Archive for November, 2009

Seven wineland restaurants won an “Oscar” in the Prudential Eat Out Top 10 Restaurant Awards 2009 announced this week. Restaurants from  Constantia, Franschhoek and Stellenbosch trump the biggest food event on the culinary calendar.
The Stellenbosch winelands again won three places in the Eat Out Top Ten. A triumvirate of three of South Africa’s top chefs consolidates the golden triangle of the Helderberg as the culinary epicentre of the winelands – led by David Higgs of Rust en Vrede (“gorgeous attention to detail in every dish” commented the judges), Michael Broughton of Terroir (“An exciting menu with the finest sauces and some classics revisited with a modern philosophy”) and Bertus Basson of Overture (“Modern architecture, mind-blowing views…unique fresh flavours and combinations”).

Wineland restaurants have a great track record in the service stakes after winning the annual Eat Out service award four years in a row – Terroir (2006), Le Quartier Francais (2007), Terroir (2008) and Rust en Vrede (2009). With the FIFA World Soccer Cup 2010 six months away, service standards are critical to its success.

Eat Out editor Abigail Donnelly warns, “Service in South Africa is unique, friendly and willing, but we still need lots of training in the hospitality industry. Excellences shines through in efficient yet invisible service … Hospitality and caring should come before technique.”

Kumkani Brand News

The Eat Out awards is a prestigious award and we would like to congratulate all the winners and would like to especially thank the Wineland restaurants for helping to make the Cape a world class tourist destination.

Source: wine.co.za

South Africa winemakers mix and match grapes with success on par with that of the French. This is according the Jim Clark the wine writer of Forbes Magazine.

He writes that South Africa is, properly speaking, part of the New World, but it has an unseemly predilection for blending that evokes Old World winemaking-think of France’s Chateauneuf-du-Pape, where some wines have 13 different grape varieties contributing to a single wine.

Clark believes that blended wine is more difficult to sell in America because the American consumer are programmed to order by varietal, so if one dominant grape doesn’t show up on the label, their minds file the wine under “troublesome.” European wines go under regional monikers instead, but they’ve got history working for them (though, even there, many lesser-known regions would be glad to stick the grape name on the label if local law didn’t prohibit it).

He adds that many of the South African blends are among the country’s most critically acclaimed, in-demand wines. Blending, after all, is a great way to get lots of complex flavors and textures into the bottle.

Clark concludes by asking “So where do these guys get off, asking sommeliers to memorize their blends and shoppers to read their back labels? Well, they may be New World, but they’ve been growing wine grapes for 350 years, so their wine industry is actually older than many of the famous chateaus of France. Maybe blending is something that comes with age and experience.”

Kumkani Brand News

A great example of one of these amazing South African blended wines is the Kumkani Cabernet Sauvignon / Merlot 2007. This wine has a dense, dark red colour. Fresh blackcurrant, ripe berry fruit on the nose with just a hint of mint.

The Wine:

Source: Forbes

Many people has had the misfortune of opening that 10 year old bottle of wine that they have been saving for a special occasion, only to find that it tastes like vinegar.

How do you ensure that you wines mature correctly? Just follow these guidelines to ensure that you store your wine correctly.

There are a number of key issues that need to be taken into consideration when deciding on your wine cellar.

Consistency, temperature, darkness and vibration, are the most important factors.

Direct sunlight will destroy your wine, so you’ll need to find a space in your home where there will be less fluctuation in temperature (should never change more than 3°C). So, storing your wine in a glass-fronted case is a no-no, even though it may look nice.

Also be aware that if your ‘dark space’ is in an older home, you could be faced with damp, which after a few years’ of storage, could destroy your wine by bacteria infiltrating the cork.

When it comes to temperature control, installing a chiller set to 13°C is ideal, but these are expensive. The next best thing is a commercial air-conditioner, which will sit at around 19°C.

You could invest in a multi-temperature wine cabinet, which is temperature-controlled, and easily accessible. These fridges, with an individually set temperature per drawer, will ensure that you just can’t go wrong.

If there is no facility to install an air-conditioner (i.e. the broom cupboard) then the temperature should not be more than 20/21°C.

