Farmstead Cheeses and Wines: Jeff’s Blog

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…..