Farmstead Cheeses and Wines: Jeff’s Blog

Like any proud parent, we take a lot of pictures of our children.

Here’s the latest addition to the Farmstead family

We visited Penguins at Boulders Beach on my South African Vineyard Brands Wine trip. While traipsing through the parking lot, I spied this sign.

These are truly words to live by, so inspiring and moving. Too bad they didn’t cite the author! Could it have been Nelson Mandela, the father of this new nation, Mother Teresa, that great humanitarian, or perhaps just some humble South African patriot?

At any rate, when I got home, I had these words tattooed on my rump.

Today was a “non-wine” day, with the exception of a dinner with the folks for MAN Vintners, we were done with our wine duties. for the trip.

We left at 9:00 a.m. for our two hour trip to the Cape of Good Hope, the southernmost point on the African continent, and the supposed meeting point of the Indian and Atlantic oceans.

On the way to the cape, we stopped several times for photo breaks. I know I am sounding monotonous, but this country is beautiful beyond words.

The Cape of Good Hope is located in a large national park - Table Mountain National Park, and the fynbos (or native vegetation) in this part of the park reminded me very much of Point Reyes National Seashore - low lying sage colored plants, swept by winds - only here there were baboons!

Yep, real live baboons, close enough to touch (thank god for bus windows, as these fellas can get really testy and they’re extremely strong!!).

The Cape is a rocky promontory that ends at the sea, marked by a sign. The beach was strewn with kelp, and the breakers were capped with windswept foam.

We stopped for a photo op, and piled back in the bus for lunch at Simonstown and the penguin preserve at Boulders Beach.

Simonstown is a lovely resort town and home to the South African navy.

We ate at Bertha’s, a pleasant fish eatery right on the harbor and were entertained by a stream of quite talented street musicians.

The penguin preserve is just outside of town, and is home to 3000 pairs of African “Jackass” Penguins (so nicknamed because of their distinctive braying. These little fellas are completely oblivious of the hordes of humans snapping photos - one-two feet away, and go about their daily duties without a care in the world.

Then it was back in the bus back to the Oude Paarl to get cleaned up for our farewell dinner with José and Marie Condé.

This has been an invaluable trip, and I have learned so much about South African wines, vinification technique, vineyard management and wine styles, as well as caught a glimpse of the lovely people behind the wine industry, and got to experience some of the fascinating mix of culture, heritage and language that is South Africa.

Thanks to Emmanuel at Vineyard Brands for allowing me to go, and gros bises to Robin Back for being an unflappable gentleman at all times while presenting his country to us bunch of yokels….

Today, we visit the wineries of Charles Back.

Charles is arguably the Charles Mondavi of South Africa, producing great wines in a user friendly, marketing-centric environment. He’s the mind behind Fairview, Goats do Roam and Spice Route wineries, and the head of a bustling food and wine empire, producing 25 different varieties of cheese, and running one of South Africa’s most popular tourist destinations

We piled into the bus, trusty Mario at the helm.

First stop, Spice Route Winery, located in the Swaartlands, a dry region outside of Paarl, that is being transformed into a world class wine region. The area is reminiscent of the Pelouse, the wheat producing area in eastern Washington state that one drives through on approach to Yakima and Walla Walla - rolling hills, farmland and not much else.

Back has been a pioneering spirit force here, transforming a wine producing region heretofore known for flabby Chenin and over cropped Pinotage into a place where elegant and powerful wines are produced! He tore out much of the old vine material and planted many varietals: Shiraz, Mourvèdre, Grenache, Petite Syrah, Barbera, Tannat, Sangiovese, Zinfandel, Tempranillo, Carignan, Viognier, the port variety Souzão; Tannat, Merlot; and the Cape’s own Pinotage.

Like eastern Washington, the Swaartlands produces some kick ass wine, including the much lauded Malabar, a red wine blend that is small batch fermented and the result of rigorous selection, both at crush and blending. We were met by Charl du Pessis, a small man who is in training for the South African equivalent of the Tour de France: lean and mean, without an ounce of fat.

