Eating The Big Five in the Winelands

Wednesday, 21 September, 2016
Graham Howe
Over winter, Graham Howe tasted his way through the big five at the cellar-door - from Delaire Graff, Terroir and Tokara to Camphors at Vergelegen and La Colombe.

While eating my way through the winelands over winter, I enjoyed one of the most original food and wine tasting menus of the year at Camphors at Vergelegen. Inspired by a paddock to plate philosophy, chef Michael Cooke - former sous chef at The Greenhouse at Cellars-Hohenort and La Colombe - has created an eight-course origin menu inspired by the legendary gardens, orchards and pastures of one of the oldest wine farms in the Cape, down to the ancient mulberry, camphor and oak trees.

Foraging among the flora and fauna, Cooke uses acorns, chestnuts, pine needles, pine nuts, wild herbs and mushrooms to create a stand-out forest floor flavours dish - an earthy winter duo of smoked duck and guinea-fowl served in a marrow bone broth enhanced with rich umami flavours. Chef soaked the acorns for two weeks to remove the tannins, before creating an acorn-shaped pasta made from acorn flour served in a wooden acorn bowl. The acorn is symbolic of the ancient oak trees on the estate. “I’ve got more time to experiment and explore flavours in winter” says the passionate chef.

The ingredients may be unusual and combinations innovative but the balance of taste and technique on his winter harvest menu were sublime - a lesson learned while working at The Fat Duck under Heston Blumenthal. Pushing the envelope, Cooke also created a sensational green sunflower risotto, using the entire plant from roots to shoots and flowers - substituting “alkanised” green sunflower seeds for rice. The Karoo lamb and sweetbreads in fynbos infused jus is also sensational - as is the seafood potjie with miso-glazed fish, scallops, seaweed and samphire in kombu oil.  

What makes eating at Camphors such a delightful experience is the unique wine-list which tempts diners with seven flights of three wines (R38 - R125 per flight) offered with each dish. The 75ml pours enable visitors to sample three different wines with any particular dish. Sommelier Christo Deyzel and chef have meticulously built the menu around the wines made by Vergelegen’s renowned Andre van Rensburg. The flights are categorised into Bordeaux-style reds, Bordeaux whites, Rhône-style reds, wooded whites, the “Gauntlet” (Roussanne, Grenache and Cinsaut), “syncracy” and contrasts. Each flight is recommended for specific dishes - aligned on a flavour spectrum from light and delicate on the left to full and richer on the right. Wow!

“Each Flight offers a range of grape varietals, allowing guests to play and test which pairs best with their choice of food flavours,” explains sommelier and manager Christo Deyzel. “We want to break down barriers, encourage conversation and hear opinions.” Every Flight was rigorously selected to complement varied ingredients and flavours in a dish - adding to the extensive wine-list. They want guests to engage, experience Vergelegen and experiment - without paying a premium surcharge.

Another highlight of my big eat in the winelands was at La Colombe on Silvermist wine farm in Constantia Wine Valley. Saronsberg winemaker Dewaldt Heyns and Scott Kirton, Eat Out chef of the year in 2015, combined their talents to create a sublime eight-course tasting menu at this showpiece restaurant near Constantia Nek. Bringing the Tulbagh earthquake to Constantia, Dewaldt shook up wine media with new releases of Saronsberg’s signature Shiraz and Viognier 2015 - among the top examples in the Cape - as well as his acclaimed flagship blends: the (Rhône) flagship Full Circle 2014, (Bordeaux) Seismic 2013 and Provenance Rooi. What a line-up!

Chef Kirton showcased the subtly of his signature compositions - like tuna tataki with a sublime dressing of ponzu, ginger and shitake mushroom served in a La Colombe branded tuna tin with a ring-pull. The umami inspired food and wine pairings varied from west coast oysters with kalamansi (citrus from Fiji) in ceramic oyster shells with Saronsberg Sauvignon Blanc 2016, to miso-seared scallops and quail with bok choi and teriyaki served with aromatic, leesy textured Viognier 2015. The highlight was a dish of wagyu beef, oxtail and langoustine paired to Seismic 2013 and Shiraz 2014. When in doubt, the dry, elegant citrus flavours of Saronsberg MCC, a 100% Chardonnay, went with every dish - down to a steamed pork bun with kimchi.

Richard Carstens is also a coveted former title-holder of Eat Out Chef of the Year - and a frequent member of Eat Out’s top twenty club. He prepared a classic menu bearing his hallmark of deceptive simplicity, balance and elegance at the annual mid-winter launch of Tokara’s new releases. Viticulturist Aidan Morton and winemaker Miles Mossop showcased some of the rarer wines they have grown and made at this showpiece Stellenbosch cellar since 2000. Drawing on three terroirs, we tasted Tokara’s Reserve Elgin Sauvignon Blanc 2016, CWG Auction Siberia Chardonnay from Hemel-en-Aarde and Nederburg Auction Directors’ Reserve Red 2005.

