The Month - August 2010

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the FRanschhoeK VaLLeY

[email protected] 2010 If It’s NOt IN here, It’s NOt out there!

This year’s Franschhoek Bastille Festival on the weekend of the 17th and 18th of July was, by anyone’s measure, a resounding success. With almost 5000 visitors to the Food and Wine Marquee and thousands more to the village and valley over the weekend, sheer numbers alone suggest that 2010 will be a benchmark for years to come.

Franschhoek’s Bastille Festival commemorates the storming of the Bastille saint-antoine on the 14th of July 1789 and in a similar manner, the weekend sees many locals and tourists thrown together in a heady mix of colour, energy and gees as they epitomise the by-line of the festival: a celebration of Freedom. The magnificent weather ensured that every open lawn and sidewalk table that the village had to offer was littered with smiling revellers drinking in the sun, the magnificent Franschhoek vistas and of course, the wine.

along with the bigger-than-ever marquee the village pulled out all the stops with the annual boules competition, a Franschhoek minstrel parade, a barrel-rolling contest won by Franschhoek cellars and a waiters’ race. This year’s French corner market ensured that the French theme was evident in the many home-made products and crafts, while musicians and children’s activities kept the whole family entertained.

The presence of many younger visitors and students to this year’s festival was notable and social media tools such as twitter have been thanked for the change in the demographic. “it was hectic,” is the consistent answer from many who attended the after-parties at col’cacchio and The station Pub and despite the crowds and large amounts of energy and alcohol the festival was free of any unpleasantries and reaffirms the notion that south africans are a generally friendly bunch.

Youth Storm Bastille!staff reporter

Reuben’s Gourmet Kalahari Safari “He’s Known Everywhere!” - PAGE 7

Franschhoek Bastille Collage Photographs From the Festival - PAGE 12

Young party-goers at the Bastille Festival get in to the spirit of the occassion

www.themonth.co.za august 2010

the month

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from the editorFRom the editoRaugust 2010

Editor: Brett Garner083 260 0453 [email protected]

Publisher: David Foster084 827 3986 [email protected]

Photography: Lightworks Photography021 876 4832 [email protected]

Graphic Design & Layoutby Gravity Media

[email protected]

CONTRIBUTORSMichele Lupini [email protected]

Dave Rundle [email protected] Gary Joliffe [email protected]

Werner Smit [email protected] Nussbaum [email protected]

John Rayner [email protected]

For many parts of Europe, August is re-garded as the ‘holiday month’ and visi-tors to Franschhoek may be forgiven for believing that they have happened upon a town still very much on holiday as we work our way towards the end of a very long winter, albeit that the effects are possibly more noticeable economically than meteorologically. In truth, life in Franschhoek is always less frenetic than anywhere else I visit and it’s no doubt one of the reasons we remain the desti-nation of choice for those keen to expe-rience the ultimate that the good life has to offer.

This month’s edition comes hot on the heels of one of the biggest festivals the val-ley has seen to date with scores of people enjoying the recent Bastille celebrations. we’ve featured some feedback from local main road business owners and managers in our Question of The month (page 24) and it’s interesting to note that many of the locals have commented that the sat-urday crowds were far younger than those on sunday. The local tourist association at-tributes the increased numbers in general to the use and effectiveness of social media tools such as Facebook and twitter. some have suggested that the massive influx of students may very well be a Pyrrhic victory while others are happy to welcome anyone who chooses wine over other beverages, whatever their age may be, especially those who can afford to buy large amounts of it!

Perhaps a call to the Franschhoek chamber (page 27) will help me understand who has it right.

Look out for Barbara nussbaum’s moving piece on the real winners of the world cup (page 5) and enjoy the luxury and beauty of the wine-lands on page 4 with some news from santé and La Ferme while there’s something new from solms-delta on page 3 that is bound to put you at ease. Reuben goes to the Kalahari (page 7) while The month travels to sutherland in the Karoo for the not too Far from here fea-ture (page 11). we go paparazzi at Bastille (page 12); celebrate michele Lupini’s 1st Birthday at The month in style (page 22); welcome the prodigal waiter back (again) on page 10 and reveal some exciting news about The month’s website in the Publisher’s Parting shot (page 27).

Finally, The month extends its con-dolences to the friends and families of chanel and trevor respectively on the untimely loss of a dear friend and beloved family member. Both were integral members of our small community and our thoughts and prayers remain with you in this dif-ficult time.

Brett

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the month august 2010

august 2010

The Month was delighted to accept an invitation to lunch and a Shiraz Vertical Tasting at the Solms-Delta Estate’s Fyndraai restaurant in July and witness the launch of Gemoed-srus; their fortified, desiccated Shiraz.

mark solms was at pains to explain the difference between this and its closest relative, Port - the fortified wine of Portugual. “First” he said, “whereas port is typically made from tintos or tourigas, gemoedsrus is made from shiraz (a grape that does brilliantly in south africa). second, whereas port is typi-cally made from conven-tionally harvested grapes, gemoedsrus is made from grapes that were desiccated on the vine. and third, whereas port wine is typically fortified with brandy, gemoedsrus is fortified with husk spirits (grap-pa) made from residues of the desiccated shiraz bunches from which the wine itself was fer-mented. The resulting product is something completely different … and dangerously deli-cious” he said.

The name gemoedsrus (‘Peace of mind’) ex-tends another solms-delta tradition: their ongoing commitment to the cape’s unique musical heritage. The name refers to the title track of the last album by alex van heerden, who was resident mu-sician at solms-delta from 2007 until his death. alex was respon-sible for researching and recording the old tradi-tional folk songs of the rural cape, as well as writing new ones with solms-delta’s farmworkers and

the delta Vastrap genootskap. he was tragically killed in 2009, in a car accident, at the young age of 35, just weeks before the gemoed-srus album was released.

solms-delta’s master winemaker, hilko hegewisch, who crafted this new south african wine in alex’s honour, insists: “gemoedsrus is not a port; i refuse to call it that. we see it simply as the next logi-cal step in our search for truly local wines” and points out that he used only solms-delta’s own, very best

shiraz grapes for this flagship ex-periment.

The desiccation proc-ess is one where the shiraz grapes are dried out on the vine by clamping the stems of the bunches several weeks before harvesting. The skins are then distilled into grappa, whis is then used to fortify the wine once its sugars have reached the ap-propriate level. The final step is a brief period of maturation in new French oak barrels. The desicca-tion method reduces the water content by as much as 40%, concentrating the juice while simul-taneously retaining good acidity and en-suring full ripeness. This leads to intense-ly-flavoured, deeper-coloured wines and contributes signifi-cantly to the wines’ longevity.

“The result is an el-egant but potent affair,

with complex flavours of raisins, white pepper, black cherries, leather and dark

chocolate, all enlivened by a distinctively deli-cious twist of orange peel” says hilko. well-integrated alcohol gives off whiffs of warm brioche and a smooth, long, silky finish that rounds off the wine nicely.

mark recommends pairing it with farmhouse cheeses or rich, dark chocolate desserts and

considers it to be a ‘vino di meditazione’ – a wine for thinking with.

Gemoedsrus sells from the farm and at specialist wine retailers for r188. For more info go to www.solms-delta.co.za.

Something New from Africasolms-delta launches gemoedsrusWine Correspondent

Mark Solms with master winemaker, Hilko Hegewisch



4

When the Santé Winelands Hotel and Well-ness Centre reopened its doors on the 1st of June this year, an important pebble was again thrown into the pool of luxuries offered in the Franschhoek valley. Santé is situated on a 16ha working wine estate and is dedicated entirely to a health and wellness lifestyle. The well known spa pioneered Vino-therapy in South Africa and received many accolades in this regard, most notably the 2006 Condé Nast ‘Top three Spas of the World.’

The spa closed some years back when the then owners Fidentia were placed under curator-ship. today the centre’s ceo, carlos Vilela, is intimately involved in all aspects of the busi-ness and his interest in the estate stretches to a number of the villas and much of what hap-pens in the valley. “we are not here to re-invent the wheel, but to bring santé back to life and provide our guests with the ultimate in service excellence and the luxury spa experience that

one would expect from an establishment such as ours,” he said. The spa has caught the atten-tion of many at the top and alan winde, the western cape minister of Finance, economic development and tourism, has expressed his excitement at the return of “one of the icons of the western cape” and regards santé as one of the economic factors that will help realise the 15% growth in arrivals to the cape by 2015 that his department has set as a target.

despite not re-inventing the wheel, carlos and his wife sharon have transformed the spa and elevated it to levels of luxury previously unseen. There is an air of tranquillity that per-meates as you enter the hotel where rooms are well appointed and elegant, with marble fin-ishes, deluxe bathrooms and oodles of space. Their approach is holistic in many respects with plants and water features adding to the positive feel and even the toiletries and cosmet-ics in the rooms reflect a symbiotic relationship

with nature. There are ten manor rooms at the hotel itself and 39 spa suites with fire places, patios and small kitchens.

conference facilities in the Banqueting hall can accommodate up to 165 in a cinema-style venue with breakaway rooms and an organ-iser’s office. outside on the piazza, santé has one of the largest Bedouin-style marquee tents in the southern hemisphere, covering more than 2000 square metres, where more than 1000 guests can be comfortably seated; just the thing for an a-list wedding in the winelands.

santé spa director, anja Liebenberg has man-aged spas in turkey and germany and 5-star resorts in south africa. The spa’s innovative therapies include an exclusive offering aimed at teenagers with their ‘santeens’ range, and according to sharon was born from an obvi-ous need to accommodate families in the spa experience. The spa has a laconium, heated indoor pool, sauna, gym, experiential showers and a steam room that can be used by all guests at santé hotel. The wellness centre will soon focus on sport-injury recoveries with a fulltime physician on site.

santé features two restaurants under chef-Patron niel Rogers with cadeaux (French for ‘gift’) at the wellness centre focusing on healthy living while the hotel’s fine dining res-taurant, sommelier, presents a gourmet menu influenced by international trends and draws on local delicacies. all dishes are prepared us-ing locally sourced ingredients and produce from santé’s own organic fruit, vegetable and herb gardens.

