The Hyltons of Wesoever and De Morgenzon; authentic living to their heart’s content. Celebrate life with a bottle of DeMorgenzon Maestro Red 2011 – music to my ears – a Hon rating for your convenience.

Wesoever op die Nel rivier - Calitzdorp

The December recess will not be the same without a stopover at WESOEVER on the Nel River in Caltizdorp, located on route 62 to Cape Town. 

Hylton Nel and Bernard’s home is perfectly situated, close to the local town for shopping purposes and interaction with the locals (part of the community), yet slightly removed on the western edge of the town and the river, offering country and or farm style living with views of the fertile agriculturally developed river bed. In the distance is the Swartberg, an idyllic backdrop for the famous South Africa potters’s homestead.  

The mountain range and koppies provide for splendid views on late afternoon walks and or drives on the outskirts of town - arguably one of the most spectacular Klein Karoo landscapes on this famous wine route – stretching from Worcester, through Barrydale, Calitzdorp, and Oudshoorn.

Drinking and chatting on the front ‘stoep’, entertained by Hylton and Bernard’s cats and dogs, interacting with the visiting locals and passing by travellers, provide for fabulous and relaxing moments - a quintessential part of relaxing and much needed holidays. Memorable easy-going conversations with close friends with whom you have much in common. Fellow ceramists sharing work knowledge, influences and possible new directions, all part of ones development. Especially after visiting China together a few years back. You’ve got to love it.

New acquisitions; books, ceramics and ‘work’ form a major part of these valuable and meaningful conversations. Books worth mentioning on this year’s visit are the two exquisite publications complimenting the ‘Sale of the century’- the auction of the late Yves Saint Laurent and his partner's art and design collection.

• The Yves Saint Laurent-Pierre Berge Collection  
•  The Private World of Yves Yves Saint Laurent-Pierre. 

The large format coffee table books perfectly illustrate their major collections; acquired over five decades for their numerous prestigious homes across the world. Interior magazine style layouts and photodocumentation, illustrate their fabulous and impeccable taste and lifestyle - a must-have. I love cats and I started to document the furry feline friends of friends in the comfort of their homes and surroundings.

Here they are at ease, in command – aware of your every move and sound – responding to your call, only if they approve and are at ease with your persona, and curious enough to desire a closer acquaintance. Enjoy their world at the centre of their universe.

De Morgenzon (the morning sun) - Stellenboschkloof road in Stellenbosch.

A memorable trip down to the Cape included a visit to De Morgenzon (the morning sun), the wine farm of Hylton and Wendy Applebaum. For years the Liberty Life Foundation sponsored many of the Craft Council projects, especially the Craft Fairs at Museum Africa (the first in the country of its kind) and the first international exhibition of local crafts at South Africa House in London. This crafts exhibition launched one of SA’s iconic brands Carrol Boyes whilst showcasing the work of many of our National Living Treasures.  I am forever grateful for their support.

This unique winery is located on the Stellenboschkloof road in Stellenbosch. One is greeted with the sound of music, the classic waves streaming through the vines; the masters voice and touch, to produce that ultimate aroma and taste of a memorable classic wine. Open the provided link in a new window (what music do we play) to hear their ‘masters voices’ whilst enjoying the images and sharing in the beautiful and memorable experience.

Everything about the visit to the wine estate embodyied the touch and feel of the Applebaum duo – professionalism, heart and soul. The location, the beautiful winery, the stunning gardens (featured here) and the wine itself, speak of attention to detail, complete with style and masterly crafted finesse. In their own words,

All wine estates in the Western Cape are beautiful and all have unique terroir. However, we believe that DeMorgenzon is the most extraordinary of them all. Our slopes rise from about 200m to nearly 400m above sea level and our vistas embrace Cape Town, Table Mountain, Cape Point, Cape Hangklip, the Hottentots Holland mountains, Helderberg and Simonsberg with the ocean as a backdrop. While we could call ourselves 'mountain vineyards' we prefer to be known as 'garden vineyards'. In Spring specially chosen wildflowers flourish between our vines. We have no doubt that a biodiverse and ecologically sensitive environment produces infinitely better grapes and the beauty of our gardens is captured in every bottle of our wine. 

We pipe Baroque music through our vineyards 24x7 and believe that the power of music positively influences the ripening process.

My brother, Alan Hon, introduced me to wine – I’m no connoisseur, but I trust his judgment emphatically. He is well read in a diverse range of topics; a general knowledge that could easily win him the game show, Who Wants to Be a millionaire. My brother, a Geotechnologist, offered to drive me to the wine estate, being familiar with the area, as he worked at the CSIR in Stellenbosch.

Being a founder member of the CSIR wine appreciation group and a secretary of the Durbanville wine club   his experience was called upon to do a noteworthy rating of their classic red wine. We bought a bottle of the Demorgenzon Maestro Red 2011, for consumption at lunchtime.

We had so much to celebrate; our brotherly love and the good life – our parents married for 65 years, and in very good health, Ramond at 88 and Emily at 87 respectively. This we did with his immediate family – the red wine was served slightly chilled and needless to say it delivered in aroma and taste, a perfect end to a stunning journey down south – a well deserved holiday, shared with family and friends – memorable as always.