We toured the winery and tasted through the lineup. I was particularly impressed by their Pinotage, blended New World style, and the Malabar, a Syrah-based wine that was named South African Wine of the Year by Decanter magazine.

We piled back into the bus and drove towards Paarl, stopping for lunch at one of Fairview’s wine growers, Primo farm - the home of Jan and Albe Greef. Their modest, old farmhouse is set amongst trees, with lovely views of far off Table Mountain and the Paarl countryside. Mrs. Greef made a lovely simple lunch and we sat out on picnic tables under the trees, enjoying the food and Mr. Greef’s Primo Pinotage. The Greef’s are a down to earth farming couple, and it was great talking to Jan about cows and silage and crop yields. If you ignored his Afrikaans accents, we could have been sitting in Nebraska…

We piled back into the Mariomobile, back towards Paarl to the Fairview/Goats do Roam wine farm. This is no typical South African winery - there’s a bit of theme park, blended with ideas from successful winery operations around the world and just plain fun.

As you approach, you see the Goat Tower, a fanciful medieval styled tower with an outdoor spiral staircase, loaded with goats!!

We stopped outside the tower for a photo shoot, and then went to the Goatshed - combination coffee house and gift shop for a cup of South Africa’s best espresso.

Inside, we were met by the great man - Charles was there, gregarious and friendly, a man with twinkling eyes, laughing at some half remembered joke.

After coffee, we saw Fairview’s rolling bladder press, extracting the last bit of nectar from grapes destined for their Straw Wine. Standing nearby was Anthony de Jager, Fairview/Goats do Roam’s winemaker, a tall man with piercing blue eyes who oversees the vinification of millions of bottles of wine per year.

We saw the huge fermentation tanks, the bottling and label line, and then we were off to taste through much of the Fairview Goat’s line. As expected, the wines were all top notch, but the surprise of the tasting was their tete du cuvée wine: the Cyril Back syrah, a cellar blend of the best syrah the company can produce.

Some of our group was bleary eyed, inattentive, and silent from too much late night partying, so they missed the chance to connect with one of the world’s great winemakers. Shame on them - to travel halfway around the world and be more concerned with drinking beer than to improve their knowledge of wine. Perhaps someday they’ll realize what they missed.

Okay, I’m off my soap box now.

Then we marched a few kilometers to Fairview’s goat farm and cheese production facilty, to watch the girls being milked. Despite the goaty stench, it was fascinating to see the milking line, chat with Donald the facility manager, and scrape goat poop from the bottom of our shoes.

Then it was up the hill to the Back estate, a beautifully decorated 17th century Cape farmhouse - thatched roof and one foot thick walls, to meet Charles and his charming wife, Di, their humongous dogs, and several Fairview staff members for conversation, wine and dinner.

Charles’ and Di’s home is a wonderland - almost everywhere you look is a view taken from a coffee table book, an eclectic blend of old and new, high and low, serious and funny - much like this charming couple, able ambassadors for their country’s wine industry.

We were served a meal of tradition cape cuisine - Cape Malay and native dishes, cooked in a Cape Dutch potjie - a cast iron braising pot cooked over an open fire.

The meal was long and fun. Three plus hours of great wines and great conversation. Being a brilliant hostess, Di made sure that each American was seated next to a South African, so there was a true exchange of cultures, ideas and views.

Today, we were supposed to go to Table Mountain to see the views and unique plant species that live there, but the weather was bad, so we tried plan B, a walking tour of Capetown, followed by a traditional Cape Malay lunch at a restaurant on the top of Signal Hill.

Capetown architecture is an eclectic mash of Colonial, and gothic nouveau. The town’s heart is the Company Garden, the site of the original settlers’ vegetable gardens, remade into a proper English Garden when the British swooped in, and is now a type of city center park, not unlike Luxembourg, Central, Balboa, Golden Gate or Hyde.

We walked through a craft market, where I bought several trinkets for family and staff, and then went to the Pan-African market, an indoor version of the same thing, with better quality goods and higher prices. Prices in these markets are suggested prices, and you are expected to haggle, with the eventual selling price being about 55% of original asking price. It’s all a fun game, with commerce being more of an art than the way we do it in the States.

