EDITOR'S COLUMN BY MARIETTE BURGER - Walking through the streets of Graaff-Reinet over a weekend is always enjoyable, but this past Friday and Saturday, I got to sample the offerings of some of the most prestigious vineyards in South Africa along the way.
To prepare for my weekend of stoep tasting, I had studied the route map carefully. Over two days, I reckoned I'd easily be able to walk up and down the streets of Graaff-Reinet's historical centre, stopping to taste top wines I had only ever seen at the expensive end of a wine list.
At the bottom end of Parsonage Street, I'd hoover up some Krone sparkling wines and a Fryers Cove vintage.
In Muller Street, I'd lay waste to the wines created by the Deetlefs and Bon Courage estates. It was to be a bucket list of sorts, and a bucketful of wine that would hopefully turn me into some sort of connoisseur by Sunday morning - my wine meander would not involve any spitting. That was the plan - until I witnessed the estates set up on Friday afternoon.
That, coupled with the hundreds of wine enthusiasts and aficionados flocking to town, told me this wasn't going to be a whistle-stop tour of the elite estates. Setting off on Friday afternoon, I forayed into the quaint streets of Graaff-Reinet over the next day and a half, stopping at the various merchants along the way.
The vintners would casually drop nuggets of information into our conversation as we rolled from one beautifully set up vendor to another, from one delightful sauvignon-blanc to another sweet after-dinner wine, to our end-of-day dinner stop.
The highlight of our weekend took us to the heart of Graaff-Reinet on Saturday evening where we visited the (now monthly) Food Court at Our Yard.
The wines to accompany this fare were sourced from a tasting day well spent.
Nothing about these tastings was at all elitist.
Instead, the atmosphere was more 'village fete', with live music and good food to delight the tasters. After two tasting days, I remain a wine ignoramus. But I now have a huge appreciation for what goes into producing wine.
And on top of this, I have enjoyed a taste of local life that only comes from moving slowly through a landscape, on foot, with good friends.
Read a related article: A weekend of wine in Graaff-Reinet
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