“we’re looking forward to seeing you again,” smiles sharon as we leave. Judging by the beau-ty of the place there’s no doubt it’ll be “again and again and again.”

Pausing for the large gates to close at the entrance to La Ferme Fly Fishing, I’m struck by the careful-ly manicured yet homely nature of the place. To my left a horse raises its head expectantly – the sign instructing me to wait for the gate to close behind me (lest he and his kind should escape) is all the explanation I need, two fish-ermen are talking quietly as their casting loops glisten in the early morning sunlight and a handful of springbok edge towards a non-chalant ostrich as if to say “We’ve got company.”

at the reception i’m met by mer-cedes Labuschange, the beautiful other half of François, whose brain-child the farm and fly fishing venue was some eight years ago. mercedes is as formidable as she is attrac-

tive and it’s clear that the she meticulously manages the many facets of the farm with a very hands-on approach. with self-catering accommodation, quad biking, access to the

wemmershoek River and hiking in the adjoining Limietberg added to the fly fishing on offer, it’s just as well mer-cedes is at hand to give me an overview of the goings on at La Ferme.

mid-way through my coffee a little girl appears from behind one of the nearby walls with a row of ducks following be-hind and two large cats a short distance behind them. They make their way into the expansive garden and then head to-wards the horse that’s still eyeing the gate. “isn’t that a picture?” mercedes smiles, and as i take a last look at eve-rything the farm has to offer i can but agree.

Contact La Ferme on 021 8760120 or visit www.laferme.co.za

Santé Sparkles Againstaff reporter

La Ferme Favouritestaff reporter

Revive

Dermal FillersBotox ®

Dr Tracey Garner021 876 4622The Ivy • Franschhoek

The undeniably beautiful Santé estate

One of La Ferme’s carefully manicured fly fishing dams



august 2010

In this abridged article taken from her blog, Franschhoek resident and published author, Barbara Nussbaum, shares her thoughts on the real winners in the 2010 World Cup.

On the night of the World Cup soccer final, I spoke to a few people at the local pub in fran-schhoek, the elephant and Barrel. I asked people what had moved them most, or what struck them most about the soccer World Cup. I first spoke to Kennedy Ngubalunga, one of the waiters. “This was more than the game – it was about the worth of the people. I loved the vuvuzela, that it is our own. It is a unique south African item.”

Morgan, a beautiful twenty-something young woman, discovered the power of being a south African through the loving eyes of foreign fans and visitors. “Capetonians are quite closed peo-ple. They stick to themselves and their friends. The world cup opened us up. I went to places I would never usually go to like the fan parks. The over-seas visitors were just so receptive to us; they were so excited that I was a south African. I loved the unity I felt.”

A shy local primary school worker said “this world cup brought all colours together.” for her, the highlight was “black, white, pink, yellow and green people came together like a rainbow. We all stood together in front of a screen at a shebeen in etyotyombeni, an informal settlement near fran-schhoek, watching the soccer. (etyotyombeni is a Xhosa word for many shacks). rich people and poor people, whites and blacks and coloureds all watched the game. Owners of wine estates, guest

houses, businessmen – they all went to the she-been. That never happens here”.

A guesthouse owner at my table confirmed the story – “Yes she said, my husband was there. They went up in a combi and had a great time. Watch-

ing soccer with others in etyotyombeni was new. They found it exciting watching the game to-gether. he and his friends discovered that people living in informal settlements are like anyone else – love drinking together and enjoying the game. I think they will keep it up.”

I found an inspiring answer to the question of how the ‘gees’ could be sustained in conversation with the very last person I spoke to after the game,

Prakash, an advertising executive with Draftfcb. Originally from the UK, Prakash relocated to franschhoek where he fell in love with the place and the woman who was to become his wife. With heartfelt enthusiasm he said, “south Afri-cans really need to give themselves credit for what

they have done. This is an amazing country. The south African heart, the African spirit is incred-ibly powerful. We all need to recognise that.”

At 1am I walked out of the elephant and Barrel, elated and inspired. Through the small lens of one joyous night talking to people in a lively fran-schhoek pub, I learned that the south African psyche may well be the biggest beneficiary of the world cup. Arriving at my car I noticed that my own south African flag, previously placed on my car window had been taken by someone obviously caught up in the spirit of excitement. I didn’t even mind. I hope that flag keeps flying. I for one will be buying another one immediately!

Barbara’s latest book, Personal Growth African style, published by Penguin Books and co-authored with s u d h a n s h u Palsule and Ve-laphi mkhize, will be in bookstores on august 1.

For more information visit www.barbaranussbaum.com

one of the happiest word cup follow-ers this year was sipho mfazwe of etyo-tyombeni, the informal settlement out-side the Franschhoek village. sipho, who turns eight this month, is paraplegic and was born with spina Bifida. Through the efforts of the Brave Foundation, a cape town-based nPo, sipho and his mother received tickets to the match featuring Portugal and north Korea. Local octoge-

narian, shirley Parkfelt, played chauffeur and dressed in a donated football support-er’s shirt, his excitement was uncontain-able while the experience has left a lasting impression on him.

The Brave Foundation is run by Robyne conway and helps accident victims and the physically challenged through a highly effective and unique physiotherapy pro-gramme based on Yoga, breathing tech-niques and nutrition. Robyne herself was seriously injured some years ago and attributes her recovery to the same tech-niques she now uses to help others. The Brave Foundation has established a wel-come presence in the Franschhoek val-ley and volunteers are able to offer a life changing service to people who are physi-cally challenged or have been injured in an accident.

at present the foundation needs a fixed venue from which to operate on saturday mornings twice a month and any locals who may be able to help are encouraged to contact Robyne at [email protected].

Franschhoek Flying High


the month

6

food and wineFood & wineaugust 2010

Tread Lightly!Backsberg launches its new wine brand in a soft bottle Wine Correspondent

The Tread Lightly soft bottle delivers all the aesthetic qualities of glass, making it a stylish choice for outdoor entertaining at festivals, picnics, boating, beach parties and braais where traditional glass bottlesare either unsafe or not permitted.

PET is fully recyclable and easily crushable.

Manufacturing of the soft bottles leads to a reduced net energy consumption of up to 50% when compared with glass.

Packing of beverages in PET reduces en-ergy consumption by 52% vs glass and metal.

Greenhouse gas emissions are reduced by 55% through the use of PET compared to glass

A 750ml PET wine bottle weighs 50g compared to the average 400g lightweight glass wine bottle - i.e. PET is an eighth of the weight of glass.

The reduced weight and diameter of the PET bottle allows for up to 36% more product to be transported in the same container space.

This is the first time PET has been used for certified wine in South Africa. Other products that have been bottled in PET include water, milk and energy drinks.

The PET soft bottle has no effect on the quality of the wine.

The Tread Lightly by Backsberg soft bottle holds 750ml of wine - the same as a glass bottle.

Bottle FactsBottle Facts

Available exclusively at Pick n Pay, the Tread Lightly Merlot will be priced at R49 and the Sauvignon Blanc at R39 and will be on sale from late July.

Following our stories on the plastic wine bottles we ran in the June edition of The Month, we were pleased to hear that Backs-berg - the first SA winery to achieve carbon neutral status - is again making history with its new wine brand, Tread Lightly, the first certified wine sold in the new, innovative PET soft bottle produced by Mondi.

“The enjoyment of a great bottle of wine should never be at the cost of the environment”, says Backsberg proprietor, michael Back. “wheth-er by measurable process or by intuitive ap-proach, every step we take in producing our wines must be challenged. The packaging and transport of wine contributes significantly to our carbon footprint and therefore needs to be addressed.”

Thetread Lightly merlot 2008 and sauvignon Blanc 2010 varietals are bottled in a lightweight, stylish, Pet soft bottle. Following the recent approval by The wine and spirit Board to bot-tle certified n a t u r a l

wine in polyethylene terephthalate (Pet), tread Lightly is spearheading what will surely become commonplace in the near future.

Backsberg has partnered with Pick n Pay, the first retailer to sell the new innovative Pet soft wine bottle, for the launch of tread Lightly by Backsberg and customers can look forward to seeing these fine wines on shelf in selected Pick n Pay stores and liquor outlets this month.

