THE CAPSULE| October 1999,
Dear Friends of Flagstone,
Waterfront Wine Festival Thanks to all who visited our stand at a very successful Waterfront Festival. This was our first outing at the festival, so we really didn't know what to expect, although my mother, who has played music at the festival for many years had warned us it would be busy. And what a great vibe! We really enjoyed ourselves. Much praise must go to the dynamic Posy and Jeremy Hazell who organise the event - what a team. If you were not able to make it this year, don't miss it next time. We ere overawed bythe positive response we received to the wines we showed, particularly as the Flagstone Sauvignon Blanc had just been bottled. Waterfront Wine Festival Gala Dinner The festival was preceded by a seriously good nosh-up in the marquee (Proceeds were donated to SANTA). Flagstone Winery took a table. Besides staff and family - often the same thing here - we were joined by Dave Biggs, Wendy Torien and David Bristow, who all seemed to enjoy themselves as much as the family, some of whom felt compelled to sing "Flower of Scotland" very badly out of tune! The food was delicious and our wine waiters & waitresses were brilliant. The apex of the bash arrived after much needed, incessant Cape rain collected in the marquee above my father's head and suddenly gushed through. The Flagstone revelry continued unabated amid scenes reminiscent of that Alan Alda movie "Betsy's Wedding". We'll be back next year for sure. Availability of Our Pinot Noir BK5 1999 Our Pinot Noir BK5 has only been available for a week now. It's reception has exceeded our expectations. As mentioned in our first news letter this wine is available to the public by the case at R44.60 a bottle (delivered in Cape Town). However, you will be able to buy it quite a lot cheaper (and by the bottle) at the Fine Wine Shops listed below - please support these guys - without them new wineries like us would really struggle. The wine will also be available in the Gauteng area from the first week of October onwards.
Availability of Our Sauvignon Blanc - Freerun -1999
We have had on-going problems with labeling this precious first born. Actually my wife and I have taken about a month to label our other (human) first born, however the suspense is now over - his name is Robert. Back to the Sauvignon Blanc - this looks like we will be waiting another month before we can have the labels re-printed. Until then we will be hand-labelling to satisfy
restaurants and shops and any impassioned public request. Again, please support the fine wine shops - these are the real foot soldiers of the premium wine industry - and you will get good service and helpful advice from passionate wine people.
Carefully Selected Fine Wine Shops Stocking Flagstone Wines
Wine Concepts - Cape Town Castle - 465 8707
Oenoteca - Claremont - 683 7516
Caroline's Fine Wine Shop - City Bowl - 419 8984
Via Vino - 418 1122
Wine Village - Hermanus - 0283 163988
Steven Rom - Sea Point - 439 6043
Our Favorite Restaurants Stocking Flagstone Wines
We love good food. And, surprise, surprise we love drinking Flagstone with good food. We are blessed in South Africa to have some brilliant eateries. We have only managed to make contact with those in and around the Cape at this stage. But give us a chance and we'll be up in Gautengland as soon as possible.Initially, because we have limited stocks, we have onlyapproached those restaurants which we love eating in ourselves.
San Marco - 92 Main Road, Sea Point - 439 2758
My father has been eating with Luigi (Sir Luigi Scaglia to me) for over 40 years. I believe my first meal there was at the age of six months. San Marco is a legendary establishment and if you haven't had the privilege of meeting Mr Scaglia you haven't really lived. Try the Pinot Noir BK5 with veal fillet or the Sauvignon Blanc with the best Caesar salad in the world.
Parks Restaurant - 114 Constatia Road, Constantia - 797
8202. Michael and Madeleine's daughter, Amy, was partly responsible for the listing of our Sauvignon Blanc 1999 in one of our favorite restaurants - so the sophisticated palate runs in the genes! Continually booked out, Parks is a jewel in the Cape. It is a great privilege to be able to supply Parks. We invent special occasions tovisit this restaurant - like celebrating "Mid-Week Wednesday".