Here follows my brother Alan Hon’s rating of this classic Bordeaux blend; the essence of this very special red wine.

De Morgenzon Maestro Red 2011

Merlot - 41%

Cabernet Sauvignon - 35%

Petit Verdot - 11%

Malbec - 07%

Cabernet Franc - 06%

Alcohol - 14.5%

A wine made in the classic Bordeaux style using 5 of the acknowledged varietals

Colour: 3/3

A deep red almost purple coloured wine.

Aroma: 7/7

Wafting full oak vanilla nose.

Taste: 8.5/10

Full cassis and velvety tannins on the entry with plums and raisins in the centre and a warm combined fruit aftertaste.

An absolutely stunning Bordeaux blend to be savoured on its own or enjoyed with the best meat dishes this country can produce.    

Total 18.5 / 20

Two Long Tables - towards an authentic fine dining experience.

Two Long Tables inspired this blog post.

The first being a fine dining experience I enjoyed twice in the passed six months. A local celebrity, television presenter, Rita van der Heever, is the mastermind of a private dining experience, presented to close friends and associates in the comfort of her own home.  By invitation only, one receives a menu and the address and all you have to do is arrive to enjoy a fun filled evening with deliciously prepared and much loved comfort food with likeminded individuals. 

Surrounded by art and seated at a one-of-a-kind, bespoke Bloukrans Table, created and manufactured by Pierre Cronje, already makes for a unique dining experience.

This iconic design was inspired by Pierre’s experience working on the Bloukrans as a civil engineer. Seating 18 hungry stylish folks creates for a festive interactive dining experience like no other. (as sited at the Pierre Cronje website - follow the link above)

Rita van der Heever serves a three-course meal with panache, catering for all the senses. Homemade dishes are the best – tried and tested they are legendary – shaped and reworked over time - to perfection - and so it should be. For the love of food, wine and style - at the core of a fine dining experience. For more information to join the SMULPAPE  - send though your request to ritavandenheever@gmail.com and you to can enjoy the fine dining experience.

What should one expect from a contemporary hospitality dining experience – albeit a home-industry setting and or your favourite restaurant downtown.

Food and design is experiencing far greater synergy as we embrace design and thinking through craft in the design and manufacture of innovative products for a holistic dining experience. Thinking through drawing, in developing concepts and design ideas, it is important to gain knowledge of the type of food and the products that support the envisaged dining experience.

  

The recipes that will make up the menu are as important as the design style of the ceramic serving dishes. Having knowledge of the history and an understanding of ceramic traditions as well as ceramic manufacturing techniques and methods all contribute to an authentic product development in support of the dining experience.  

The Ceramic discipline is deeply rooted in a broad range of art, design and craft traditions; extending from the east to the west, including Europe and more importantly Africa in between – laying the foundation for product development no matter the menu and or recipes to be cooked.

Fine dining and wining is a stylish affair; catering for all the senses, including visual, smell, touch and taste. However ergonomics and tactile qualities are as valuable as complimentary surface decoration. All-important applied ingredients in defining the gestalt of a contemporary designer maker approach to creative cultural product options (Concepts and ideas). 

Knowledge and an understanding of craft traditions is an advantage in the design for manufacture products, especially if we celebrating the handmade. It is even more important when we redefine food and design related products from a home-based cooking and dining experience. 

This needs to be seen in the context of the envisaged choice of ceramic dishes, its forms, shapes and surface development. Decoration is no longer a crime as we embrace an authentic approach to product design development and manufacture (in direct contrast to Modernism’s expressed view – ‘that decoration is a crime’).

Whether one is a ceramist, developing a new product range and or a passionate chef or confectionist, it is essential that both sides of the spectrum are addressed - to plan and implement a successful entrepreneurial business proposal. 

The restaurants interior (place – tables, chairs and textiles), the dining style; the food, wine and serving dishes (the space) and the ambiance, all contribute to a holistic eatery – an integrated authentic approach to wining and dining.  

Making money cooking at home is an option considered by a number of individuals at a time when cash is tight and extra income is required to combat tough times – cost increases on all fronts. However when it is your passion and you consider yourself to be the next master chef – then this might just be a creative way forward to generate extra income. Selecting the right dinner service and serving dishes are all part of the integrated fine dining experience.

100% Design South Africa held in association with Decorex 2014 Johannesburg, this passed weekend, presented the right opportunity to gain knowledge and insight into a wide range of product design options for your dining room table. For more information see alternative blog FADAGallery administered by the blogger.

This brings me to the second Long Table, a collaboration of 14 SA ceramists including well-known ceramists Nic Sithole, Andile Dyalvane, Mervyn Gers and the talented and master craftsperson Anthony Shapiro, that took first prize in the category Best Product Design. The stand was coordinated by ART in the Forest and incorporated a broad range of ceramic products in a wide variety of ceramic techniques and methods of construction, including surface decoration. The unique display consisted of wallpaper images of forests emulating the surroundings of the Cape Town based studio, ART in a Forest (images seen above).