“i look forward to seeing the response to tread Lightly from existing Backsberg s u p p o r t - ers, as well as new customers. we are confi-d e n t that this new

concept will be well-received giv-

en that it’s a win for the environment as well

as for convenience, without compromising on wine quality

at all” commented simon Back, marketing manager at Backsberg.

The tread Lightly Pet soft bottle adds the benefit of convenience due to

its lightweight and shatterproof qualities. tread Lightly and the eco-friendly bottle is

another way in which Backsberg respects the environment without compromising the qual-ity and enjoyment of their wines.


motoRing & technoLogY august 2010

august 2010

food and wineFood & wine

Recently, Rustof Country House’s Frank McCourt took local celebrity chef Reuben Riffel on a Kalahari Safari with a difference – Reuben was to provide a unique experi-ence for the guests with gourmet cooking in the most unlikely of settings. We caught up with Frank to ask him how it went and what gave him the idea.

“The gourmet Kalahari safari concept was ac-tually born on a trip we did with ingrid and camil haas (formerly of Franschoek’s Boulli-baisse restaurant) a couple of years ago. Being expert cooks they really laid it on and opened my eyes to what could be achieved in what is

normally ‘chop and dop’ braai country, and i thought it would be a lovely idea to recreate such a wonderful experience.” when camil’s business interests moved to cape town, Frank approached Reuben, who had never been to the Kalahari, organised what he called four ‘guinea pigs’ (old friends and clients from the usa) and planned a six-day stay in the Kala-hari. They spent their first night at the Kalahari tented camp before moving on to the very iso-lated grootkolk camp to the north of the park, where they “saw a lot of game” and enjoyed its exclusive use.

The idea, says Frank, was that Reuben and he would be guides dur-ing the day and cooks by night. “in re-ality, i was the pot wash” says Frank “and believe me, to create the kind of gourmet ex-perience only Reuben can deliver takes a lot of pots!”

as an experi-mental trip,

said Frank, it went off well. since it was a new concept that hadn’t really been tried before, the idea was to learn about how to do this right and create a model that will pay its own way. “Reuben made amazing meals and we didn’t skimp on the wines; it was all top-end stuff, white table cloths and proper wine glasses, al-though next time we’ll take just one glass per person” laughs Frank, “and a couple of culi-nary school trainees to help out!” (pot wash, you mean – ed)

we asked Reuben how he enjoyed the experi-ence. he said, “i was very anxious about our adventure because i did not know what to ex-pect. it turned out to be very special with lots of funny incidents, amazing sights and i gained a new-found respect for the Kalahari and the creatures that have to survive there. i think if Frank was on the show ‘survivor’ he would win it outright.”

and if you thought Reuben was just a local hero, think again. “as we arrived in Kenhardt, (a small town in the northern cape about

120 km from upington) to pull in for coffee, one school girl recognised Reuben and within minutes a posse of young girls pulled in taking pictures with Reuben on their cell phones” said Frank. in a restaurant in upington the guests recognised him, even the camp attendant at grootkolk recognised him. “he’s known eve-rywhere” said Frank.

The experimental trip was a success and Frank has more planned for next year.

For information contact him at [email protected] to book your spot.

Kalahari Safaristaff reporter

Celebrated chef, reuben riffel; at home anywhere

The “amazing sight” from Grootkolk camp

“even I recognised him”


the month

8

food and wineFood & wineaugust 2010

Winery ReviewThe editor Graham Beck

‘Restaurant’ Reviewstaff reporter

PotBelly PantryThe Potbelly Pantry on the R44, a short drive from Franschhoek and close to the Franschhoek Valley, is well known for its legendary butch-ery which specialises in steak, preservative-free boerewors, lamb, veal, smoked pork products, marinated chicken sosaties and their unique ‘Klapmuts Kreef and Vark Koeksisters’. The Pantry also stocks preserves and cold cuts and has a fabulous bakery that produces very large loaves and a great selection of wonderful pies. a small res-taurant now forms part of the Pantry but many who visit the deli r e g u l a r l y will be in the habit of buying one of their tasty freshly-baked pies to enjoy outside on at one of the h a n d f u l of wooden tables at the entrance. i stopped there recently on the way back from a visit to a number of the local wine farms in the area and couldn’t resist joining the queue to pick up a mutton curry pie and a spot in the sun.

The Potbelly’s pies are not small – so the fact that eating it as a ‘take away’ means losing out on a side salad or chips at the restaurant shouldn’t make much difference to your tum-my. my pie was exceptionally well seasoned and the curry and mutton flavours were obvi-

ous without the curry being too hot. unlike many mass produced pies, Potbelly pies con-tain a lot of meat and it’s clear that there’s no skimping on the filling.

with chicken, steak, mutton and cheese to choose from there are least a handful of excuses for a visit when you’re next in the area.

Give them a call on 021 875 5664 or email [email protected]

Part of the Graham Beck philosophy reads as follows: “We are consummate caretak-ers – of our wines, people, environment, customers and consumers. Nothing less will do.” It’s easy to see a measure of the truth of this statement as you drive into the Gra-ham Beck wine farm next to Bridge House School, outside Franschhoek, where the magnificent tasting room and bottling plant sits comfortably surrounded by manicured lawns and mature indigenous trees. But it was the welcome and attention I received from the tasting room staff, on an otherwise ordinary day, which convinced me that their resolve to give one hundred percent is taken seriously at every level.

i was met at the door by smiling faces and an immediate invitation to take a seat and sample “only our best.” i laughed and said that The month doesn’t pay that well, so i’d do the com-plimentary tasting and quick as a flash i was as-sured that all graham Beck’s wines are the best. suitably encouraged i took a seat with a view of the impressive bottling area and watched as a special consignment was prepped and pack-aged for the swedish market.

a glass of bubbly appeared and i expressed my surprise (as the bubbly isn’t part of the

complimentary tasting). The friendly wine ambassador smiled and said “i know, but it’s rather quiet today and we can make it our lit-tle secret.” i pushed my The month notebook behind the spittoon and gratefully accepted the don’t-tell-Pieter-but-as-it’s-rather-quiet-i’ll-spoil-you-with-a-little-mmc Blanc de

Blanc. The chardonnay mcc is made from grapes sourced from the limestone soils of Robert-son, fermented in French bar-rels and stainless steel tanks and left on the lees for three years. The creamy bubbly has a strong yeast aroma and is a great option for anyone who isn’t into Bruts. i prayed silently that the wines that followed would all be of the same standard – but kept a sip in the glass just in case.

next up the graham Beck sau-vignon Blanc, game Reserve chenin Blanc and gB chardon-nay arrived with a detailed expla-nation of the winemaking proc-ess and some background about the source of the grapes and the characters likely to be present as a result. i asked about first and

other fills, French vs. hungarian vs. american oak and the packaging process that was unfold-ing before me. i got decent answers to every question and more than enough time to enjoy the wines and the spectacle. The sauvignon Blanc (R65) got ‘green pepper’ in my notebook and its crisp acidity will make a great partner to smoky flavours. The chenin Blanc was my favourite white and unbelievable value consid-ering the R50 price tag, with full complex fla-vours, tropical fruit (‘granadilla’) on the nose and a long finish. The chardonnay (R75) has hints of oak under strong lime flavours and a typical, but gentle, vanilla aroma.

i enjoyed the gB Pinotage (R80), with its

spicy flavours sure to make it a braai-time win-ner; the coffeestone cabernet (R165), named after the coffeestone Vineyards rather than the flavour and resolved to buy the Joshua (R195) when my ship comes in! to finish the Rhona muscadel was delicious – no too sweet but un-deniably muscadel and the recently released cape LBV Port (R55) will see me back there when that ship is but an approaching speck on the horizon.

all-in-all the wines were fabulous, and there was no need for the sip of bubbly i’d set aside “just in case” but it came in handy as i drank a final toast to graham Beck’s passion for perfec-tion and wine.

Jimmy’s smile says it all!


the monthfood and wineFood & wine august 2010

august 2010

A recent email to The Month about “The Eradication of Brett” resulted in some strong words from the editor, a hastily drawn up will and an instruction to “Get to the bottom of this.” A couple of calls later and a dip in Neil Pendock’s ever-informative blog (blogs.timeslive.co.za/pendock) revealed that the SA Department of Agriculture have formally endorsed the use of ultra violet light energy for the purposes of purifying wine.

with his kind permission, we feature neil Pen-dock’s not-so-recent interview with guy Keb-ble, ceo of surePure, the company behind the surePure system of uV purification which almost totally eradicates the need for sulphur in wine.

Neil Pendock: What is the story behind sul-phur?

Guy Kebble: sulphur has always been an inte-gral part of the wine-making process. It prevents oxidation of wine and fights potentially spoiling microbes, some of which release enzymes that cause oxidation. Unfortunately, many consumers suffer from sulphur-intolerance and many people avoid wine altogether because of the sulphur lev-els in the liquid, which could be as high as 200 parts per million. Our system has, however, made it possible for wine to be bottled with no added sulphur or at substantially lower sulphur levels of between 20 and 50 parts per million. This tech-nology, whereby the wine is literally “purified” through a cold Ultra Violet process, is seen as a major breakthrough for the south Af-

rican wine indu s -

try. We are currently conducting product devel-opment exercises with many top wine producers, including steenberg, L’Ormarins, Alluvia and stellar Organics, who deem the prevalence of sul-phur a deterrent for many consumers.

