The gentle shift from winter to summer is briefly intercepted with a few short days of spring here at Londolozi. While we have enjoyed only one short rain shower lately, the trees and shrubs seem to have stretched deep into the earth and soaked up just enough moisture to begin dotting their branches with vibrant green shoots and leaves. The days have lengthened lazily, and the warm temperatures have resulted in a certain shift in wine choices and drinking behaviours. The hearty, full-bodied reds are gently being replaced with cool, crisp whites and bubbles to accompany a fresh new summer menu. One such wine, hand-picked from the Londolozi wine list, is the Nicholas van der Merwe Five to Nine Sauvignon Blanc, which has been a favourite choice for Camp Managers and myself lately.
The Nicolas van der Merwe Five to Nine Sauvignon Blanc
As a proud member of the Relais & Chateaux family, we celebrate a sense of place in choosing certain wine estates to feature on our diverse wine list. The South African Terroir is home to some of the finest wines in the world – Nico van der Merwe’s estate being one of them. Nico is a stalwart in the South African wine industry and he has produced wine since 1980. For the leopard aficionados out there; this was only one year after the Mother Leopard of Londolozi was first viewed!
Nico’s winemaking included a stint at renowned Saxenburg in Stellenbosch where he produced award-winning wines for 27 years. At the end of 2016 he parted ways with Saxenburg so that he and his family could solely focus on building and marketing their own brand.
In 1999 Nico and his wife Petra decided to start making their own wine, which then was an “after hours project” aside from Saxenburg. They vinified their first vintage of the Mas Nicholas, a stunning blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz. In 2005 the couple purchased a smallholding on the Polkadraai road outside of Stellenbosch named “Mooi Uitsig” or “beautiful view”, and in 2007 they built their cellar – this has become the home for Nico van der Merwe wines.
The Five to Nine Sauvignon Blanc is a clever play on words for working “nine to five”, but has relevance to the harvesting of the grapes for this wine as they are harvested on cool mornings between five and nine o’clock to preserve freshness and optimum cultivar flavours. The wine shows characteristics from the warmer Stellenbosch climate, and whilst it is fresh and crisp, it is more on the fruity side with aromas of guava, grapefruit, figs and Cape gooseberries.
On a scorching day it pairs beautifully with some of the summer delights from Chef Anna’s latest menu, such as grilled calamari, salmon poke bowl, caprese salad, Thai prawn fritters or the refreshing melon with Parma ham and cherry salad.
Pair a crisp glass of Five to Nine with a delicious plate of grilled calamari from our summer menu
We’d be interested to know your thoughts on this wine and whether you’ve had any experience with Nico van de Merwe’s creations? Do you have any summer food and wine pairings you can recommend?
Lovely blog once again Kim. Informative. Well researched and beautiful story telling. Can’t quite remember which Nicas van der Merwe wines I have enjoyed. The sauvignon blanc sound perfect for summer.
Thanks Marinda, it is a great wine for summer, we’ll have to share a bottle sometime 😉
Kim, nice article first of all. My favorite wine varietal is SB, predominantly from New Zealand as living her in Northern California, it’s plentiful and reasonably priced. The South African wines are very limited so when in Africa, I love to sample various producers. Favorites have included: Villiera, Tokara, Dombeya, and Neil Ellis Groenekloof to name a few. I’ve traveled the Wine districts near the cape and tasted some fantastic wines, paired with delicious meals including locally sourced ingredients. Fish and SB is a natural pairing, linguini and clam sauce, various styles of chicken including my favorite, chicken picatta. I’m looking forward to tasting Nico’s wines during my visit next month. See you then!!
Thanks for the kind comments Denise. Sauvignon Blanc definitely is a firm favourite out here in the bush with our soaring temperatures! All the producers you mention produce excellent examples of Sav Blanc as well. I look forward to your stay and sharing some of Nico’s wines with you.
What a lovely blog, Kim. I’ll have my glass of wine now!
Thanks for the lovely comment Joanne, hope you enjoyed that glass!
Wondering if I can find this from my online source on the US mainland. I know I won’t find it in Hawai’i?
Hi Judy, how are you? Unfortunately this is not one you are going to find abroad just yet, the production is still rather small and exports limited if at all. You’ll have to come visit to try some 😉
This reminds me – when I visited in April I had a chenin that was amazing! We were out in the bush having a pizza night, and since it was dark I never got a good look at the label. One of the rangers dubbed it the “Lamborghini of chenins.” Was it from this vineyard, I wonder? I’d love to track it down.
Hi Chelsea,
I’ll look into it. Can you remember which ranger said that?
Best,
James
Thank you! I don’t remember his name, but I think he was blonde. It was the night of April 3 if that helps. Tayla may remember. She brought it down especially for me because I typically like Rieslings. 🙂
Hi Chelsea,
The ranger was Kevin Power, and the wine was the Ken Forrester FMC Chenin Blanc. Ken Forrester is known locally in the industry as the “King of Chenin” so it definitely is one of the “Lamborghinis” as Kevin would have dubbed it. A very rich style of Chenin with botrytis elements. An amazing wine!
Thank you so much! That was such a great wine and an amazing experience dining under the stars. Hi to Kevin and Ray! 🙂
Is there a subtle art to drinking beer, I know that braai meat goes with that?
Unfortuately I have not had much experience with wine, but I know that there is a place in Franshoek that does wine and pizza pairing, which sounds amazing!
Hi Callum,
Funny enough Cathy Marston, an authority in wine in SA (www.thewinecentre.co.za), and Lucy Corne, an authority on beer (www.brewmistress.co.za), hosted a few events (Grape vs Grain) a few years ago where they paired wine and beer to various courses and battled it out as to what was the best. Both beverages can be paired with various dishes, although I personally believe that wine is more versatile and there isn’t a dish which you can’t find a wine for, whether it’s a great steak on the braai, or a pepperoni pizza!
Great post as always. And please remember as I told you earlier this year, I am first in line for your job when you decide to retire.
Thanks Jeff, I’ll definitely keep your offer in mind, unfortunately I’m not quite ready yet to step down 😉
Hope some of the menu items as well as wines from this wine farm are available when we return in July. Look forward to the Mas Nicholas if it’s available.
Hi Vin Beni,
Anna is always keeping the menu fresh and new, but sure we should have some elements carrying through for your July visit, and sure there’ll be a bottle of Mas Nicholas lying around somewhere 😉
Fabulous Kim, can’t wait to try this! Sounds absolutely sublime ??
Thanks Marianna, you definitely need to try it on your next visit, it really is sublime…