There a few studies around the world that are regulating the effects of wine – and this infographic puts them all in to one illustrated pack of info.
How does having an epic wine-tasting experience without leaving the sanctuary of Cape Town sound? Pretty darn good, if we don’t say so ourselves…
Get out of town for a mini break. Roll down the top, let your hair down and prepare for a few days of relaxation and indulgence. What’s not to love about that?
I spend most Sunday afternoons religiously drinking ice cold white wine spritzers. It prepares me for Monday by vanishing any important things I should be remembering and enables me to lay in the garden and day dream.
South Africa’s favourite product, rooibos, is going to make its debut into the alcoholic beverage world soon. This could be exiting for hangovers…
Don’t be that person, shivering on the couch after a bad night out. There are ways to make sure you have classy, care-free fun, without paying the price.
Apparently we are not as happy as we think we are. South Africa comes in at number two on this list, which is and isn’t a surprise. Have a look at who is slightly more happier than us.
You, your body and your soul need to take this moment to relax in some spring warmth this weekend. Soak up the sunshine and live music, and relax.
Pictures are all over the internet showing the damage caused by the San Francisco earthquake yesterday. The Napa Valley region suffered a great deal, with thousands of dollars worth of wine being lost. Have a look at some of the pics…
Let’s face it. We’re excited for summer. But we know, come February, the heat will be weighing in on us. That’s why you should enjoy the last few cooler days of winter in the winelands.
All that wine-tasting and training is about to come in handy, as it’s been revealed that wine buyers are not getting exactly what they’ve paid for, with Italian police uncovering a massive wine fraud scandal, with cheap imitations in circulation that look and appear just like the real thing.
Don’t give into the morning-after darkness – there are ways to save the situation.
How many of us have thrown a fabulous soirée only to end up with way too much booze left over? Ok, admittedly that doesn’t happen very often in the realm of practicing hedonists, but the other frightening occurrence comes in the form of those situations when we don’t buy ENOUGH booze. And that’s terrifying. Non […]
Pinot Noir – two words you’ve been hearing a lot, lately. The delicate grape has enjoyed some serious attention recently, and with the likes of Ard Matthews spouting these sorts of statements wherever he goes, we’re hardly surprised: “I’m convinced that Pinot Noir is one part heat-sensitive grape and 99 parts angel blood. It is the perfect blend between rosé and red, which means it can and must be drunk as often as possible, where possible, if possible.”
If you don’t know by now, Beau Constantia is a stunning wine estate perched on the slopes of the Constantia Valley, less than 15 minutes away from the city bowl. The farm’s wine maker, Justin van Wyk has this report on the state of the vines ahead of the 2014 harvest. Make sure you read […]
You’ve probably seen this kind of thing on Luxuo, or other platforms dedicated to showcasing the very best in home design that people in cities like Helsinki get to enjoy thanks to their very many Euros. Look at this. It’s a cellar IN YOUR KITCHEN FLOOR. Keep looking at this. What if I told you could have this. What if I told you that you could pay a local company to do it. In Rand.
So you want to have a mini-escape from the rat-race of your concrete-jungle life, but you don’t want to spend 45 minutes in a hot car driving out into the sticks and pay through your nose for the sky-rocketing price of petrol? We feel the same way. And that is precisely why Beau Constantia is […]
The 2014 Constantia Fresh festival is happening this Saturday, and it is quite a vibe. Showcasing the best of the Constantia Wine Route, the festival is a sunshiny afternoon of good food and better wine. But the sheer variety can be quite overwhelming, so we thought we’d give you a quick heads up on the wines […]
The Valentine’s Day date is generally a pressurised affair. We don’t necessarily think that’s cool – people need to calm the hell down about the day in general. Nevertheless, life is life, and you may find yourself on a VDay date, and one thing you do NOT want to do is cock-up the wine order. So don’t. Get it figured out, here.
Ever been on a fine dining date and got a skeef eye thrown at you from across the table, because the pint of your favourite pale ale just doesn’t look classy enough in the establishment? Maybe you’re a wine fundi that sits on the out-skirts of a braai, left alone to sip on your Chardonnay, while the others crack open a beer? Problem solved.
Looking for the ideal spot to sweep that someone special off their feet this Valentine’s Day? We have just the spot for you, and luckily its right on our doorstep. At the very top of Constantia Nek a contemporary boutique wine farm lies hidden waiting to be discovered, offering exquisite views of the Constantia Valley.
You know that sinking feeling you get when you have a bottle of wine but no corkscrew? This useful chart gives you four ways in which you can go full MacGyver to open a wine bottle – and at the same time impress the laydezz. Next time you might even want to leave the corkscrew at home on purpose.
Summer is most definitely here, and with the office shutdown just over a week away, and the prospect of visiting relatives looming, you will absolutely consider visiting a wine farm in the next month. And if you don’t know about this place, you’ll probably join the herd of schmucks trekking for over an hour beyond the boerewors curtain.
Okay,okay we’re not saying that your local bottle store wont have any wine next time you stock up, we’re not saying that we need to start thinking of alternatives – we’re just saying that we haven’t really had to worry about this before, and it’s a little alarming. That’s all.
This here is a 12-litre bottle of 2009 Chateau Margaux, and it can be yours for a very cool $195,000 (R1,950,000). Yes, that makes it R25,000 a glass. So, not for the braai, then.
This is the last column from me here, for the known future at least. Which, let’s be honest, is nowhere past my first cup of coffee tomorrow morning. It’s been a blast. Or, as much of a blast as a wine column can be. I have stood on a soapbox a couple times and railed against the insidiously commercial, cynically sweet, and risibly reduced-alcohol wines that plague our shelves.
While I was away in the Drakensburg trying to survive for a week on only box wine, a little pile up of samples built up back at home. In this week’s column I go through them at let you know what they’re like.
Elgin, it’s a beautiful place. Like a scene from a Blake poem, it’s all dew drops, unpasteurised cheese and wood fires, fresh fruit and good wine. Which makes it’s the perfect place to host a wine festival.
This is probably the best thing an uneducated wine drinker could ask for. You know that moment when your waiter asks you what wine you’d like to drink with your food, and you panic, and end up going with old faithful? Well this little infographic could save you from tragic pairings in the future.
I am sure that for every sensible word written about wine, Public Relation teams issue out 100 silly ones. Luckily conscientious writers shield the broader public from much of this hyperbolic guff, however, some of it does slip through on back labels, and boy, is it a load of tripe.