NP: Does your system replace the need to sterile filter wines?

GK: Yes it does replace the need to sterile filter as it inactivates all spoiling micro-organisms. Whilst sterile filtration is an effective purifier of wines, it can strip the flavour profile, reduce aroma and affect palate weight. Besides limiting the need for sulphur, our process also eradicates Brettanomy-ces, a spoilage yeast that could possibly find its way into the winery and which has become a problem for some red wine producers.

NP: how does your system work?

GK: surePure is an internationally patented cold-purification system that removes harm-ful microbes from liquids through transmitting UV-C energy directly to microbial DNA found within the liquids. This kills harmful micro-or-ganisms by damaging their DNA, disabling their growth and with no residual effect. The system is also used on, inter alia, milk and fruit juice to remove the

need for pasteurisation and added preservatives respectively, whilst rendering the products safe for consumption. It has a proven ability to almost totally eradicate the need for sulphur during the winemaking process [which] has created tremen-dous interest within the wine-making community in the technology. You can call it revolutionary. A new generation of lower sulphur wines is [within] the international wine industry’s reach.

NP: When will the first low sulphur wines be available?

GK: steenberg and L’Ormarins were the first estates

to produce no-added sul-

p h u r

wines; sadly this has been done in relatively small batches, so the public will have to look out for the 2009 crop to be able to experience surePure sulphur free wine. We will of course, through our website (www.surepure.net), and in conjunction with the wine producers, be informing the public as to which brands are sulphur free.

so there you have it - surePure is bad news for Brettanomyces bruxelinsis but good news f o r wine lovers everywhere

(although the edi-tor’s liver may

disagree).

The End of BrettWine Correspondent



10

Barbara Nussbaum has co-authored Personal growth, african style which will be launched by Pengiun this month. The dust cover reads as follows:

Personal Growth, African style takes an ap-proach to leadership which offers a path to personal development, dealing with lead-ership as a process of self-discovery and a journey to the centre of oneself and one’s origins. It inspires leadership through the individual’s reclaiming his or her wholeness as a human being, as an African, as a glo-

bal citizen. It seeks to regenerate and ignite the less tangible aspects of leadership: those linked to higher purpose and self-awareness and to the good of a broader community.

while focusing on personal growth, this ap-proach not only calls upon you, the indi-vidual, to expand the level and depth of your self-awareness, but to honour and enrich the potential of those whose lives you touch. The book contains a variety of readings and tools as well as written exercises to help you to grow personally and to encourage you to begin to see yourself as a person who expresses the values, knowledge and behaviour which consciously embody uBuntu. it seeks to reclaim the possi-bility of a more human style of leadership. not only for africa, but for the world.

reprinted with permission from BarbaraNuss-baum.com

reuel J Khoza, Chairman of Nedbank, south Africa, author of Let Africa Lead, shares the fol-lowing: “Through dedicated, diligent in-depth research, observation and serious reflection, the authors have commendably captured the philoso-phy of uBuntu (African humanism), both theory and application, as a compelling compass for per-sonal growth and probable emergence as a leader. They provide a sorely needed African perspective for Africa and the world on cooperative and com-munal life for sustainable growth and develop-ment today.”

Personal Growth, African style will be launched this month.

Book Reviewstaff reporterwhat’s on in

August8th August – Bells Fly

Fishing competition at la Ferme, wemmershoek. to enter sms 082 5552043 or email your contact details to [email protected]. r200 per person per day including coffee and rusks upon arrival, boerewors roll for lunch and juice. no under 18’s permitted. For more info go to www.laferme.co.za.

17th August - groot drakenstein games club golf day at paarl golf club to raise funds for sports development amongst the youth of this valley. contact wilhelm du plessis on 078 6398749

18th August - Big music at col’cacchio in aid of Kyle ray’s delta trust/winelands Basketball league. the traditional ‘open mic’ format and auction to raise funds for transport costs, uniforms, balls and shoes for local basketball teams. call 021 876 4222 to book a table.

19th August - the charity golf event of the year in aid of youth empowerment action offers you the opportunity to join with a host of rugby, cricket and golf sporting celebrities at pearl valley golf estates at r595 pp including dinner. contact [email protected] by Friday, 13th august to book.

26th August - the Bumble Bee play school hosts the annual Bumble Bee auction in aid of its bursary fund at allora and all friends of Bumble Bee, past and present, are welcome to attend. seating is limited and booking is essential. contact [email protected] for more information.

28th August - Franschhoek Barn dance - 7pm ‘till late the theatre @ Bridge house school. r150pp Bring own picnic, cash bar, mechanical Bull, line dancing instructors, live Band. Bookings: darielle – 0842073820 or ann – 0829091116 or email [email protected].

If you have an event that you would like to advertise here for September, send the details to the editor on [email protected]

The Waiter DiariesThe views expressed in this article are solely those of the anonymous writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of ‘The Month’.

“I told you that I am not getting out of bed until the World Cup is over and those foreign infidels have returned to their soggy North-ern lands with those horrible plastic noise things of theirs” I said to the manageress who

was glaring at me from the foot of my bed.

“ t h e y ’ r e called vuvuzelas” she replied, “and they’re actually an african invention.” involuntary twitch on my part at the mention of this evil aural torture device. “Lies, lies…” i muttered as i tried to slip deep-er under my duvet. “anyway, we haven’t heard one since south africa got knocked out of the world cup” she snarled, “so stop being a wimp and get up. i’ve made you some coffee just the way you like it.” “with a double brandy?” i

asked, hopefully . grinding teeth and a bale-ful stare - no such luck. “Your customers need you. Your restaurant needs you!” she said, try-ing a different tack. i pointed out to her my sense of loyalty had crawled into a corner and died of neglect many years ago. i could see she realised this approach was futile.

i was just about to resume some heavy duty sulking when she pulled out

her trump card. “i looked in that old shoe you

hide your money in under your

bed..” ( i was w o n d e r -

i n g

how she had done this and still managed to stay upright when i noticed the latex gloves and clothes peg on her nose) “..and you only have thirty-five cents to your name, so if you don’t come to work you can’t buy any beer to-night.”

as the awful truth of this dawned on me i al-lowed myself to be manhandled into the bath-room with threats of dire consequences if i did not emerge looking and smelling like a calvin Klein model (this is not as easy to achieve as you might think). while showering i made a mental note to go jogging in my old shoes before hiding money in them again – even a clothes peg won’t help after that.

Finally i slipped my earplugs into my pocket and dragged myself towards work. on the way the manageress started to mutter something about my ‘attitude’ (my what?) so i surrepti-tiously slipped the plugs into my ears – bliss-ful silence. it felt so good that i vowed not to remove them until i reached the pub that night and then only if there were no vuvuzelas in ear-shot.

not being able to hear, i had to resort to mime and sign language to communicate (note to self: sign language is not universal and does not translate in many foreign languages, especially not Japanese, but the less said about that inci-dent the better). still, i did get a correct order rate of about 60% which i thought was pretty good, especially considering that some of my colleagues couldn’t do that using both ears.

an amusing incident involving me putting chilli sauce on the mouth pieces of a group of children’s vuvuzelas while they were distracted produced a result which kept me smiling un-til the end of the shift (yes it really was that funny). counting my tips, i found i had made enough to get nicely legless and hoofed off to the pub. all in all, not a bad day.

Viva silence! The struggle continues...



august 2010

Not Too Far From Here...staff reporter

SutherlandSome people call

Sutherland in the Karoo, the coolest

place on earth. If you’re into solitude, the most amazing

night skies and unforgettable lamb dishes – that’s true. If that’s not your fancy then Sutherland goes from cool to downright cold. With winter temperatures that drop to the minus teens, Sutherland is recognised as one of South Africa’s coldest spots about. My recent visit to the tiny town in the Great Karoo gave me a glimpse of its coolness and a first-hand experience of the cold.

The town lies 350km from cape town and the trip along good roads and through varied and beautiful scenery, is well worth the effort. The charming, yet overtly unpretentious, town boasts a number of decent restaurants and pubs, a bottle store, a small oK and a couple of little general dealers. it is as different from Franschhoek as night is from day and yet as i chatted to people and mixed with the locals, i was struck by the strong sense of belonging and nostalgia shared by those who’d been around for a while. in that sense it’s a lot like home.

set at the same altitude as Pretoria (about 1500m asL), sutherland is famous for hosting the internationally acclaimed southern african Large telescope or saLt, based at the suther-

land observatory. given the altitude, the clear Karoo skies and saLt’s 11m hexagonal mirror, astronomers benefit from being able to gather more than 25 times as much light as any exist-ing african telescope and can detect an object as faint as a candle flame on the moon. View-ing that candle through saLt is, however, not possible for Joe Public as the facility is booked out by scientists who make use of the mas-sive mirror and high-tech computer wizardry to turn faint specs into exploding galaxies and swirling nebulae. There are guided stargazing workshops at saLt, and in town at sterland, that make use of more conventional telescopes to bring the rings of saturn or the tail of the

scorpion a little closer and both options are recommended. i was particularly impressed with the efforts of Jurg at the sterland facil-ity. not only does the man understand stars, he knows sutherland (and owns a fair part of it too it seems) and is a veritable mine of infor-mation, anecdotes and wisdom. “wrap warm-ly,” were his first words to me and like all the advice that followed, it proved to be spot-on. There are a number of things to do in suth-erland besides stargazing. The local eateries all serve lamb dishes and a lamb shank of sorts. The cosmic Pub boasts a lamb shoulder for two that epitomises traditional afrikaaner bo-erekos and is highly recommended. it’s a mas-sive plate of food though, so you may have

to sacrifice the koeksister and coffee or malva pudding dessert. at the cluster d’hote res-taurant the lamb shank is presented as a work of art. The attentive owners are always close at hand to share a story or two, top up emptying wine glasses or simply give returning patrons a warm hug. it’s a good option for a romantic dinner but book ahead – seating is as limited as their reputation is not.