Other do’s and don’ts

• -Don’t store wine in your garage. Your car’s engine takes hours to cool; there are vibrations as well as air-pollution, which may penetrate the corks.
• -The absolute ideal position for a cellar would be underground.
• -Store wine bottles with a cork seal on their side. It’s vital that the corks remain moist. If they dry out, they shrink, allowing air into the bottle, oxygenating, spoiling, your wine.
• -If one intends to store wine in a small wine rack, one should store sparkling wines on the lowest shelf, whites above the sparkling and reds above the white, since heat rises.
• -Never store wine with other foods that are capable of fermenting. Fruit, vegetables and cheese that rot near a wine can actually cause the wine to begin to mold as well, and these moldy flavours may enter the wine through the cork.
• -Humidity is important. If wine is stored in too dry an atmosphere for several years, the corks can dry out and stop being an effective seal.

Kumkani Brand News:

A great wine which you  can be enjoy today but will develop in the next 5-10 years is multi award winning Kumkani Shiraz 2005. This Shiraz has complex aromas of bright ripe black summer fruit warm earth and spicy mountain herbs. It has ripe berry spice and vanilla flavours and a long satisfying finish.

The Wine:

Source: iafrica

A newly confident South Africa is polishing up for the global spotlight during the World Cup draw in two weeks, eager to show it’s ready for the games that on Sunday will be 200 days away.

Many of the doubts that once confronted the nation have long since quieted, dispelled by the successful hosting of the warm-up Confederations Cup in June.

Gleaming new stadiums have stilled fears of construction delays, with debate already turning on how the nation’s new landmarks will be used after the tournament.

Cape Town, which is hosting the draw, unveiled its new airport terminal this month. Johannesburg’s main airport, the main gateway for an expected 450,000 World Cup fans, has also received a major facelift that smoothed out the customs and immigration process.

Of the 3.1 million World Cup tickets available, nearly 700,000 have already been sold before the Draw – roughly half of them to South Africans.

“Everything is ready to go, and we are very excited,” said Rich Mkhondo, spokesman for the organisers.

Read more on sagoodnews.com

Kumkani Brand News:

Tourists will explore our beautiful winelands and drink our amazing wines. They will experience the uniqueness of  South Africa. Kumkani wines embodies this uniquely South Africanism and we are looking forward to treat the tourists with our lovely wines.

The United Nations has declared July 18 “Nelson Mandela International Day” to mark the South African anti-apartheid leader’s contribution to peace.

A resolution adopted by consensus by the 192-member world body calls for commemorations every year starting in 2010 on July 18 – Mandela’s birthday – to recognise the Nobel Peace Prize laureate’s contribution to resolving conflicts and promoting race relations, human rights and reconciliation.

By adopting the resolution, General Assembly President Ali Treki said the international community was expressing its appreciation for “a great man” who suffered for the sake of people everywhere.

Mandela, 91, led the fight against apartheid in South Africa as head of the African National Congress’ armed wing. He was convicted of sabotage and other crimes and served 27 years in prison. When he was freed in 1990, he supported reconciliation and helped lead South Africa’s transition toward multi-racial democracy.

Mandela became the country’s first president to win in a fully democratic election and led South Africa from 1994-99. He is celebrated today as an international statesman and continues to speak out on human rights and other global issues.

The resolution recognizes Mandela’s “leading role in and support for Africa’s struggle for liberation and Africa’s unity, and his outstanding contribution to the creation of a non-racial, non-sexist democratic South Africa.”

It also acknowledges his “contribution to the struggle for democracy internationally and in the promotion of a culture of peace throughout the world.”

Kumkani Brand News

Derived for the Xhosa word for “king” , Kumkani  wine embodied and celebrates the diverse heritage of South Africa. Nelson Mandela is one of the icons of South Africa and we salute our beloved Madiba

Source: telegraph.co.uk

Cape Town has won the 2009 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Award in the Best Destination category.

Cape Town Tourism CEO Mariëtte du Toit-Helmbold said, “Cape Town Tourism is thrilled with the news that Cape Town has won the 2009 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Award in the Best Destination category. Being the first city to win in this category is an incredible achievement and testament to Cape Town’s ability to lead the way in terms of global responsible tourism. We are very proud to be part of team Cape Town and commend the City of Cape Town, our partners and the tourism industry for your commitment to this initiative.”

The awards were founded in 2004 by responsibletravel.com, which runs the awards in partnership with the Daily Telegraph, Geographical Magazine – the magazine of the Royal Geographical Society – and World Travel Market. Virgin Holidays became a headline sponsor of the awards in 2007 and has continued to support them since then.

The central tenet of the awards is that all types of tourism – from niche to mainstream – can and should be operated in a way that respects and benefits destinations and local people. The awards recognise individuals, companies and organisations in the travel industry that are making a significant commitment to the culture and economies of local communities and are providing a positive contribution to biodiversity conservation.