After a short walking tour through the Company Garden, we piled into the bus for a trip up Signal Hill to lunch at the Noon Gun Tea Room. Cape Malay cuisine is an amalgam of Indonesian with a touch of Indian and British thrown in. There were papadam, samosa, and curries, all considerably less spicy than you’d find in an Indian or Indonesian restaurant at home.

The views from the restaurant were fantastic.

Then we went to Stellenbosch for an hour of shopping and exploring this quaint colonial shopping town. I strolled with a colleague from Alabama, and we visited an old church and wandered by many upscale shops.

We piled back into the bus and went to Franschoek Valley for a tour and tasting at Neil Ellis. Neil Ellis is a partnership between the pioneering South African winemaker and farmer Hans Shroeder (Jose Conde’s father in law and the owner/designer of the lovely Cape-Japanese home we lunched in on day two).

The setting for the winery is the same as at Stark Conde, only slightly further down the Jonkershoek Valley. Neil makes great cabernets, and very very good Syrahs, Cabernets and Sauvignon Blancs. The tasting room overlooks an ornamental pond and is surrounded by towering crags.

After the tasting, we went outside to enjoy the view while dinner was being prepared.

The dinner was held in the barrel room, and it was all dimly lit by candle chandeliers. The buffet meal included grilled ostrich (tastes like a leaner, more flavorful beef, and magnums of Neil’s 2002 cabernet!

Then it was back to the bus for the trip back to the Oude Paarl, and bed.

Boo hoo, it’s raining!

Tuesday was a busy day, three wineries - a trip through Stellenbosch and then to Boekenshoutscloof (easy for you to say, Cheesemonger!!) in Franschoek.

First stop, Man Vintners, a partnership between Fairview, Stark-Condé and a large cooperative, that produces quality wines at a very attractive price point. Our host for most of the day is José Condé, a winemaker originally from Missouri, who makes great wines.

José visited Farmstead last year, so it was nice to see a familiar face in an unfamiliar setting.

The vineyards were an interesting blend of old vine low lying bush vines (1-2 feet off the ground) and “standard” trellis vines. The trellis vines are machine harvested, while the bush are done by hand.

Man produces six varietals - Chenin (a staff favorite at Farmstead), Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinotage, and a Shiraz. Many will see their way onto our shelves.

Then we were off to Condé’s winery - Stark Condé for a tour, tasting and lunch. Stark Condé shares vineyards with Neil Ellis, and makes elegant, finely tannin’ed Syrah and Cabernet from Jonkershoek in the Stellenbosch. Jonkershoek is a staggeringly beautiful valley that is known for its Cabernet vineyards.

These are elegant, hand-made wines - basket press, small tank fermentation, hand punch down, and finishing in small new french barrels - all at a surprisingly low price (their entry level Cabernet is $35/bottle).

Jose brings a new world approach to South African wines. His wines will be appearing in the shop, soon.

Stark Condé is a partnership between Jose and his lovely and charming wife Marie, and Marie’s parents, grape growers who have a beautiful Japanese/Cape style home nestled at the end of the valley.

Then it was back to the hotel to freshen up and to get ready to drive back out to Franschoek to taste and dine with Boekenhoutsskloof.

We’ve carried their wines since a customer came in and asked for The Chocolate Block, their elegant, killer, Rhone blend a few years ago, and currently stock their Syrah and Cabernet as well as their value priced Wolf Trap Red and Rose.

Their winemaker, Marc Kent, is an internationally lauded fellow who’s brimming with personality and opinion. Plus, he’s a hoot (when the tasting was completed, he blasted the Rolling Stones and got beers for everyone). His estate is beyond picturesque (I am running out of descriptors for how beautiful the settings are for these Cape wineries).

We tasted through his entire line of wines - the bargain priced Wolf Trap, mid tier Porcupine Ridge, and the stellar Chocolate Block and Boekenhoutskloof line.

Kent is a world class Rhone Ranger whose new world inspired wines kick ass!