The surrounding Karoo scenery makes a drive in any direction a worthwhile endeavour, par-ticularly to one of the nearby passes, the best of which is arguably oubergpas. The sand roads are great for runners and mountain bikers looking to get away from the hustle and bustle of city life and there are a number of dedicated walking trails for all levels of fitness. The old english and Jewish cemeteries respectively as well as the dutch Reformed church and Louw museum are worth a visit. we stayed at the sutherland inn which captures all the charm and warm hospitality of the Karoo and which boasts the oldest tree planted by man in the town, more than a hundred years ago.

close to sutherland is the historic little village of matjiesfontein where the old english pub, The Lairds arms does a decent meal. matjies-fontein is a national monument and was de-clared a village in 1889. despite having a main road that is only 300m long, matjiesfontein boasts a coffee shop, a post office, a pub, the Lord milner hotel, four museums and the fa-mous train station. Like its neighbour, matjies-fontein is pretty cool.

SaLT 023 571 1205Sterland 023 571 1405Cluster d’Hote 023 571 1436Louw Museum. 071 136 7468Sutherland Inn 082 788 3735

Wrapped up and ready to go

SaLT at the Sutherland Observatory



12

Eat, Sleep, Drink...our choice ‘paparazzi’ moments from the festival

www.themonth.co.za 13maY 2010

WinelandsFocussedstaff reporterOver the past few decades, many changes have taken place in the Franschhoek Val-ley and the area has experienced exponen-tial growth. The property market too has changed profoundly, with Franschhoek literally becoming one of the most sought-after areas in South Africa. Having survived the economic dip since the beginning of 2010 there is a positive change in the prop-erty market, and the indications are that the market is in an upward phase again.

in the Franschhoek Valley there is a further change within the engel & Völkers Real estate office. mr danny Pringle the License Partner of the stellenbosch engel & Völkers franchise has become the new Franchise License Partner for engel & Völkers Franschhoek and Paarl. we chatted to danny to find out how and why he came to Franschhoek.

Danny Pringle: i was born and educated in gauteng and started in the it industry in 1970 before anyone knew what it was. i was a bit of an entrepreneur and owned a number of com-panies before moving to the cape in 1990 and stayed in hermanus until 2008. i had always dabbled in Real estate in various development projects and sold my it company to manage-ment in 2007 (it was an electronic inter-bank payment and messaging system). i had planned to go into semi-retirement but soon discov-

ered i understood neither the term ‘semi’ nor ‘retire-ment’ so decided to invest in the Real estate mar-ket despite the global downturn and prophets of doom!

The Month: we always ask this danny, how did you differ?

DP: i saw an op-portunity for establishing a new professional approach for the exclusive property market in stellenbosch specifically and, having consid-ered various options, decided to buy the e&V license for stellenbosch in december 2009

TM: why e&V?

DP: The decision was based on an understand- ing that e&V has certain qualities that differentiate it from others in the mar-ket: The access to a national and international network to source buyers and investors; their professionalism and brand image; their estab-lished systems which can facilitate client serv-ice excellence.

TM: and that makes them different?

DP: i think so. e&V is truly an international company - not merely through association with other companies like most others who claim to be international - all e&V offices in 35 coun-tries are linked via the same network, adhere to the same standards and support and protect the same brand values. There is the highest level of professionalism in overall presentation of the company in all aspects with the result that the company showed global growth in real terms during the past two years whilst the eco-nomic downturn in general, and the real-estate market in particular, took its toll.

TM: and being an it man, you obviously rate their systems highly?

DP: i am very critical of systems and procedures - in my opinion e&V is streets ahead of the in-dustry at large in terms of systems and the use of technology. it is, therefore, ideally positioned to continue to grow with the knowledge that its exceptional high standards for professionalism,

serv-ice deliv-ery and customer care will be sustainable.

TM: and clearly you’re quite partial to the winelands area…

DP: You could say that! i now own the licenses for stellenbosch, Franschhoek and Paarl (our new shop opens later this year) and am per-sonally not only demonstrating my total com-mitment to the brand but also the real-estate market in this region. our challenge will be to leverage the unique position we have to repre-sent this exquisite region in the real-estate mar-ket both domestically and internationally to the incredible e&V network. my belief in this brand and this region jointly as a viable invest-ment is clearly supported and underwritten by the substantial the investment i am making, and i’m looking forward to the challenge. TM: Thanks danny and good luck.

You can contact e&V on 021 876 4485 or [email protected] or visit their premises at 21 Huguenot Street, Franschhoek.

e&V’s Debbie roelofse, Danny Pringle and Lizette Coetzee


PRoPeRtY & LiFestYLeaugust 2010

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august 2010

august 2010

PRoPeRtY & LiFestYLe



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august 2010

PRoPeRtY & LiFestYLe



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august 2010

The first in a series of exhibitions celebrat-ing 25 years of outstanding original graph-ics produced at the Caversham Centre in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands runs through to the end of August at the Tokara wine estate overlooking the beautiful Banhoek Valley.

‘hats off!’, a selection of 42 works, includes linocuts by established artists such as Peter clarke, Penny siopis, Peter schutz, Philippa hobbs, Fee halsted, Jeremy wafer, andrew Verster and william Kentridge as well as works by lesser-known emerging artists and those whose work has never been exhibited before.

malcolm christian, who founded caversham mill 25 years ago in a once derelict 1878 wes-leyan methodist chapel, opened the art at tokara exhibition and explained that the broad spectrum of subject matter of ‘hats off!’ had been guided by thematic exhibitions exhibited locally and abroad. These range from young artists’ reaction to the scourge of hiV/aids in their communities, the destruction man has wrought on his environment, south africans’ rich oral and musical traditions, the 200 year celebration of the abolition of slavery to im-ages depicting the challenges faced by many at the beginning of the new millennium. “hats off! is about looking at legacy and the legacy of looking” said malcolm. “Legacy is dynamic and immediate – a point and pause on a summit of the journey of endeavour, a time to reflect, obtain perspective and consider the path forward, it is what we build celebra-tory rituals around - our rites of passage like a 25th birthday. Likewise, this exhibition is about the recognition of time spent, a journey undertaken and a vocation realised” he says.

The exhibition is brought to tokara by Julia meintjes Fine art. Julia trained in art at the university of natal before working at the tatham art gallery in Pietermaritzburg and thereafter Johannesburg art gallery and repre-sented caversham in the mid-80s in Johannes-burg. she has an intimate knowledge of what has been emerging from the press since its early days when graphics by william Kentridge and Robert hodgins were priced at just R350 - one

of which, by Kentridge, was sold on auction in march 2009 in Johannesburg for R35,000!

Julia curates regular exhibitions for tokara, and has a passion for promoting the talents of

those she believes contribute seriously to crea-tive endeavour in south africa.

says Julia, “when malcolm christian opened caversham 25 years ago, it was the first inde-pendent comprehensive print-making facility in the country and as a master print-maker, malcolm was able to guide artists at all levels to

discover the printmaking process. Linocut rep-resents the most basic form of print-making, one which has been an invaluable medium in our country, particularly for untrained artists with no access to formal art-making facilities,

enabling them to create works of art and give expression to their raw creativity.”

The ‘hats off!’ exhibition will be on display at tokara until 31st august, and this is the only opportunity at the present time to see the exhi-bition in its entirety.

it is open seven days a week: tuesday to sat-urday from 9am to ‘after dinner’, from 9am to 3pm on sundays, and 9am to 5pm on mon-days.

For further information please contact Julia Meintjes Fine art on 011 7880820 or email [email protected].

Hats Off! At Tokarastaff reporter



20

The first of two articles about crucial steps to lowering household electricity costs.

with electricity prices literally going through the roof, south african families will be facing serious expense challenges this winter and in the years ahead. graham mundy, founder of

solar Beam - a solar water heating company that has been running for 33 years - says that while there are many small daily actions peo-ple can take to reduce electricity consumption, a focus on the geyser will produce the biggest rewards.

