Frank Sinatra sang “It was a very good year” and although the song was really about all the women that he entertained (from age seventeen) it ends with the following rather pensive verse:
But now the days grow short
I’m in the autumn of the year
And now I think of my life as vintage wine
from fine old kegs
from the brim to the dregs
And it poured sweet and clear
It was a very good year.
So, good wine for a good year. And that 2009 was for Saltare, albeit in the midst of an economic recession. With September’s spring came a full-page article on Carla and her beautiful sparklers in the South African edition of Marie Claire. Download the article here.
We released our first full flush of sparkling, white and red wines in October and since then Carla has immersed herself in the world of wine promotion. Food and wine pairings at the Stellenbosch Fresh Goods Market with leading food expert and author (and friend) Heleen Meyer was followed by Cap Classique and food pairings at the annual Kamersvol Geskenke.
Word spread and in December Carla and Heleen were interviewed on the national Afrikaans radio station Radiosondergrense about their respective businesses and the pairings that they conduct.
Finally, for the cherry (berry?) on top of the year, Cape Town’s boutique luxury hotel Cape Grace listed the Saltare MCC Brut NV in their vegan tasting menu. This is a six course set menu, each course paired with a cap classique. The Saltare (which has zero dosage) is paired with the dessert – yes, the final drink! The dessert is a stunning berry affair of strawberry soup with blackberries, raspberry sorbet with cranberry hazelnut praline, and blueberry tart…
We asked executive sous chef Lerrico Messina to share the secrets of this stunning dessert, which he calls Study of Berries. In the following weblog we’ll share his recipe.
Here’s to a very good year! (And if you want to listen to Ol’ Blue Eyes sing the song go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwv-DxOPhSc.)
Tags: cape grace, food, mcc, pairing
