A Beautiful Day of Wine Tasting

After blogging this morning on the balcony and eating a quick breakfast in our suite, we headed toward Paarl and our first wine farm of the day: Fairview. We had been there before, so we knew we would enjoy it. Home of the Goats Do Roam brand, the very large winery features a couple of goats and a goat tower for climbing. We arrived just before they opened, so we watched the goats eat a while before going in for the tasting. The wines were fine; the most noteworthy was the reserve Beacon Shiraz. The highlight at Fairview, for us, is the cheese which they distribute nationally. The tasting included 7 types of cheese, all of which were delicious except for the boring brie. We bought a baguette and a couple kinds of cheese to enjoy later. After the tasting, we took a walk through the large garden and watched the male goat climb the tower.

Fairview

Next we headed back toward Stellenbosch, to the Simonsberg Mountain area, where yesterday we enjoyed Kanonkop and Knorhoek. In fact, we turned up Knorhoek road to get to our next two stops, Muratie and Delheim. The Muratie wine estate was stunning and dates back to 1685. The drive was

Table Mountain view from Muratie.

lined with flowering plants, and the property is situated at the right elevation to offer excellent views of Table Mountain in Cape Town, just over 30 miles to the west. The walk from the parking area to the tasting room led past a nice old Cape Dutch home through a lush, somewhat tropical, informal garden. The tasting room and restaurant were in an ancient, rambling old farm building shaded by huge oak trees. We wound our way through several rooms until we found the tasting room, and there we started sampling the best wines we've had on this trip. We don't really like Chardonnay, and they had one that was ok. Everything else was wonderful, including a nice white blend, a Pinot Noir, two port-style wines, and an amazing desert wine called Amber Forever. When I tasted it, I told Barry I was never leaving that spot. (Of course I eventually left, but I wish that moment lasted forever.) We bought the Pinot Noir and the Ben Prins port-style wine. During the tasting the power went out. Our room had windows, but they had to take candles into the rooms where people were seated for tastings. The lack of electricity seemed to add to the charm.

Muratie.

Muratie tasting room.

Simonsberg

Our next stop was through the Muratie estate, just a few hundred meters up the hill at Delheim. It's drive was lined with large flowering flame trees in multiple colors. The parking area offered equally stunning views of Table Mountain and the much closer Simonsberg. The farm is home to multiple Jack Russel Terriers and a couple of cats. We had a nice tasting outside served by "Junior," during which a couple of guys set up some xylophones to play live music. The Delheim wines were also very nice and included a delicious Gewurztraminer and a desert wine that Barry actually liked better than Amber Forever. We had lunch reservations at Delheim and were seated on the patio next to the garden with a west-facing view toward Table Mountain. For lunch we had a bottle of the Gewurztraminer and an amazing ostrich bobotie.

When we finally pulled ourselves away from Delheim, we stopped at nearby Le Bonheur which was advertised as being open until 4:00 but which was actually closed. We moved down the road to Warwick and realized that we have also been there before. Unlike our visit in 2010, this time the place was very busy with people tasting inside and out, picnicking on the grounds, and children swimming in the fountain. Barry and I sat inside for a tasting while Gywen explored outside. The wines were fine; nothing that stands out.

Lunch at Delheim.

By this point we were worn out, so we returned to our lodging for some rest. After a nap, Barry and I walked the grounds and enjoyed watching and petting the two German Short-haired pointers, the vizsla, and the schnauzer. The Jack Russel didn't have much to do with us. For dinner we went back into town to Wijnhuis. Barry had some nice ostrich medallions, Gywen had a nice veal, and I had some yummy fish and calamari. We will have to go to bed soon, because we have a third full day of winery visits planned for tomorrow. We will be leaving Stellenbosch and heading toward Hermanus for the day. Tomorrow night we will be in Simonstown with the penguins!