“The geyser typically accounts for as much as 50% of the household energy bill,” says mun-dy. “it’s the dominant force when it comes to household consumption, so families must con-

sider ways of reducing the power their geysers are pulling. other actions – like making sure you don’t leave your tV or hi-Fi on standby – are important, but by far the most powerful puller of energy is the geyser, there’s no doubt about that. ”

mundy, who has several decades of experience in the solar industry, in-cluding working on major industrial projects, recom-mends buying a geyser blanket and insulating the first two metres of the hot pipe from the geyser. “They’re cheap and easy to install and they offer an immedi-ate point of action for pretty much

anyone, regardless of budget or cash in hand.” mundy also explains that air-conditioners run-ning on heating mode in winter should be kept to a minimum as this in itself is a fairly wasteful heat source, simply because the air-conditioner is usually positioned high on the wall, so the heat produced hovers around the ceiling.

Contact Graham on 0860 765272 or visit www.solarbeam.co.za

Nadine Evans has a two-year-old daughter, a financial background and a love for food. She’s also the new personality at the helm of Epicerie Fine, the deli at L’Ermitage on the Fransche Hoek Estate in the Franschhoek Village. The Month caught up with Nadine while she was busy preparing for the open-ing of the deli at the end of July to chat about her, the deli and life in Franschhoek.

The Month: welcome to Franschhoek na-dine, why are you here?

Nadine evans: well just take a look around you, i mean really look at this place. L’ermitage is obviously beautiful but it’s this village and the mountains and these amazing surround-ings that drew me here. i visited Franschhoek when i was younger and even then resolved to settle here and raise a family. as i have a daugh-ter, isabella, the good schools were a draw card and Bumble Bee and Bridge house both have great reputations.

TM: why a deli and why L’ermitage?

Ne: i love food and wine, and owning a deli has always been a dream of mine. when i was

up in Johannesburg i owned a successful cof-fee shop in an office park that accommodated a lot of people. obviously they didn’t all eat at the restaurant but it was a busy place and taught me a lot about the business. L’ermitage actually happened sort of by chance. i was vis-iting with my friends the noskas and andrea (noska) showed me the place and said “why not open something here?” and i thought “Yes,

why not?” But Reuben’s name had been linked to future de-velopments here so at first it didn’t seem likely that i’d get a chance. Fortunately i know Re-uben and we chatted and one thing led to another and here we are!

TM: what will you offer and in what ways will you be differ-ent from what the rest of Fran-schhoek has to offer?

Ne: my focus will be on simple hearty dishes that encourage visitors to experience the food – lots of flavours and textures, that sort of thing. i also want the deli to be a welcoming place for families and especially moms and their children and to some extent that will be dif-ferent from some of the places in Franschhoek. There will be a strong kids’ focus, we’ll have cupcakes for them that they can decorate while the moms enjoy a light lunch and a glass of wine and of course there’s the pool and the grass when it’s

warm. The deli will have fresh produce, breads, cheeses, cured meats, preserves and pickles and we’ll serve a variety of tea and lunch items and fresh sandwiches (which we’ll also deliver to the village). we’re open every day and in sum-mer we’ll closer a little later to make the most of the lovely days we have here in the cape.

TM: well nadine, it sounds as it you have your plans all sorted and we wish you the best of luck on your new life here in the valley and your business at L’ermitage.

See Nadine’s advert on page 11 for more information and the deli’s opening special.

Under Wrapsstaff reporter

MINUTES WITH . . .NADINE EVANS



august 2010

Photo Tips is a light-hearted approach to what can be a very technical subject. No scare-mongering or browbeating but, I hope, a soft intro to the wonderful pastime of pho-tography. All too often folk don’t get as far as reading the instructions to their camera, that tell you what various buttons and dials do, and not how to use them to your advan-tage to make spectacular images.

i’m assuming you all know what depth of field is, and aperture and shutter speed and iso and, . . . and . . . no? oK let’s slow down a bit.

irrespective of what image capturing device you have: a compact camera, a hybrid or a dsLR camera or even when you use you cell phone’s camera, the techniques of taking a photo re-main the same. in fact they have been the same since the time film cameras were in use – there is very little new under the sun.

certain basic principles must first be under-stood, and an appreciation of both the poten-tial, and the restrictions of the camera before exploring the art and technique of photogra-phy. after all, it is the photographer, not the camera, that makes the picture.

Photography is an art form. one that is most accessible to everyone. Yet the difference be-tween a good photographer, and someone who merely points a camera in the general direction of a subject, is profound. it is partly a matter of technical knowhow and partly of intuition, imagination and trained perception.

There are three interrelated functions on a cam-era that need to be explained – aperture, shut-ter speed and iso. The aperture refers to the opening of a diaphragm within the lens that allows light into the camera. shutter speed re-fers to the length of time that that diaphragm remains open, and iso is the sensitivity of the sensor to light.

i am now going to ask you to do something terribly daring – turn the mode dial on your camera from the auto setting you’ve probably been working on, to either aperture or shutter Priority. my personal; choice is aperture pri-ority. This is just for the Photo tips, you can turn back to what you are comfortable with later but, hopefully, by the end of these tips,

you will appreciate the value of not using auto mode.

You have, by now, heard of the f-stop (the f-stop, not the f-word and nothing to do with gordon Ramsay). The f-stop, or f-number, is the ratio between the focal length of the lens and the diameter of the aperture. Being a ra-tio, you will appreciate that the f-stop of f8 for example on a 50mm lens will allow the same amount of light proportionally onto the sensor as f8 of a 500mm lens.

common aperture openings are f2.8, f4, f5.6, f8, f11, f16, f22. There are in-between settings, but let us concentrate on the basic lot. each f-stop allows twice the amount of light into the camera than the one above it. The smaller the number, the more light is let in – f4 allows twice as much light as f5.6 but only half the amount of light as f2.8. get it? do not be confused by the bigger numbers looking like they should have higher values, (more light), they don’t.

in the next Photo tips we will cover shutter speed and iso settings and, space permit-ting, illustrate how these three aspects of pho-tography are re-lated.

John will run pho-tographic ‘walka-bout field trips’ in the valley for a min-imum of four people at r150 per person for a five to six hour outing, but requires that clients have at least a working knowledge of their camera’s menu. Call John on 073 3601710 for more info.

Photo Tips #1The first of three articles by local photographer, John rayner.



22

Executives are powerful people. Some live in the valley – you see them slipping out before dawn at this time of the year driving cars like these, wearing suits and off to take key decisions to make companies sink or swim. They’re confident class-leaders and their cars must be the same.

These three are built for them – the conserva-tive if confident audi a6; aggressive yet refined Bmw 5 series and the gentle but luxurious mercedes e-class – all ready to tackle the daily commute as much as they’re set for the long cruise. But which does that best?

The audi is a good-looking car, but it lacks a little spirit and it’s getting on now. The brand new Bmw is aggressive and sharp with new-found presence – especially considered through the rear view mirror – it’s a big, if conservative step ahead for munich. The sharp and squared merc looks good, but it’s almost as if it’s built for little grey men rather than hugo Boss suit-ed power brokers.

inside, each bathes its exec in lavish luxury and cavernous room but this is where we start to separate the wheat from the chaff. The Beemer has the best-appointed interior – though not by much. it is luxurious, driver-focused and comfortable too, although rear legroom is a

tad compromised. The audi is luxurious and well appointed, but lacks a little spunk while the merc is quite flat and bland, albeit well ap-pointed and lacking little.

getting under the skin, the smooth, super-charged 213kw 420nm audi 3.0t V6 is a

peach of an engine with a flat, forceful power curve. The 225kw 400nm twin scroll turbo Bmw boasts a similar, perhaps sportier, feel and noise and has the answer to any question you ask of it. The 200kw 350nm merc suf-fers its naturally aspirated nature - it’s more comfort-able than potent, but that suits the

rest of this car - when asked, it doesn’t really want to.

But it’s on the road where the Five stretches its biggest advantage – with typical Bmw sheer driving pleasure it makes its rivals seem a little leaden in comparison in the bends; and it rides so well too.

so of these three executives, which is ceo?

The ageing audi is no less impressive than the Bmw on paper – especially at the price, but it lacks the Beemer’s spirit and passion, while the merc seems to appeal to an older generation. considering this niche is increasingly aimed at younger go-getters, that’s dropped it to last.

which leaves the brand new Five to win this contest – its newer rival simply can’t cut the most important mustard here and the car that challenges it best is simply too old. aggressive,

sleek, comfortable and fun to drive, the Bmw 5 series is back on top – it’s back to being the benchmark among mid-executive saloons. ex-pect to see more suites slipping out of the val-ley before sun-up in their 535s in future.

Words: Michele LupiniImages: David taylor

This month marks the 1 year anniversary of Michele’s contributions to The Month for which we are most indebted.

