Wine Tour

Today was wine tour day. From 8:30 - 5:00 we were on a bus traveling to wineries in the Cape area with a busload of 6 Swiss boys, a German girl, and a girl from Holland. 

The first stop? Thank you for asking. It was Villiera Wines. We started the morning with a nice champagne style bubbly from this high-end small production vineyard. Everything there was great. A red Pinotage really stood out. It has a slight oakiness with hints of passionfruit.

This was the best winery of the tour. Always start with the best wine.

I love traveling with younger people for so many reasons; one of them is their response to bad things that almost happen. During our rid, a car ran a red light and our driver stopped just in time to avoid slamming into him. Because we were in a van full of younger house music fans, they screamed and moved on. No talking about it afterwards, no complaints, life just continued. I love it!

The second winery was Mitres Edge and they won our livers with a pairing of a different cheese with each wine. The lady that gave us the tasting was really knowledgeable and we learned so much. Things like: a cork can react with some wines, spoiling them, and that bottles are the size they are because that's how big the first glass blower who made them, made them.

The third stop was for lunch and, surprise!, another wine tasting. The Rickety Bridge makes a mean burger. I liked some of the wines from this vineyard but for me it was all about the lunch. It's not often I get a medium rare hamburger. So flavourful.

Their Cab Sauvignon had a bouquet like a zebra's armpit.

We stopped to take photos at the gate of the prison Nelson Mandela was released from. 

After lunch the Swiss party boys all feel asleep on the bus. Lightweights.

The last vineyard was Lovane in Stellenbosch. They produce very few bottles of wine each year but we liked everything they served us, even the port style. They paired wines with chocolate. They did an excellent job with this tasting!

In their port I tasted Ritz crackers and diesel.

I liked their classy cellar and Ruth and I got a small table to ourselves.

We got back to the hotel and had a brief nap - yeah - just like the Swiss guys... Then, we walked up the street to Marco's African Place. It was an African party; everybody was up dancing, clapping, singing, and drinking. I got an Mqomboti beer. It sure doesn't look or taste like a beer, but it's a Xhosa traditional drink made from maize, maize malt, sorghum malt, yeast and water. It is opaque and light tan in colour. Absolutely disgusting. Don't let my smile fool you.

i ate ostrich steaks and some weird bean thing.

Both the upstairs and main floor were filled with a bunch of drunken, dancing wild people who will probably regret their night out for two days. So much fun. I particularly liked the band's versions of The Lion Sleeps Tonight and Dave Brubeck's Take Five. Their harmonies were amazing. Their rhythms were beyond sick.

Got a flight to Johannesburg tomorrow. 

My only complaint about Cape Town is that I never saw a single person wearing a cape.

Zzzzzzzzzz