'Tis no secret that ol' Suzy Q loves wine, so it's time to let you in on one of my all time favourite wine estates. Come high days and holidays, we celebrate with Springfield wines in order to savour some of the most delicious, delectable and intense flavours of the Cape grape.
Springfield Estate is situated just outside Robertson on the R62 in the Valley of Wine and Roses. I mean, it just doesn't get more romantic than that. Having had the pleasure of enjoying their stellar wines on more than a few occasions, Mr SQ and I made a pilgrimage out there to see and taste the wines at their source. My dears, it was like coming home, a thoroughly enjoyable experience with yet another proudly South African/Cape feel to it.
Despite producing wines which are not only snapped up and enjoyed greedily by locals, but also exported to Europe, Canada and the East, Springfield is about as unpretentious as it gets. This in an industry where snobbery and image are often held in higher esteem than the wine in the glass. A few Franschhoek big name estates come rapidly to mind. The unprepossessing entrance to the farm, up a tree lined dirt track, is a refreshing change from some of the boutique wineries which seem to trade on their fancy gateposts and are more image than wine conscious. The view over the little dam toward the McGregor and Langeberg Mountains is magnificent. It's worth taking a minute or two to shake off the dust, breathe deep of the fresh air and drink in the peace and beauty of the farm before heading into the tasting room for a world class experience. I'm not sure why I say world class, when I actually think that the South African wine industry is a world leader when it comes to it's tasting rooms, hospitality and well trained personnel. I can't think of a single degustation experience I've ever had in Europe which comes even a teeny bit close to the standards we almost take for granted on the home front. I've had it on good authority that the Californian winelands might meet or match us, but hey, that doesn't stop me giving our wine industry, of which I am so very proud, a good punt.
The tasting room is welcoming and anything but intimidating as the staff are very pleasant and professional and offer a complimentary tasting. Think clean, white modern architectural lines thanks to the recent update of the old building. I'm a Sauvignon Blanc girl, and it doesn't come much better than this, trust me. You can practically taste the soil, sun and sky as you try the Life from Stone and Special Cuvee which are both perfect examples of wines of their terroir. Breathtaking, steely, flinty and simply wonderful are words which come to mind, and pushed to choose one over the other, I'd opt for the Special Cuvee. The Methode Ancienne Chardonnay is a massive wine, not to be taken lightly or drunk with less than six friends, ambrosial, but perhaps a little too concentrated and intoxicating for me.
Moving on to the reds, the quality continues. Some estates can get it right with the whites, MCC's or reds, but Abie Bruwer has as deft a touch with his Cabernet grapes as he does with his whites. The Springfield Whole Berry Cabernet is a celebration in itself - superlatives don't do it justice. Suffice to say that for Mr SQ's recent birthday, he received a little war chest of Springfield wines to mark the passing of years and to enjoy in years to come, as they are bound, like him, to continue to improve.
I love the ambience and the humble philosophy of the farm, suggesting that they are blessed with the lime rich terroir which they inherited, the farm having been in the Bruwer family for many generations (no blow in businessmen having a hobby wine farm here, this is the Real McCoy) Abrie will further modestly add that "the wines make themselves" as the farm's policy is minimal intervention, and their motto is, "from the grape to the bottle with care and passion."
Springfield is all about the wine, and it works. No tea garden, restaurant, gift shop, craft market, or cheesery, just a pure focus on the wine. However, they are generous enough to offer visitors the opportunity to share the beauty of the farm if you bring your own picnic basket. So pack a little hamper, and sit back and relax on the deck overlooking the dam, and if you're lucky, as we seem to have been, Brenda will pour you a decent glass of your chosen wine to accompany your lunch. Aaah, life is bliss!