The meal he had prepared for us was lovely. He brought in one of SA’s best chefs for an incredible display of new style SA cooking - a three course repast of a shrimp salad, steak and panna cotta that rivaled anything you could get at one of the Bay Area’s finest restaurants.

Then it was back to the bus - and then bed…..

South Africa - Day Two

We packed into our bus - with trusty Mario at the wheel- to go visit Walker Bay, a beautiful spot on the coast, and the home of Hamilton Russell, maker of South Africa’s most elegant Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs.

We took a non-direct route to Walker Bay, over the ridge through Franschoek. There were some quite beautiful views as we got to the top of the ridge. South Africa is truly a beautiful country.

On the way we learned more about the history of the South African wine industry, and how the industry has flourished in the post Apartheid era. During Apartheid, all grapes were sold to a large state run cooperative, and farmers were paid per ton.

Little attention was paid to quality wines. Farmers were allowed to make wines and sell them on their farms, but in general, the industry was cut off from much of the world wine market. This is amazing, as they’ve been making wines since the 1600s! In fact Nelson Mandela freed the winegrowers from this onerous system, and the local equivalent of the Wine Spectator named him the most influential person in the SA wine industry.

We drove through the finbos - or native Cape vegetation -(a unique floraculture somewhat reminiscent of a greener chaparral). No trees, fine bushes waist high, peppered with some flowers, and like the chaparral, regenerated by fire.

Halfway to Walker Bay, we stopped at a kitchsy roadside store for a bathroom/shopping break, where I espied some industrial cheese and several corny photo opps! My wife will be very happy to note that I made several purchases here.

We arrived at Walker Bay and were greeted by Anthony Hamilton Russell, who gave us an informative overview of the unique terroir of his estate and highlighted his Burgundian winemaking outlook and winemaking practices.

His wines - Hamilton Russell makes Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, and his other line Southern Right - makes lovely Pinotage and Sauvignon Blanc - are brilliant food wines. Elegant, balanced, and not too oaky or extracted.

We repaired to the barrel aging room for a tasting.

After that we trekked up the hill to his lovely home and met his family and menagerie. They have three dogs, and a tortoise!!

If you know the Cheesemonger, you know that he loves dogs, so he was quite at home with these “monsters”.

Mrs. Hamilton Russell is an accomplished chef who showed off her family’s wines with great food pairings - an avocado and prawns salad dressed with a thousand island base, and the family’s own lemon infused olive oil, followed by a
lovely grilled chicken dish with fried basil and root vegetables.

After lunch we hung out on the terrace and enjoyed the vistas, before piling back into Mario’s Mercedes bus for the trip back to Paarl.

For dinner, we were in for a surprise- a fun and eclectic evening at Moyo, a Stellenbosch restaurant that highlights and celebrates black African food and culture. There was live entertainment - dancers and singers - and a lovely buffet that showed the glories of native foods - stews, grilled meats, and starches.

We all got our faces painted, even me!!

The journey to South Africa took 30 hours - I left SFO on Friday morning at 7:00 a.m. and I arrived, shagged, dragged and bagless, in Capetown, Saturday night at 11:00 p.m.

I’d never flown for so long a time before. Believe me, it wasn’t fun. Compression socks, Ambien, and lack of mobility can really take a toll on a cheesemonger!!

I was able to grab about five hours of sleep during the four (!!) flights (SFO-JFK, JFK-Dakar, Senegal, Dakar-Johannesberg, Joberg-Capetown), and arrived without luggage in Paarl. (The luggage did arrive the next morning)

Our guide for the entire trip is Robin Back, an affable and charming man who lives in both the US and South Africa. He is part of the Back family that owns and operates Fairview/Goats do Roam and Spice Route wines (more about them in a few days). He’s representing Vineyard Brands and the wineries, who have sponsored us on our journey here.

The hotel, the Oude Paarl Hotel in Paarl, is a restored farmhouse, redone as a luxury boutique hotel. Lovely linens, bathrooms, and the usual four star casual bling. I’m staying in Room 11 (click on it to see a view of where I stayed). There’s a pool, two restaurants, a lovely courtyard with a bubbling fountain (from which I am writing this blog post).

