Pete Goff-Wood introduces his menu
Contributors
Chief Winemaker Bruce Jack
A Capetonian whose curiosity and palette has taken him the length and breadth of the globe. Bruce completed his undergrad in Political Science and Literature at UCT and then read his Masters in Literature at St Andrew’s in Scotland. His subsequent winemaking degree came from the Roseworthy Campus at the University of Adelaide, Australia. Bruce is a pioneer, and in many respects a maverick, and what he brings to winemaking is an articulate opinion about his greatest passion.
Editor Andrew Arnott
Andrew studied Literature and Sociology at UCT before setting off on a global trek that saw him working under the seas of the Caribbean, on the snow covered slopes of the Canadian Rockies and writing for a variety of financial and travel institutions. Now at home in Cape Town, Andrew’s passion for wine and writing is married on this blog.
The Flagstone Wine Club Lunch 2011 Posted on December 15 2011 by
Flagstone's 2011 Wine Club Lunch took place on the 8th of December at the Flagstone Winery in Somerset West. Delicious cuisine, great wine and plenty of mirth is the standard fare at these annual affairs.
Flagstone lunches have an unpretentious knack for creating a familiar atmosphere where Bruce Jack's speeches are directed by audience curiosity and often a product of his surroundings. This year’s lunch was held in the AECI building, part of Cecil John Rhodes’ empire. Originally a glycerine factory this historic building was scheduled for demolition before Flagstone rescued it and put this lofty space to excellent use. Surrounded by wooden barrels and stainless steel vats guests were given pistil seats in the heart of the winery, where some familiar and some new wines paired provocatively with Pete Goff-Wood’s food alchemy.
Bruce’s welcome was delivered over a starter of pickled tuna and paired with Flagstone’s Free Run Sauvignon Blanc and the Sauvignon Semillon blend, Weather Girl, a wine only available at auction, a pity, as it is fantastic string to Flagstone’s bow. An introduction to Celeste Truter, Flagstone’s QA Manager, began a brief presentation on sustainability and the role Flagstone plays in maintaining natural biodiversity. (Watch the sustainability video here).
Mains consisted of a beautiful portion of beef on polenta, paired with two vintages of Flagstone’s multi award winning red wines: Writer’s Block Pinotage and Music Room Cabernet. While the beef melted in heady flavours wrapped in deep tones of red, Bruce recounted the history of Music Room and his stalwart grandmother Elsie Fraser-Munn in whose memory the wine was named. Writer’s Block provided a platform to elucidate the curious and comical nature of Baboons and their love of pinotage grapes. This tale deserves a post on it’s own.
Cheese platters smoothed the transition to the sweeter part of the meal as idiosyncrasies of the wine trade in Angola continued to add amusement to the meal. Meringues and berry fruits served with sparkling merlot and Treaty Tree Reserve finished the lunch with a flurry, though the mood, moment and wine could’ve held us there well into the twilight.
