As we gear up to welcome the arrival of autumn, people all over the Cape are flocking to the winelands to make the most of the last of the summer days, and there are few places better to while away your time than at Laborie Wine Farm.

One of the oldest operational wine farms in the country, Laborie offers a taste for every palate and delights for every age.

Taste on the Deck

This new restaurant at Laborie, is a thoughtful extension of the original tasting room, and offers glorious views of the vineyards and Paarl Rock. Here, guests can relax on the spacious deck and pair a wide range of wines and bubbly (including the award-winning 2010 Blanc de Blancs MCC) with mouth-watering charcuterie platters, tapas style dishes and even chocolate and macarons. For the little ones, Taste offers grape juice and sweeties pairings and also boasts the most picturesque jungle gym in Paarl.

Bar Di Bar 

Those looking to sample some fantastic craft beer should look no further than Laborie’s quirky and original new venue, Bar Di Bar, which offers local craft beers by the bottle or on-tap as well as tasty tapas to share. This retro addition to Laborie Wine Farm comes complete with an old-school juke box and a 1970’s Volkswagen Surfer Kombi which serves as the bar.

Harvest Restaurant

A longstanding favourite, the #KLINK award-winning Harvest restaurant continues to serve up scrumptious locally-sourced and sustainable food. Chef Matthew Gordon’s soon to be launched autumn menu is sure to tickle the taste buds. The garden terrace offers the perfect setting to take in the scenic surrounds, sip the farm’s wines and tuck into delicious, beautifully presented food.

Jonkershuis luxury self-catering accommodation

The newly-renovated Jonkershuis is the ideal accommodation option for a night spent in the winelands. Sleeping six, and tastefully decorated in Cape French style, this luxurious self-catering holiday home features a terrace with mountain views and a sparkling blue swimming pool. Jonkershuis at Laborie is currently running a special offer of R2,750 per night for the house.

For more information, visit www.laboriewines.co.za. Alternatively, phone 021 807 3390 or email info@laboriewines.co.za.

Photographs by Claire Gunn Photography.

Rusty Cerven won the title Bols Around the World Bartender of the Year in 2013 in Bols world HQ in Amsterdam.

He beat 3,000 other bartenders from 33 countries around the world to clinch the title.

As part of his prize he chose 4 World Cities to visit, and Cape Town was his first stop. He flew in a few days ago and held a masterclass with the KWV brandy people at The House of Machines for a cross section of bartenders from top bars such as The Orphanage, Vista Bar at One and Only and Leopard Bar at The 12 Apostles.

I am not normally a cocktail kind of gal; I usually find them too sweet and many are, to be honest, idiotic looking – all day-glo colours and silly umbrellas.

Maybe it’s just the joints I have been drinking in, so I was pleased to discover that his preferred cocktail is minimalist in style, and not an umbrella in sight. I’ll also add that they are not the huge half pint jobs, but smaller servings with more intense flavours.

Rusty said; “A couple of years ago there was boom in speakeasy style bars from the 1930’s prohibition era and it still continues. However, people come back to simplicity, reviving classic cocktail and making them as good and authentic as possible. I notice also the increasing popularity of small batch and handcrafted production of liquors and spirits.

So what better place than The House of Machines to hold the masterclass. They style themselves as a prohibition era speakeasy style bar. Think of what your Granddaddy would have drunk if he lived in Chicago in 1935; Bourbon, Gin, Vodka, Rye Whiskey etc.

Rusty had the 35 assembled bartenders and mixologists enthralled for 1 1/2 hours as he gave them the inside track on how to make that perfect libation.

He even smoked some Dilmah Tea as a flavour ingredient for one of his creations.

All I know is that they tasted delicious.

Here’s the recipe for his award winning cocktail; William’s Punch. 

William’s Punch – Rusty Cerven.

Ingredients:
20ml home-made lemon sherbet*
20ml freshly pressed rhubarb juice
10ml Bols Parfait Amour
35ml Bols Genever
50ml MCC

*Lemon sherbet: Grate skin of 12 lemons on a fine grater, add 200g caster sugar and muddle all together to release the oils from the zest. Add 600ml lemon juice, let it infuse for 15-20 minutes and then filter.

Pour all ingredients except for the champagne into a punch bowl. Add enough ice to chill it down. Top up with champagne and add top with grated nutmeg. Garnish with lemon peel and seasonal fruit.

Motivation behind cocktail:

This punch is named after King William of Orange, the person responsible for boosting the genever and gin culture in England. Punch is my favorite category and it is considered as the father of cocktails and plays an important role throughout history. ‘Punch’ means five in Hindu and William’s Punch contains five ingredients. I have created a traditional recipe of lemon sherbet, as was made in England in the 18th century by William Terrington, used Bols Genever as it is the spirit that caused a drinking revolution in our country, rhubarb – the most common ingredient in English cuisine, Bols Parfait Amour as a description of my love for the job I do, and finally champagne to make it festive. And this punch wouldn’t be complete without a sprinkling of nutmeg.