Celebrating with bubbly: Franschhoek fizz, Franschhoek
Franschhoek Fizz
Franschhoek bills itself as the gourmet capital of the Western Cape for good reason - there's a restaurant, café or bistro every few metres in the town's main street. A decade ago the valley had 19 wineries - nowadays there are 32!
In order to narrow the focus, I decided to concentrate on bubbles - because spring is in the air, the Franschhoek Uncorked festival takes place over the weekend of 1 and 2 September, and this is followed a few months later by the Franschhoek bubbly festival. (Diarise the first weekend of December and book your accommodation now!)
The Graham Beck cellar on the R45 is hard to miss with its distinctive architecture and landscaped lawns dotted with Eduardo Villa and Dylan Lewis sculptures.
The tasting room, the last word in contemporary dark wood, is separated by a glass wall from the bottling line which, when in operation, fascinates visitors. But the bubbly - made at the sister winery in Robertson - is equally fascinating. On offer are the Brut, Blanc de Blancs, Brut Rosé and the sparkling Pinotage. Doing duty behind the counter was the very knowledgeable Chantel Matheus who told me that the Brut Rosé virtually flies out the door.
Two kilometres before the Franschhoek town limits is the Happy Valley Road which leads to Môreson with its four bubblies - the Cuvée Cape (made from Pinotage and Chenin Blanc), Brut Rosé (Pinotage), Blanc de Blanc (Chenin Blanc and Chardonnay) and the Soleil du Matin, which is made in exceptional years and is a traditional blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes. The good news is that the 2007 vintage of the latter should be available in 2009… Note though, that there is a fee for tasting (R10) and the tasting room only opens at 11am - but seven days a week.
A few hundred metres after entering Franschhoek, turn left towards Chamonix and Dieu Donné. Chamonix boasts the 2006 Diners Club Winemaker of the Year in Gottfried Mocke who beat all comers with his Chardonnay Reserve 2005 - but his bubbly is good too. Tastings are R15 a head. Unfortunately the bubbly is not available for tasting in the converted blacksmith's workshop that serves as the tasting room. Only limited quantities of the 100% Chardonnay Blanc de Blancs of the 2003 are made so you'll have to buy a bottle at R75 to taste it.
A few hundred metres further up the slope is the Dieu Donné cellar that offers spectacular views of the valley.
The lookout deck - the scene of many a proposal - has been converted into a 180-seater restaurant and will soon feature a micro-brewery opening on 1 October. The tasting room is open six days a week (Mon - Sat) from 10am to 4pm and there's a R10 fee to taste. The 2005 Maingard Brut bubbly, another 100% Chardonnay sparkler, is freshly disgorged and will be released in September.
One of South Africa's pioneering bubblies was the Pierre Jourdan range made at Cabrière. The cellar can be found adjacent to the critically acclaimed restaurant at the base of the Franschhoek Pass. The vaulted tasting room, built into the mountainside at the head of the valley, offers a bird's eye view of the barrel maturation cellar - and on weekends, winemaker Achim von Arnim can be found wielding his Russian cavalry sabre while lopping off the tops of bottles of bubbly for those on the cellar tour.
As befits a bubbly specialist, there's a range of fizz on offer: Brut, Blanc de Blancs and Cuvée Belle Rose, Brut Sauvage (great with oysters!) and Aurum Gold (containing gold leaf). Tastings are R20 for three wines or R30 for five.
Probably the smallest producer is Franschhoek Pass Winery, a few hundred metres up the road from Cabrière. It's open by appointment and it's worth making sure that Nick Davies is on hand because he's passionate about his bubbly. He started out with just 1 200 bottles in 2003 - which were only released a few weeks ago - and the wine is called Morena, which apparently means "dusky beauty" in Spanish. Davies has drawn on the experience of both Mike Graham of African Pride Wines and Nic Christodolou of Ambeloui in making the two bubblies - a Chardonnay Brut and a Pinotage-driven Rosé.
If you turn right at the T-junction at the French Huguenot monument you'll encounter the Colmant bubbly cellar after a kilometre. There's a R15 tasting fee but Belgian owner Jean-Philippe Colmant is quick to waive this should you purchase any of his wine - local or imported. He only makes bubbly and believes that the skill lies in the blending of base wines, reserve wines and the amount of dosage added. He is counting down the days to the release of his first wine, but can be convinced to provide a sample if you're keen enough. In addition he imports a range of well-priced Champagne (Tribaut) that's also available for tasting.
"must try" wines
Chamonix's Chardonnay, a classic, elegantly oaked wine, rich in citrus marmalade flavour. Graham Beck Brut Rosé, zippy, fresh and tastes like more. Pierre Jourdan Blanc de Blancs from Cabrière, full of crisp green apple flavours. Dieu Donné's Maingard Brut, toast and honey flavours with lovely limey freshness.
Places to eat and stay
There are too many to mention here since Franschhoek is geared to hospitality in the form of both food and accommodation. A comprehensive list is on the local tourism website: www.franschhoek.org.za or call 021 876 3603 for a recommendation.
