Test your knowledge - do you need to come visit?

What does the following describe?

Question. "The nose shows a meaty, gamey, prune, nutmeg, cashew and chocolate bouquet. The palate is rich and well-balanced."

Answer. If you answered, "African elephant", you should be thoroughly embarrassed. If you answered, "wine", you are correct and may proceed. If you answered, "cabernet sauvignon", you are very nearly an expert and will definitely enjoy a visit to the SA winelands! Please proceed.

Matching: Match the following four descriptions with the appropriate wine.

Wines:
Shiraz
Chardonnay
Merlot
Sauvignon Blanc

A. Tropical fruits and limes predominate. Fresh acidity with some flintiness. Flavours linger on palate and leaves the mouth refreshed.

B. Predominant citrus tones, limes and oranges on the nose & the palate is creamy & has a balanced acid on the aftertaste.

C. Plus pudding, red berries & cocoa appear on the nose & the palate is firmly structured with well integrated oak.

D. White pepper, spices, meaty, black berries & herbaceous characters on nose and following through with meaty & hints of blue cheese on aftertaste.

Bonus Question: what do "on the nose" and "the palate" mean?

Answers: Sauvignon blanc (A); Chardonnay (B); Merlot (C); Shiraz (D). Here's Jim next to some chardonnay 'maturing' in oak barrels, and Jul pretending to look like she understands this whole wine tasting thing. I think that's Shiraz in the glass. (Hey, Tiff! Sound good?)


Lest we mislead you, allow me a brief explanation on this entry… the Western Cape is the place where the Dutch, Portuguese & British first colonized in South Africa, and early in the 1600s grapes began to be cultivated and wine was made here. So this area has a long wine-making history (in addition to a lot of other agriculture), and it is one of the top wineland destinations in the world. Thus wine and wine-farm touring is a huge local and tourist industry – wine is a part of the culture here. (For many years farm workers were actually paid in wine! That unfortunately has led to high alcoholism in workers but is thankfully no longer practised.) We’ve enjoyed visiting a few historic farms, tasting wine and learning more about the industry. But we are definitely far from being snobs about it!!! So come spend a relaxing Saturday afternoon at a farm with us, take it easy, and learn with us.