Part 3: African Adventure 2022

October 4, 2022 by karenlordrutter

The Cape Winelands, South Africa

Arriving at the Protea Hotel Franschhoek around 7:30pm, we immediately smelled culinary aromas that had our stomachs shouting for nourishment. We were glad we decided to heed the call and eat because our meal was a culinary delight. I began with an amazing fresh tomato basil soup with delightful fresh made bread and light feathery crisps to drop into the tomato soup.  My mouth waters now just thinking about it.  The main course was steak and creamed potatoes with a nice Merlot.  David always finishes with dessert so he ordered a unique ice cream mixed with nuts and crunchies which I fail to remember the name of.  As if this wasn’t enough, the waiter gave us chocolate martinis on the house. David quickly devoured everything; but, the chocolate martini was a little much for me. I managed to drink about half when my stomach said, “Enough!” It was sinfully delicious though.

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We spent a restful night and were ready to meet our Cape Wineland tour guide, Steve Andrews, who scheduled three winery tour visits for us and gave us bountiful history lessons about the area. It is interesting that these winelands have been a part of South African history since the 1600’s but have only recently become a staple on American tables.

Our first wine tasting was at Haute Cabriere in Franschhoek, which was a gorgeous open view winery with the Drakensberg mountains in the distance.  The lush green valley was filled with grapes and made for the most scenic vistas. Franschhooek, in South Africa’s Western Cape, has centuries-old vineyards and Cape Dutch architecture. There is also a wine train that goes through the valleys and stops at the various wineries.

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Upon leaving the winery, Steve took us to the Huguenot Memorial. The French Huguenots came to South Africa to break free from religious persecution.  The memorial features a woman standing on top of the world with a Bible in one hand and broken chain in the other symbolizing the religious freedom they achieved upon arrival in Franschhoek. She is casting off her cloak of oppression. The French Huguenot refugees established farms and businesses and brought their French culture and agriculture knowledge. They tried fiercely to hold onto their language, but the Dutch and British schooling forced them to integrate into local culture and language.

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With Franschhoek in the distance, we made our way to the second winery in Stellenbosch: Tokara. Once again, the wines were of such high quality and the sommeliers were very attentive and knew their wines. We had our first Pinotage Wine and David and  I both loved it. It became a staple with dinner for the rest of the trip. The sommelier also gave us a very special opportunity to taste Tokara Potstill XO Brandy, a very fine limited release brandy.  The views of the winelands from this winery were exquisite. Had there not been another winery and another city to explore, I could have stayed here all day long simply looking at the views of the land.

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We chose to have lunch at a staple franchise of South Africa that served quite good pizza: Col’Cacchio. More than enough pizza and breadsticks for two.

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After leaving the restaurant Steve took us on a tour of the town and honored my request to stop at a place I’d read about prior to leaving home, Oom Samie Se Winkel. It is an old general store where goods can be bought, sold or traded. It has been in existence since 1904 and one can find anything from dried fish to biltong to candy to frying pans. The most popular item there is the selection of spices. I could have spent hours just wandering around looking at all the unique items. The store clerks graciously let me take their picture so that I could always remember the interior of Oom Samie Se Winkel, the general store of Stellenbosch. As we headed out of town we saw the oldest wine press in Stellenbosch, a HUGE wooden structure in the town square.

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The third town visited for a wine tasting was Paarl and Steve’s hometown. He was very proud of his home and took us to his favorite winery, Fairview. The best part of this tour was the cheese pairings that accompanied the wine. As a surprise upon leaving Fairview, Steve took us to Spice Route, another winery and brewery and chocolate factory experience loved by the locals. David tried the beer at the Cape Brewing Company and remarked that maybe South Africa had a lot to learn about brewing craft beer. (LOL)! It had been a great day with Steve and we gave him a nice review on Tripadvisor. We learned a lot and enjoyed some very flavorful wines and cheeses.

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We ended our day as Steve drove us to Cape Town to the Protea Marriott North Wharf Capetown Hotel.  Once again, we were pleasantly shocked when we received a complementary upgrade from a hotel room with two beds to a suite complete with a living room, dining room and full kitchen as well as a much need washer and dryer! We were definitely blessed with some beautiful lodging.

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Karen