BUSINESS ClaSS BaTTlEaudi a6 3.0t, bmW 535i & mercedes-benz e350three Germans fight for the mid-executive throne


inVestments august 2010

august 2010

As an avid golfer and golf supporter I wit-nessed an extraordinary performance by Louis Oosthuizen at the St Andrews golf course last weekend. During the four days of golf, where the weather changed dramati-cally, Louis was able to earn his first major tournament win. While watching, I realised how similar golf is to investing.

great golfers put a premium on preparation. most of the players arrive a week before the

tournament and spend countless hours working on every aspect of their game. a weekend golfer might hit a few balls about 10 min-utes before he is required to play with commensurate results.while golf is an individual sport, i noticed that all the golfers have a team with them. They have swing coaches, conditioning coaches, psychologists, business managers and financial advisors all focused on trying to make sure the player can achieve a peak performance. Your average investor goes it alone and tries to pick a few stocks on tips he heard in the clubhouse and wonders why things don’t work out better.

we all need a good team, including an accountant, an attorney and a financial advisor. The financial ad-visor serves as a sort of investment caddy to keep us out of trouble and protect us from golfers’ and inves-tors’ worst enemy - their emotions.

next is strategy. great golfers always have a game plan for each course and hole as well as the discipline to stick with it under extreme pressure. But it will have to be a flexible plan taking into account weather and the player’s position in the field. i must admit, advising over the past two years has been difficult. The weather has been extremely bad and it seems we have been playing in some of the worst storms ever seen.

much like the investor weighing the risk and reward of going into a risky asset class, a player and his caddy will decide whether it is oppor-tune to go for the green on a par five where there is water surrounding the green. There is definitely a time to back off and take the conservative approach. in the same way a dis-cussion with your advisor on your investment strategy needs to take place so that once you settle on a strategy the implementation can be done with full confidence.

Related to the strategy is the paramount need for consistency in both golf and investing. You don’t often see a major won by someone who has inconsistent scoring and one brilliant round does not necessarily offset a poor one. in investing you need to weather the bad years. This can be done with the use of diversifica-tion. when you look into the investment golf bag, you have a number of clubs that will assist

you in various situations on the course.

Lastly, investors need patience. Just like golf-ers.

we have to take our hats off to Louis oost-huizen for providing us with such a pleasant way to end off Bastille week. he certainly gave madiba the best present: The claret jug.

dave RundleRundle management services 083 658 8055

This article is solely intended to provide you with objective information about financial products and services and is not intended to constitute a recommendation, guidance or proposal with re-gard to the suitability of any product in respect of any financial need you may have.

Rain Stopped PlayThe Dave rundle financial Column

We checked in with Jonathan Sendzul from That Storage Place to find out how his unique investment into Valley mini-storage was going.

“That storage Place offers an interesting angle on buying into commercial property into the Valley. You cannot buy into commercial prop-erty in the Franschhoek Valley at anywhere near the initial 9% guaranteed yield we are of-fering. Thereafter there is strong cashflow gen-eration and excellent capital growth after that.” with two years risk free return to establish it-self, That storage Place is well located and situ-ated on the cusp of a fast growing residential

area on the edge of the Franschhoek Valley op-posite Paarl mall. The investment entry point is aligned with the developer cost and with the developer releasing only three sectional title blocks of between 66-70 units out of a possible seven blocks, it is a limited opportunity. “You get into mini-storage because it’s low mainte-nance and has strong cash flows but as an op-portunity to participate in a property transac-tion in this sought-after area, it makes sense” says Jonathan.

More more information call Jonathan on 082 4911 508

It’s a Property Deal!staff reporter

Advertise here

for only

r550*email: [email protected]

*equates to 4,6c per copy

prices exclude vat, t&c apply, e&oe


the month

24

of the monthQuestionaugust 2010

BiCCCs; Klarisa and peter oBerzaucher: our first Bastille was outrageous. it was almost too much too handle – we ran out of wine on saturday it was so busy. we can’t wait for Bastille 2011.

frAnsChhoek stAtion PuB; marica and hanno lowrens: dit was great! There were many young people in town on the saturday and even though we closed up at 12, we could have gone on until two. There was a great vibe and at one stage we had one-and-a-half thousand people in and outside the pub. if we’re blessed with great weather like this next year it’ll be even bigger i’m sure.

CrePe et Cidre; alBert van der loo: it was the best in the last five years – most people, good turnover and great weather. The way the mar-quee was laid out this year with the band in the middle really worked. saturday’s visitors were young and wild, while on sunday the crowd seemed more sophisticated.

fWvtA; tania steyn: it was wonderful; amaz-ing! we did more than double the sales we had previously – last year we sold about eighteen hundred tickets to the marquee and this year it was about 4,800, and of course there were many more people in the village than that. a number of the wineries have (jokingly) asked how soon we can have the next Bastille! it’s interesting that the two days were completely different. saturday the crowd was young and out for a massive party; on sunday there were more families, just chilling out and more re-laxed than the crowd from the day before.

Chez d’or; riaan pretorius and george mihalopoulos: it was very good. The weather was perfect and people really seemed to enjoy the festival. our sunday covers were about 60% or 70% of the number on saturday and in the day people wanted ‘street food’ whereas in the evening and on sunday we focused on fine dining.

info Centre; cameron davids and merna stuur-man: it was very busy – much busier than last year, we had almost 800 people in and out of the shop during the weekend. we had many more sales on the saturday, while sunday was more relaxed.

engel And voelkers; deBBie roeloFse and lizette coetzee: it was a wonderful experience and it was great to be part of the festivities in the village. we met many people and had a great chance to chat about our business and the Franschhoek valley. The Bastille festival is a great event that puts us on the map – we spoke to people from noordhoek and Fishhoek, caledon, george and even further afield. days later i’m still fol-lowing up on all the leads we got on the day and giving feedback to the many people who made enquiries.

live Wire Art; arnold ntamane and richard mdaBalala: on saturday there were a lot of people but we made more sales on sunday. There was a mix of people – singles, couples, young, old – everyone came to Franschhoek. People bought many of our small wire bicycles, the wire cars, the beaded animals and some of the radios. mainly gifts for their family and friends for christmas.

dutCh eAst; pasch du plooy: For our first Bastille it was very good. we had the tent pitched over our outside tables and people really liked that. we were extremely busy, saturday the whole day and sunday lunch time in particular. in fact, we saw an increase in business on Friday already. we had many large groups during the day and then more couples in the evening with a mix of ages. we sold a large amount of our home-made sauces and pickles from our stall outside and next year we’ll probably expand our offering there. we can’t wait!

injABulo; alison Beaumont: it was great. we didn’t do many big sales but there were so many small sales and overall it was a very good weekend. it’s interesting that our sunday fig-ures are better than saturday’s but saturday was much busier.

red PePPer And ColleCtiBles By B; Bicara haig newton: it was amazing, it was a great week-end. Both the shops did very very well and the vibe in the village was amazing. saturday was busier while the atmosphere on sunday was more relaxed.

on the BacK oF a very Busy Bastille day Festival in FranschhoeK recently, we hit the main road to Find out what local Business owners and managers made oF the weeKend.



august 2010

ozone reacts with the blood plasma, body flu-ids and mucus membranes that improves how much haemoglobin and activates the white blood cells to improve overall health and mini-mize disease conditions.” he clearly knows his stuff but i’m listening out for “libido” and am feeling a little let down. “The bio-resonance” he continues “creates waves that affect microbes – you know like bacteria and viruses – and end up killing them. The FaR infrared rays pen-etrate your body up to 45mm deep to help

open things up, increase circulation, help the immune system fight off diseases and increase your metabolism. The pod is the future.” im-pressed i re-resolve to visit the machine soon.

“so we’ll see you in august, hey” Johan says as he wraps up the admin and walks me to the door. “Yes,” i say emphatically “but i hope there’ll be less of me to see each month.”

“You know, your stomach is bigger than your chest,” said my wife, the fitness junkie, as she looked at my drenched body stepping out of the shower, “but only just.” it’s not that i don’t appreciate the “only just” or that she still looks at me when i’m in the shower, but i’ll admit that the statement hurt. as her words hit i was

thrown back to the early days of our marriage when i begged her to “tell me if my stomach ever gets bigger than my chest” never expect-ing of course, that it would ever get to that. it’s not that her statement itself was hurtful; it’s the realisation that, a decade on, i’m not the man i used to be and that it’s time for a change.

Part of that change is enrolling at Franschhoek’s rather upmarket gym, the Franschhoek health club, under the watchful eye of the manager Johan and his staff. arriving at the gym i bump into the gentle giant, Rob armstrong, who was awarded a complimentary gym contract in recognition of his excellent performance in the tV show way of The warrior. as Rob is already a paid-up member he has encouraged the gym to give his contract to a deserving local resident and as i squeeze past Rob i bump into the formidable Theo Beyers, owner of the gym, and daniel muton who works at the Pick n Pay, who is the proud recipient of the contract. daniel’s eyes reflect a look i understand and in

him i feel there’s a kindred spirit. good luck daniel, if you raise the bar i’ll hold it.

with the big guys successfully negotiated, Jo-han gathers the required forms and directs me to the office upstairs. he has something to fin-ish before he can join me so i’m left to make

my way upstairs and start on the paperwork on my own. i tackle

the short flight of stairs with a spring in my step, the new Balance gym shoes feel a little tight but i smile broadly at the guy on the rowing machine and the girl with the lovely legs pounding away at the treadmill. The office is close-by and i’m grateful that i can find a seat where, be-hind a closed door, i can catch my breath

and mop my brow.

i’m intrigued by the space-shuttle-like pod in front of me and as there’s no table to sit at to fill in the forms i make myself

comfortable at the only seat available – in the pod. The hefty manual to my left indicates that i’m in the gym’s newfangled de-

tox ozone Pod. as i flick through the manual i hear Johan’s steps in the passage and i get ready to offer some excuse for my stupidity when i see that the detox ma-chine has a Libido setting. i resolve to visit this office again, soon.

