's offering at all the other farms, meaning that one didn't have to drive to all the farms to try all the wines.
So, long story short, once our friends arrived, we did a comprehensive tasting of all the Sauvignon Blancs on offer. (My personal favourite still the Durbanhille Hills, with Meerendal a close second). We were honoured by the presence of Bennie Howard, who enticed us with some of Meerendal's red offerings as well.
Then off to Diemersdal where the real party was going on, white tent and bands included! They only had their Sauvignon Blanc or Sauvignon Rose... and because I'm such a fan of pink, I had a lot of Rose. Definitely one of the wines I'll be drinking this summer!
(According to the website: "Pink, the season's new white. Diemersdal Sauvignon Rose: Is the first of its kind in South Africa: a Sauvignon Blanc base infused with a whisper of Cabernet Sauvignon, to create a compelling marriage of fruit flavours. 93% Sauvignon Blanc / 7% Cabernet Sauvignon.)

WineX 20080910

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 11:44:00 +0000

September is a gem for wine shows and festivals and the RMB WineX was no exception.
M attended on the Wednesday evening. It was great, not a lot of people and the organisers must be congratulated on the professional exhibit they organised.
I bumped into David from Overgaauw and tasted their 2008 Sauvignon Blanc - absolutely superb! Can't wait for Monday evening when we will be having the 2007 at dinner at Lovane.
Our good friend, Schalk Opperman suggested I stick to the whites for the evening. A first for me, but definitely a good recommendation if one wants to experience the whites on their own. Pity I couldn't go another evening to drink the reds.
Other highlights were the FMC (Forrester, Meinert Chenin), Jordan Chardonnay (both the Nine Yards - reserve, and Jordan superb), the Asara Sauvignon Blanc and off course, Krohne Rose*. I'm such a sucker for a pink bubbly!
*Don't miss the Summer Elegance party on 13 December at Twee Jonge Gezellen (The House of Krohne).

Lourensford Barrel tasting 20080905

noreply@blogger.com (Van Pepper Wines) — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 11:35:00 +0000

The Lourensford barrel tasting has become somewhat of a tradition to attend by at least one of the Van Pepper crew.
We have photos from last year's event with purple tongues... Happy memories!
This year M attended with some friends. It was once again a delightful evening. The 2008 Shiraz shows a lot of potential, some dark fruity, peppery, smoky flavours... definitely worth waiting for! (But beware if you drink too much from the barrel - the tongue turns purple!)
Assistant wine maker, Hannes, was spotted giving some foody tips in the latest issue of Weg. Seems these guys are multi-talented!
PS: Don't miss the Honey Liquer - a great accompaniment to desserts. Very sweet, so try with some ice and check out the funky packaging - they've won an award for that.