Cape Town, My City.

Red or White? Make mine... Wine!

Friday night, I enjoyed a great home cooked dinner hosted by Nomonde, a new friend who is a qualified winemaker at a popular distillery here in Cape Town.

Over dinner among other things, we discussed the flexibility in which wine is consumed lately. I hold the belief that wine is like a culture that should be practiced with traditional regard. Drank with the appropriate food, at the correct temperature and never to be modified with soda water, ice and or other shockers I’ve witnessed before… with Fanta Grape!

She on the other hand, is not the wine snob one would expect her to be. For someone who dedicates her skills and effort to bring out a perfected crisp and an all round brew, you’ve got to admire her coolness and the resilience to remain unperturbed by the thought of it all being ruined and drowned out by commercial cool-drinks.

She recalled an aunt who had for ages been nagging to bring her one of the distillery’s finest. She obliged and months later, called to enquire whether aunty dearest had enjoyed it. Nomonde was in hysterical fits relaying how aunty dearest had found the brew to be too bitter and how she had added something special to the mix…a dash of syrup to every glassful. She also suggested for the distillery to consider this fine trick.

This really goes to show the variety of tastes (pun intended). A perfect example of different strokes for different folks which led me to examine my own strokes. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with holding a culture in high regard. There’s also nothing wrong with rearranging something to suit your needs. With that said, I hope the next time I see someone mix Savignon Blanc with Appletiser, I will not have the urge to scream “No, No! You’re ruining it!” and just smile.

In the meantime I look forward to my tour in Cape Town through a distillery to enjoy a wine tasting evening soon.