Our first day was spent in acclimating to the new time zone and surroundings by piling into our luxury coach and driving into Capetown for a tour of Robben Island - a UNESCO World heritage site, and an ex prison for political prisoners.

We took an old prisoner transport ship as a ferry 45 minutes out of Capetown harbor - stunning views of the harbor, downtown Capetown and Table Mountain.

Robben Island is as I suppose you might expect for an offshore prison, ex-Leper Colony, ex-military base: all hardscrabble sandy soil, non-descript low-lying buildings, etc. The only difference is the setting. Imaging the view from Alcatraz to San Francisco, except more spectacular by an order of magnitude. Table Mountain and the surrounding geologic formations make Capetown one of the most spectacular settings in the world. And seeing it from the sea makes it even more breathtaking!!

And then there’s the penguins. Cute little guys seem to wandering everywhere. Quite surreal, given the context of being in the place where Nelson Mandela and other black leaders were kept imprisoned for up to 20 years!!

It’s hard to imagine to us in the US, where this sort of stuff happened but hundreds of years ago, that the levels of governmental repression that existed here as recently as fifteen years ago!! Yet, the society is vibrant - multi-ethnic and seemingly prosperous.

We took a bus tour of the island, and then landed at the doors of the prison. We were met by an actual ex-prisoner of the island, who was imprisoned for attending a meeting at his local school to discuss marching and having dialogue with residents of the white town nearby. he was fourteen when he was imprisoned, and stayed there - doing hard labor for five years.

We saw small, clean cells, and courtyards, walked by a hospital, and saw lots of barbed wire. We spent some time outside of Nelson Mandela’s cell - four by six, with blankets on the floor and a bucket for a toilet.

Quite moving.

Then we took the ferry back to Capetown. Some of us shopped, others repaired to a bar, others wandered. Then back to the hotel for a typical Cape dinner - grilled meats (antelope, beef and snoek - a sort of bony, flavorful fish, bobotie - a minced meat pie flavored with cinamon and cumin, and various desserts).

Then off to bed.

We strive to offer you the best of what’s out there in cheese, wine and beer. It’s a daunting job, as there are hundreds of cheeses, and thousands of wines and beers available to us here in the Bay Area.

If we make a wrong choice and select an item that doesn’t resonate with our customers, it’s not a huge deal (but it does take a while for that item to leave the shelves).

When we do find a product that we like, it’s not surprising that we’ll carry more selections from that producer. There’s several brands in the shop that we support in this way. For example, we carry many wines imported by or distributed by Jorgé Ordoñez, Swirl Wine Brokers, Eric Solomon, and Fran Kysela.

And that’s why you see so many cheeses from Rogue River Creamery in our cases, and so many wines from Ridge and Owen Roe on the shelves.

Last night, Carol and I went to a wine dinner at Dopo on Piedmont Avenue with Robin Shay, assistant winemaker and export manager at Feudi di San Gregorio, a small, world class winery located in Southern Italy.

We already carry their Falanghina, Greco di Tufo (two great aromatic varietals from Southern Italy) and two cuvées of their Aglianico, and have featured two of their wines in our wine clubs. We tasted through their lineup, and discovered several more of their wines that will have a home on our shelves.

All of the wines are well balanced, and have a sense of place (terroir) that’s unmistakable.

I was lucky enough to tour the major wine regions of Spain with Jorgé Ordoñez, one of the folks who has transformed the Spanish wine industry, in March of 2007

The Jorgé Ordoñez Death March is legendary among wine buyers, and for good reason. In ten days we covered 2000 miles, visited dozens of DOs (wine regions), toured over 30 wineries where we barrel tasted, barrel tasted, and barrel tasted, ate what seemed like 5000 calories a day (with nary a vegetable to be seen), slept four hours a day, and asked for more.

Jorgé is a bit of a benevolent taskmaster, snapping us out of our catnaps with his bark of attencion, attencion.

The trip was wonderful, and I absorbed a ton of invaluable knowledge about vineyards, vinification techniques, and Spanish culture.

Thanks, Jorgé