www.springfieldestate.com
With love, and lots more in store for you so please keep checking in if you haven't officially signed up (you know who you are)
Suzy Q
My car radio is permanently tuned into FMR 101.3, until of course the Misses SQ haul themselves in and press the Radio 5 button before they've said "hello", and I'm subjected to rap and inane chatter for the remainder of the journey. I really do prefer the calming effects of classical music, but what's a mom held to ransom to do? "It's not for much longer," they love to remind me, or is it a threat? Anyway, all this to say that I have chanced upon a pretty good local station of late, and am enjoying music from the 70's, 80's, 90's and as they say at the station, "a sprinkling from the noughties." I'm talking about Republic Radio, operating independently from the Republic of Hout Bay, which provides good online listening 24 hours a day. Lots of music and not too much small talk, love it. I'm so excited to discover the station that I'm off to meet Tom Purcell soon, and will tell you more about the whole operation asap, can't wait! www.republicradio.co.za
Needless to say all this radio talk makes me rather nostalgic, as radio was our prime source of entertainment growing up in South Africa without TV in my youth. Well, that was in the evenings, when we weren't swinging on trees or falling off our bikes during the day. Springbok Radio was my childhood companion, and I'd hazard a guess that applies to many of us. Remember the great shows which held us spellbound round the radiogram?
The Creaking Door, a spine chiller, Consider your Verdict, that great courtroom drama series, Taxi, Red "If I don't see you thro' the week I'll see you thro' the window" Kowalski, Pet's Parade, and the penultimate show of the week at 7.30pm on Fridays, Squad Cars. For the pleasure of listening to our favourite show we'd all be scrubbed and huddled round the radiogram in our dressing gowns eating fish fingers for supper, eagerly awaiting the signature, "They prowl the empty streets at night, waiting in fast cars, living with crime and violence. These are the men of SQUAD CARS." Yes, for this I'd even eat fish.
But this was as nothing compared to the excitement and anticipation as we awaited the big event of the week on Saturdays at 5pm, The Springbok Hit Parade. WHO would be No 1 this week we wondered as we sat through the countdown till we discovered who was top of the Hit Parade.
www.springbokradio.com
As music became more of a growing interest in the tweeny and teen years, LM Radio was the station of choice, with the coolest tunes being played by even cooler DJ's from their base in Lourenco Marques. Remember Barry O'D, Long John Berks and Peter de Nobrega and all their signature jingles? Not to mention the unmissable LM Hit Parade! This was the era when the transistor radio was king, the prize to be prayed for if you came first in class or hit the jackpot on a big birthday. Then you could listen under the covers with the earplug (yes singular) to all the late night jocks and progressive music. When I started listening to LM Radio in primary school, the Kinks, Creedence Clearwater Revival, and wait for it, Joe Dolan were big news. When LMR finally shut shop in October 1975 after independence in Mocambique made the station's 42 year existence there untenable, it was Supertramp, Rodriguez, Pink Floyd and Bad Co who ruled the airwaves. The station moved to Johannesburg to become the same Radio 5 to which my daughters listen today, but to me, it was never quite the same.
www.lmradio.org
During my student years, Capital Radio 604 from the Wild Coast burst onto the scene like a breath of fresh air, which was probably tinged with the fumes of Transkei Green, if the stories which emanated from Port St John's were anything to go by. This was a direct break from SABC and it's archaic and restrictive culture, operating from one of the supposedly independent republics known as bantustans. Their theme tune was "all the hits and more," and for a while we had good music on the air again. Of course it was a dream to tune in to the really cool stations operating out of Europe, like the pirate Radio Caroline and Radio Luxembourg, but my trusty tin tranny never rose to such heights.
And so it was that in my thirties, during my early mothering years I greeted the advent of our very own FMR with equal enthusiasm, and loved to have it playing in the car and in the house during those toddling years to introduce young ears and minds to the pleasures of classical music. But that was before the little ones learnt how to take control of the radio. The music must have meant something to them however, for when Eric Alan came on air with Swing, Sing and all that Jazz at 5pm, they used to sit on the kitchen floor playing "clap handies, clap handies till Daddy comes home" eagerly awaiting Mr SQ's imminent arrival home after a long day with me. But not quite as eagerly as me!
www.fmr.co.za
Still, the times they are a changing, and I think Republic Radio may be getting a lot more airtime from me, and I'd urge anybody in need of good music and memories to tune in to them too. Fill you in on the workings of the station when I've packed my passport and headed over the hill.
Till then, with love,
Suzy Q