In a double act, Morton and Mossop (a good name for a legal practice) spoke about their search for pockets of excellence not visible to the naked eye, practising “precision viticulture” and embracing technology, using complex soil maps, aerial sensors, scans and drones. Through attention to detail from vineyards to cellar, they tag and separately pick virus and non-virus vines, clones and blocs - identifying Cabernet Sauvignon as “the hero variety of Tokara”. Highlighting the key notes of the wines, chef Carstens paired home-cured trout with sushi and roasted bone vinaigrette with Tokara Elgin Sauvignon Blanc 2016 - and fire-roasted beef with a black pepper sauce with the Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2013 and Stellenbosch Shiraz 2013.

Staying atop Helshoogte at Delaire Graff opposite Tokara, the annual Standard Bank Chenin Blanc Top 10 Challenge was another highlight on the winter tasting circuit. Chef Michael Deg - who took over the apron at Delaire after chef Christiaan Campbell left for Boschendal - created a five-course menu which paired two of the winning ten Chenin Blancs to every dish. Contrasting the diversity of styles of Chenin - fresh ‘n fruity, light ‘n elegant, rich ‘n ripe - the fare highlighted the key flavours and textures of Chenin: “South Africa’s national treasure” (the new ad-campaign).

An exceptional food and wine pairing, unusually devoted to a single wine variety, ranged across the taste spectrum from citrus cured trout with melon, almond and lemon crumb to earthy pork belly with parsnip and honey puree and thyme jus. Picking out the key nuances of big, barrel-fermented food wines like Bellingham The Bernard Series, Kleine Zalze Family Reserve, DeMorgenzon Reserve 2015, Perdeberg The Dry Land and Rijk’s, an extraordinary menu balanced the exotic taste and textures of Chenin Blanc to citrus, Cointreau, lemon, pears, melon honey, almonds, thyme and ginger on the plate. The versatility of Chenin at table was ably demonstrated across five courses, teasing out the different expressions of the grape.

Last but not least, chef Michael Broughton of Terroir, a regular member of the Eat Out Top Ten Club for over a decade, delivered a tour de force at the twentieth anniversary luncheon of Klein Zalze. Over a vertical flight of the cellar’s signature Vineyard Selection and Family Reserve Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon, I enjoyed the matching flavours of a few of Broughton’s signature dishes over the years - dishes which express a similar classic elegance, balance and attention to detail as the wines. The stand-out dishes were smoked tomato tart with goat’s cheese, the prawn, corn and basil risotto, lamb tortellini and rib-eye with celeriac and truffle jus. Like they say, eating, drinking and travelling for a living is a tough job but somebody has to do it.   

Graham Howe

Graham Howe is a well-known gourmet travel writer based in Cape Town. One of South Africa's most experienced lifestyle journalists, he has contributed hundreds of food, wine and travel features to South African and British publications over the last 25 years.

He is a wine and food contributor for wine.co.za, which is likely the longest continuous wine column in the world, having published over 500 articles on this extensive South African wine portal. Graham also writes a popular monthly print column for WineLand called Howe-zat.

When not exploring the Cape Winelands, this adventurous globetrotter reports on exotic destinations around the world as a travel correspondent for a wide variety of print media, online, and radio.

Over the last decade, he has visited over seventy countries on travel assignments from the Aran Islands and the Arctic to Borneo and Tristan da Cunha - and entertained readers with his adventures through the winelands of the world from the Mosel to the Yarra.

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Std Bank Chenin Blanc Top 10 Challenge @ Delaire - pork belly with parsnip & honey puree & thyme jus
Std Bank Chenin Blanc Top 10 Challenge @ Delaire - pork belly with parsnip & honey puree & thyme jus

Michael Cooke Executive Chef  of Camphors
Michael Cooke Executive Chef of Camphors

Seafood potjie seaweed herbs (credit Gabrielle Holmes)
Seafood potjie seaweed herbs (credit Gabrielle Holmes)

Camphors long room (credit Gabrielle Holmes)
Camphors long room (credit Gabrielle Holmes)

Scott Kirton, La Colombe on Silvermist wine farm in Constantia Wine Valley
Scott Kirton, La Colombe on Silvermist wine farm in Constantia Wine Valley

Multi-awarding winning chef Richard Carstens leads the kitchen team at Tokara Restaurant
Multi-awarding winning chef Richard Carstens leads the kitchen team at Tokara Restaurant

Chef Michael Broughton of Terroir - prawn, corn and basil risotto
Chef Michael Broughton of Terroir - prawn, corn and basil risotto

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