Mario's - 90 Main Road, Greenpoint - 439 6644
My mother-in-law, perhaps the best cook in the world, rates the lambs brains at Mario's in her top ten of all time. And she knows. Really great soul and comfort food that's very difficult to beat. Like Flagstone a family run operation. New renovations are taking place now, with more windows going in, etc... - can not wait till it opens again.
Novelli at the Cellars - Cellars-Hohenort Hotel, Constantia - 794 2137
Taste sensations that make the best restaurants in London look very ordinary. And really good wine service from one of my favorite winelists. The delicious sources are always spot on and beautifully balanced showing extreme dedication to detail in the kitchen. Again, a great privilege to be able to have our wine here.
Rozenhof - 18 Kloof Street, Gardens - 424 1968 A long time family favorite. Robert has promised to find space on his excellent list for Flagstone. The soufflé and duck are Cape Town food rights of passage as far as we are concerned - pleasetry them if you haven't yet.
Victoria and Alfred Hotel - V&A Waterfront - 419 6677
Another top Cape hotel with awe-inspiring service, food and views. This was also the first hotel in the Waterfront showing passion and belief in the project long before it became so
popular. Above all it is an hotel dedicated to showcasing great Cape wines, and so another great privilege for us. More to Follow... with your help...An update will follow as soon as other restaurants and hotels have had the opportunity to taste samples which we have been delivering this week. If you have a favorite restaurant where you think our wines would find a good home, please let us know - we will contact them immediately and organise a personal tasting. Similarly we are also happy to do tastings for wine clubs in the Cape -just call us or email us.
WINE Magazine Fame Thanks very much to Leonie Joubert of Wine Magazine for such a great article in the October issue of WINE - although we are trying very hard to do things well, we were really taken aback by the superb exposure we received - right next to a living CWL (Cape Wine Legend) - Jan Boland Coetzee - a far more deserving recipient of all this fame than us - we still have to earn our stripes! But thanks very much - any new struggling winery will tell you how helpful that sort of exposure is to survival.
Special e-mail and Mail Order Wine Prices Flagstone Pinot Noir BK5 1999 - R44.60/bottle - only by the case (12x750ml) Flagstone Sauvignon Blanc 1999 - R28.00/bottle - only by the case (12x750ml) These prices are valid for 30 days from to day and include delivery in and around Cape Town. For a quote on delivery to Gauteng, please email us on: terraceroad@icon.co.za
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Why is our email address: terraceroad@icon.co.za?
Both my father and I were born in a house called Terrace Road. It was a beautiful late 1900's home with a wide stoep, polished red with Cobra polish. Built on a hill, a terraced indigenous plant garden swooped down from the front stoep. I loved the house and the garden and wanted Flagstone to have a home at Terrace Road as well.
Q: Why is our Pinot Noir called BK5?
I searched all over the Cape for Pinot Noir grapes. I love the things - when I see a Pinot Noir vineyard in Spring I get a shiver up and down my spine. The only vineyards I could find that weren't contracted out were old, virus infected BK5 clone blocks in Kuils River and Bottelery. I had been warned by more experienced winemakers about the terrible quality these old vines can produce if abused, so I approached them with wide-eyed terror and extreme caution. This conservative approach meant dropping the crop by first picking for sparkling wine (another passion) - by doing this we allowed the struggling vine to ripen what fruit we left on, and so encourage real concentration in the berries. When the grapes finally arrived at the winery it was a bit late to be terrified. We just went for it. Manual punch downs in open-top fermentors, wild ferments and finishing primary ferment in 100% new French oak barrels all helped meld colour compounds, phenols tannin) and fruit flavours.Final Message At Flagstone we are committed to serving the wine enthusiast. If there are any questions or if you require any further information from us, please don't hesitate to ask. Thank you to all those who have written in to date and for all your encouragement. It is great to get feed back on the wines and how they are being enjoyed.
Yours aye,
Bruce
