Last Friday, a small group of bloggers were given the opportunity to preview our Winter Warmer Pairing experience we are offering guests to the estate this winter.
We invited a number of our favourite bloggers, including Natalie from Tails of a Mermaid, Bailey from Vanilla Blonde, Kathryn from Becoming You, Karlien from The One K, Leaine from Leaine’s Kitchen, Hestelle from Koekies en Cream, Elmari from Cheviot Publishing and Billie from Crush magazine. We also invited a few other special guests to join us for the occasion.
The ladies were in for a treat. This was not your ordinary food and wine pairing; six gourmet tasting-size soups – each one unique in style and flavour –were created by Chef Reuben Riffel, with his signature rustic culinary flair evident in every sip. Each soup was specially crafted to beautifully complement a particular vintage in our collection of handcrafted wines.
The ladies arrived in Paarl by shuttle 30 minutes late as a result of the traffic, but the girls didn’t seem to mind as it gave them ample time to chat and catch up. They were welcomed with a glass of Armilla MCC and piled onto the back of the truck (luckily we warned them to choose comfort over glamour and wear boots!) and taken on an Eco Tour of the Estate. We stopped in the vineyards and the girls enjoyed a glass of Anima, whilst watching the sunset and listening to Johnathan explain the BioLOGIC® methodology according to which our wines are produced. The ladies were also extremely taken with our squadron of ducks, which patrol the vineyards keeping pesky snails at bay.
We returned to the Estate and took our seats for the main event – the food! Well-loved Chef Reuben took the “stage” and gave the ladies an overview of the inspiration behind each soup, and a little bit of detail on how it was made – whilst Johnathan explained why it paired beautifully with each particular wine.
On the menu:
- Baby Marrow & Basil Soup, garnished with crispy baby marrow, accompanied by a glass of Armilla Méthode Cap Classique
- Our Chenin Blanc Anima, paired with Confit Duck and Bean Soup
- Cyclus with French Onion Soup, served with melted Epoisse Toastie
- Camissa rosé with Chai-Style Butternut Soup
- Samsara Syrah paired with Parsnip & Artichoke Soup, served with grated parmesan and olive oil
- And finally, our signature red blend La Luna partnered with Truffle Bean Soup
After the formal pairing the guests had an opportunity to chat and enjoy themselves whilst helping themselves to more wine and bowls of soup. The girls loved the pairings – if the second, third and in – some cases – fourth bowls of extra soup after the pairing itself were anything to go by!
Next up was an unofficial photoshoot, as all the ladies took photographs of themselves with our resident star, Chef Reuben. Finally it was time to go home, and our guests were transported back to Cape Town by shuttle.
Thank you to all of our guests who attended – we hope you enjoyed the experience as much as we did!
Visitors to the Avondale Estate are able to enjoy the soup and wine pairing from 22 May – 15 July. The Winter Warmer Pairing is R120 per person and by appointment only. The Eco Tour is available at an additional fee of R200 and by special request. Call 021-863 1976 or email wine@avondalewine.co.za to book now. We look forward to welcoming you to Avondale!