Johan helps me fill in the basics like weight and height and measures every part of me, typing the figures into a spreadsheet on his computer. he’s very sweet and never once lets on that i’m in bad shape, although i swear i hear him gasp and say “wow, that’s big” and i momentarily puff out my chest with pride before i realise he’s computed my Bmi, where big is hardly impressive.

i ask him about the ozone Pod. “it uses ozone, bio-resonance and FaR infrared,” he says. im-mediately out of my depth i say “oh” and he responds “oh-zone. You know three oxygens. ozone is like a super-active form of oxygen which can enter your body trans-dermally, so you just have to sit in it for it to work. The

Waite-ing For a Little Less to HappenJim Waite

Daniel, centre right, with Theo, rob and Johan



26

Set back just off the Excelsior Rd, about 2km from the Huguenot Monument, you will find one of the best appointed stud and livery farms that I have ever seen. This farm

stands out not only for its outstanding aes-thetic value, but also for the services it offers and more so for the skills of the lovely lady who manages it.

during the late 1990s Rainer steinmetz and his wife susanne were regular visitors to south africa and in particular the Franschhoek valley. susanne, a keen rider and lover of the arabian

horse had expressed a wish to own her own stud farm, and so one day whilst she was out riding, Rainer went about looking for one. on her return from the ride Rainer informed su-

sanne that her dream stud farm was to become a reality. and so up went the buildings and all the internal fittings and 24 stables (made to measure in germany) were installed, making this a state of the art breeding establishment. susanne recently passed away and Rainer still visits the stud on a regular basis, where he con-tinues to breed high quality arabian horses in memory of his beloved wife.

Local resident, ondine owen de Freitas has been ensconced as the manageress for the past two years and hails from a rich background in the arabian and general equine pleasure

industry. her english parents, who soon after marriage left the shores of mud island for the better weather of the spanish coast, where on-dine was born, took their passion for horses to the ultimate conclusion by breeding their own stock. They specialised in the egyptian arabian, long known to be the forerun-ner of the arabian horse. when african horse sickness broke out in spain about 20 years ago, the military, who were in charge, declared that any establishment which had an outbreak would have all their horses destroyed. in order to avoid the in-evitable, ondine’s parents relocated to george in the western cape, lock, “stock” and barrel.

at steinmetz, ondine, who specialises in clas-sical dressage, and catherine Puttick (saneF module 4), who keeps two school warm blood horses, offer lessons to aspiring riders of all ages. Between them they will take in and start any young horse, and school it for the owner in the desired discipline. ondine also offers spelling (full board and keep) to anyone who

wishes to take advantage of the fantastic rides available in the area, as well as the dressage are-na, jumping arena, lunging ring and breeding facilities. ondine and catherine will happily source the perfect horse for you, or pony for your children - to learn on, compete on or just enjoy a regular ride on. Professional help is on hand at all times.

If you or your horse or pony are inter-ested in visiting the Steinmetz facilities, or you’d simply like to enjoy the ambi-ance of the farm, contact Ondine on 082 425 7506.

From the Horse’s Mouthsteinmetz arabians stud and spelling FarmGary Jolliffe

classifiedscLassiFieds

to all our loyal customers:

the salmonbar will be closing for a 2 month

renovation period at theenD oF auGust.

We plan to re-open on1 november in a bigger and better shop at the

front of the Yard.

come in DurinG auGust

to take aDvantaGe

oF our renovation

sPecials!

seeking an experienced sales person with good interpersonal skills and a passion for exercise.send cVs to Franschhoek health club:Fax: 021 876 2957 or email: [email protected]

sales person needed!

Find the “perfect horse for you” at Steinmetz



august 2010

We received a timely response from Salome from Goodings Grove who pointed out that the KFC neon sign ‘bucket’ we so innocently mocked in the July edition of The Month is actually solar-driven and part of the guest house’s commitment to “go green”. Which is, of

course, commendable. But it does highlight the issue of whether individual marketing of one business can damage the brand market-ing of the Valley. Sometimes, marketing ap-proaches that are good for the part are bad for the whole, and I believe this example highlights not so much our disjointed mar-keting efforts but a lack of guidance to new members as to the aims of the whole.

it’s dangerous in the same way that compet-ing businesses erecting bill boards cheapens the brand or how higher rents, a poor tenant mix or wildly mis-expectant operators create empty shops; both demean the look of the place and generally spell out ‘we’re in trouble’.

i think our point was that no matter how good the intentions almost everything we do has an effect on everyone else and this, as we pointed out in the July edition (eat First then moralise), will become markedly different (and therefore more damaging) when times are tough. guid-ance, advice and coordination are called for.

when the FwVta formed, the need was for small numbers of high-net worth discerning

food and wine lovers to feed a limited number of village businesses that largely identified with a ‘best of ’ brand within a quaint and pretty vil-lage. Their success attracted other businesses, development, higher rents, a gradual move into the valley and a need for large numbers of less discerning visitors to keep them afloat. This second group (that don’t necessarily conform

to the brand) are now the majority and their expectation that the FwVta will do their

e x t e r n a l marketing is unrea-sonable for reasons

we have discussed in previous articles.

what we need is a business body that can drive us back to ‘the best of ’ brand without for-saking the quaintness; to pro-mote sustainable economic ac-tivity with proper support in an

organised fashion and discourage all that impedes this. so if a cham-

ber is the answer, it must do this by:

1. providing inFormation, gathering statistics and managing inFormation

aBout valley visitors

2. creating a long-term Blueprint oF where we want to Be and how we plan to get there

3. giving Business advice, identiFy why Businesses Flounder and provide sup-port

4. coordinate interest groups, develop-ers and staKeholders

The formation of a Franschhoek chamber of commerce is not a challenge to the FwVta, more an acknowledgement that the majority of business here are neither represented nor assisted. whether it can become a group mar-keting effort behind a single, all-encompassing ‘the best of ’ brand remains to be seen but at least everybody can be part of it.

If you agree with these sentiments and would like to be involved contact [email protected] or call the editor, Brett Garner.

The Month is growing strongly. The Franschhoek Valley chap-ter, as the Editor points out, has certainly improved the media offering here in the valley and sharpened the minds of its com-petitors. We gather there is soon to be quarterly valley magazine which, of course, we welcome and keenly anticipate.

our plans are somewhat differ-ent. we’ve formalised a model in terms of look and feel, structure and content and believe it will have appeal in other areas. so hav-ing honed our distribution, we’re aiming for a lateral expansion of the concept of The month into different ar-eas which may ultimately offer our advertisers more options to get the word out there in a readable, accessible format.

as such, the only loose end to tie up was our appallingly bad record of recovering pay-ments which has threatened to stunt our ex-pansion. The website www.themonth.co.za is now primed to encompass many areas, The Franschhoek Valley being but one. From next month we want to encourage all our advertis-ers to book and agree terms online so please go to the site, and the Franschhoek subsection, to book your ad and check the advertising dead-line there. For those of you whose details we have, just let us know your plans.

and while you’re there, please take a look at the donated auction items on the main page. This is simply a trade exchange – if you do-nate us a meal for two, a night’s stay, a retail item or whatever, we’ll put your advertising on the site in exchange. we’d like to build this list substantially and when the number of regions The month covers increases, your ad will be ex-posed on a much visited site. it’s also a cost ef-fective way of exposing potential ambassadors to your business.

Go to www.themonth.co.za for all ad-vertising information.

Chamber Chat

Spreading the NetPublisher’s Parting shot



28

clockWise From leFt:

(top 3 photos) graham beck cellarmaster pieter “bubbles” Ferreira celebrated turning 50 with over 100 friends and family on the estate in July. he’s seen here with a 12 litre graham beck brut “balthazar” opened for the occasion.

the delta soetstemme sing ‘gemoedsrus’ at the shiraz Vertical tasting and lunch launching the fortified shiraz of the same name. the song was written by les Javan, who is now resident musician at solms-delta.

pictured here with derk blaisse after performing a ‘multi-sensory experience incorporating evocative imagery’ off her new album ‘Fireflies in the rain’ at montpellier in the Valley, electric cellist carol thorns shortly heads off to perform at the edinburgh Festival.

nick davies and stuart douglas recreated a bo-kaap feel for the bastille tent to house three local cape malay expert cooks to sell traditional fare as part of a community initiative. reuben, pictured here with nicky and the ladies, oversaw the waterblommetjie, biryani and bobotie recipes to see that they were just right.

marc kent and the hardworking team from boekenhoutskloof winery enjoyed a day out at the World cup game between argentina and germany in cape town. While argentia went on to lose the match, marc’s team felt like winners every step of the way.

on saturday the 17th July 2010, a group of 21 celebrity motorbike riders, including hollywood actor morgan Freeman and local celebrities such as Jack devnarain, Jeremy mansfield, lehlohonolo saint seseli and hanna grobler, checked into le Franschhoek hotel and spa after ending a five-day motorcycle rally from Johannesburg to cape town, in aid of the 67 minutes of service for mandela day.

Documents

The Month - August 2010