Kumkani Brand News

We congratulate the City of Cape Town for this great achievement. We suggest that they celebrate with a truly Cape sparkling wine. The Kumkani Infiniti is a Méthode Cap Classique sparkling which is perfect for this celebration.

The Wine:

Source: capetown.travel

Just 20 years ago, South Africa was commonly perceived as one of the most polarized, ill-starred places on the planet. Shackled by the racist system of apartheid, or legally enforced segregation, it was a nation divided against itself and shunned by the rest of the world as a pariah state.

Today the world is looking at South Africa for very different reasons. This summer the country will become the first African nation to host the World Cup soccer tournament. As one of the most politically stable, democratic and relatively prosperous countries on a troubled continent, South Africa is regarded as a model by many of its neighbours. It’s also a growing  tourist destination.

Americans are more interested in South Africa than at any point probably since the 1994 elections. This is according to, Lori McCreary one of the producers of the of film “Invictus”.

This film , directed by  Clint Eastwood, is  a historical drama about the upset win by South Africa in the 1995 Rugby World Cup, which helped unite blacks and whites during the crucial early months of Nelson Mandela’s presidency. It stars Morgan Freeman as Mandela and Matt Damon as Francois Pienaar, the team captain.

Lori McCreary, called the country “a great place to make films.” Among the factors she cited were a favourable currency exchange rate, a variety of arresting shooting locations and one of Africa’s deepest pools of talent. More than 200 of the 240 crew members and 62 of 70 actors who worked on “Invictus” were South African, she added.

“The U.S. is more interested in South Africa than at any point probably since the ’94 election,” McCreary said. “The world is looking at South Africa.” As for the coincidences of timing and subject matter between “Invictus” and this summer’s World Cup, she said, “I wish I could say it was planned. I think it’s fortuitous for us.”

Read more: latimes.com

Kumkani Brand News.

This award winning wine celebrates South Africa’s rich heritage, diverse mix of people and abundance of natural resources.

From Thandiswa to Lira and from Theo to Johnny Clegg – see how much you know about Mzantsi’s brightest Afro-pop stars.

This is a great proudly South African music quiz.

THE AFRO POP QUIZ

South African wine leads the world in environmental sustainability and regulated production integrity. This is due one of the most technically advanced wine industries with coherent institutions (like WOSA) and governing organizations regulating all aspect of the wine industry.

The Wine of Origin Certification process was introduced in 1973 and the Wine and Spirits Board are monitoring these guidelines which ensure that the wine is what it claims to be.

South Africa also launched the first ever Fairtrade wine and has currently more Fairtrade brand than any other country.

South Africa is unique in that the wine industry has established WIETA , the Wine Industry Ethical Trade Association, an independent, non-profit , multi-shareholder organization committed to ethical trading, and improving and safeguarding the working conditions of employees in agriculture.

The wine is also produced in harmony with nature, as the conversation footprint allows vineyards to flourish alongside the natural habit.

Kumkani Brand News:

Kumkuni Wines embodies these uniquely South African aspects. Derived from the Xhosa word for “king” these wine salute and celebrates our lovely and diverse country.

Source: WOSA-DNA SA

The Rainbow Nation, South Africa, is an extremely diverse and unique country with a wide array of cultures, wildlife and vegetation. The wines are a product and a representation of this diverse and vibrant uniqueness of this amazing country.

The vegetation of a small part of this country embodies the diversity and variety of the land.

The Cape Floral Kingdom is the smallest and richest plant kingdom on earth. The Table Mountain National Park alone has more plant species within its 22 000 hectares than the whole British Isles or New Zealand.

A stretch of land and sea spanning 90 000 square kilometres, or 0.05% of the earth’s land area, the Cape floral kingdom contains roughly 3% of the world’s plant species – at about 456 species per 1 000km².

Of the 9 600 species of vascular plants (plants with vessels for bearing sap) found in the Cape floral kingdom, about 70% are endemic, ie occur nowhere else on earth.

Wines of South Africa ( WOSA )  indicates that the diversity in soils, matched by the diversity in climate and geography, create a treasure trove of winemaking possibilities. The result is a huge array of flavour and aroma profiles in South African wines.

Kumkani Brand News:

Derived from the Xhosa word meaning ‘king’, Kumkani is an award-winning wine that celebrates South Africa’s rich heritage, eclectic mix of people and abundance of natural resources. Thanks to the fertile soil, suitable South African climate and winemaker’s excellence, Kumkani is worshipped by wine lovers.

Source: southafrica.info