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It was a sunny Wednesday afternoon in a private room at Luce restaurant in Hyde Park when négociant Wade Bales introduced his new wine series featuring seven winemakers from Constantia in the Western Cape, in an exclusive partnership with Tsogo Sun.
Négociant is the French term for a wine merchant who brings together the grapes and wines of smaller vineyards and winemakers, and sells the produce under their own label.
Guests were treated to delectable eats including pan-fried and crispy calamari with fried zucchini and mushrooms tossed in sea salt and served with aioli and chilli sauce.
Brad Paton kicked off the event, taking the audience through his 15-year journey as a winemaker.
Justin van Wyk, who contributed to the sought-after Sauvignon Blanc, emphasised the importance of respecting the terroir and ensuring one’s work ethic enhances the quality of the wine beyond the grapes.
Also in attendance were contributors Jacques du Plessis and Boela Gerber, who advised guests that hygiene and mastering the basics of winemaking were key to the finished product.
“Yes, we enjoy lovely lunches every now and then and get to taste the wine, but that’s just a minute part of the process. The work of making the wine takes about 10 months of repetition and precision,” he said.
Matthew Day, Gregory Brink Louw and JD Pretorius also shared their secrets with guests before the main course of home-made pumpkin and ricotta tortellini served on pumpkin puree, burnt butter and sage with black truffle. This was paired with slow-roasted Tuscan-style pork belly, served with crumbed potato, rendered pancetta and heirloom carrots. There was also grilled stuffed sole with herb mousse wrapped in leeks, with grilled polenta and salsa verde.
Bales told City Press he loved how wine caters for the diverse space it is consumed and celebrated in: “It encompasses so many elements such as culture, history, geography, science, art and, of course, the people.”
Bales said it was his relationship with his community that inspired his series The Constantia White Project.
Tsogo Sun group sommelier Miguel Chan said innovation and diversity were on top of the list when the company chose which wines to offer its clients, adding that Johannesburg was the biggest wine market in the country.
“The beauty of the Johannesburg wine market is that it’s a young adventurous market that is curious and keen to try new things and it is big enough for every style,” he said.
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