Carolyn Martin and Daniela Messina recently did a roadshow in the UK to meet up with some established clients and visit some new ones. Through the course of the 10-day trip tastings of Creation’s award-winning wines as well as lunch pairings were the order of the day. Carolyn reports:
Northern Part of the Country
The Man Behind the Curtain
What a treat to visit this amazing restaurant in Leeds! From the cups that our coffee arrived in to the incredible gallery environment that is the restaurant, the essence is oh so creative and wonderfully modern. I was reminded of my Art student days at Michaelis and immediately felt at home, thanks also to Charlotte and Emily’s warm welcome. The chefs are young, enthusiastic and super friendly. Michelin-starred Michael O’Hare’s philosophy is to integrate contemporary culture, arts, music and his peers in his creative endeavors and the food speaks for itself. The name of the restaurant is derived from a quote from The Wizard of Oz. In case you wish to make a reservation it might be wise to book well in advance.
Fazenda – Leeds, Manchester and Liverpool
Great to see such an incredible concept – which most South Africans will love! It’s all about tasting special cuts of meat – which we paired with Creation wines. For example: Pork Belly, Gammon and Pineapple with Creation Chardonnay; Filet Mignon or Rib Eye Steak with Creation Pinot Noir or Creation Syrah, Grenache; Lamb with the Creation Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot. Thomas Maunier, the sales and marketing director and Chris, the sommelier at Fazenda do an amazing job choosing a great selection of wines from around the world. If you ever get the chance to celebrate a special event in this area, the Creation Syrah, Grenache is available in big bottles! To make a reservation please click here.
The Duncombe Arms
Johnny and Laura Greenall are the owners of The Duncombe Arms, situated in the sleepy village of Ellastone, Ashbourne on the border of Derbyshire, Staffordshire. We did a tasting for 12 of Johnny’s friends in the wonderfully quaint pub to which all the locals migrate, followed by an excellent wine and food pairing. To book for lunch, click here.
Southern Part of the Country
From Staffordshire we went down south to have a quick meeting at the London International Wine Trade Fair, which was very successful, and then onto Cornwall by train.
Boconnoc
This country estate in Lostwithiel, South East Cornwall is tucked away along two miles of private road. We were kindly invited by owner Elizabeth Fortescue to visit after she and her daughters had tasted Creation in our Tasting Room a couple of months before. Following a wonderful wine tasting at Boconnoc we were spirited away to a seafood restaurant called Sam’s on the Beach in the little town of Polkerris. Boconnoc is an amazing venue for weddings and special events and we look forward to a wonderful association. If you are planning a special wedding or event in a unique setting in the UK, contact Boconnoc.
St Tudy Inn
Emily Scott is the proprietor of St Tudy Inn and a well-known chef and publisher in Cornwall. What a beautiful and welcoming environment she has created and soon there will be some rooms to stay at St Tudy Inn. She creates an ever evolving menu that combines her passion for beautiful seasonal food paired with fine wines. Emily’s favourite Creation wine was the Viognier, although she likes a few of ours. Follow Emily on Twitter @EmilyScottHK and make a booking here.
Outlaw’s
After the visit to St Tudy Inn we went to the Michelin star restaurant named after its chef-owner Nathan Outlaw, and did a tasting there with South African sommelier, Damon Little. Once again the Creation Viognier as well as the Creation Chardonnay performed well. Click here to make a reservation.
Ben’s Cornish Kitchen
Ben is a South African chef and his restaurants are along the coast of Penzance. We visited the one in Marazion (one of the oldest towns in England) where they serve delicious seafood. The restaurant overlooks St Michael’s Mount Island which reminded me of Peter Pan! To make a reservation, click here.
The Old Coastguard Hotel
Right on the water in the fishing village of Mousehole – delightfully local with a great atmosphere. We sat outside in the sunshine, had a delicious meal and it was lovely to meet the owner, Charles Inkin. They won the Imbibe Wine List of the Year award for 2016 and you can enjoy Creation here. To stay or visit make a reservation here.
Chapel House
A beautiful place to stay in Penzance: close enough to take a dip in the sea, wonderful modern art linked to an art project and beautifully appointed rooms with amazing bathrooms. The kitchen delivered magnificent and different breakfast made with all fresh products by the owner Susan Stuart, herself. Truly a unique find. To make a booking, click here.
The Salutation Inn
Right before heading to The Salutation Inn we went to Torquay, Devon to Wine @7. There we had the chance of tasting with Graham and Paul and ended up doing a comparative tasting between two Viogniers where the Creation Viognier really stood its ground and performed very well.
The Salutation Inn is in the village of Topsham in Devon, right on the River Exe where salmon can be fly-fished if you have the correct permit. Which is just what The Salutation Inn has! So can you imagine fresh salmon caught at the back door and then gravlax in beetroot with a little Creation Pinot Noir … well things can’t get much better than this! When visiting Topsham which is close to Exeter in Devon do visit this treasure. You can stay over and enjoy great food and great wine! They are working on a Michelin star rating! To make a reservation click here.
London
Sexy Fish
This is one of the super trendy restaurants that opened in November last year in Mayfair. We had a chance to chat to the sommelier Julien Sahut who is a great friend of Will Predhomme from Canada who JC has met a few times – the Sommeliers and the MWS of this world are quite close and it’s a small world especially when it comes to sharing wine knowledge. We were very fortunate getting some great insights into what makes Sexy Fish so sexy, what makes the wine list a winner and what the latest cocktail trends in the UK are. We were also fortunate enough to meet the wonderful Chef Grant who introduced us to a whole new range of micro herbs called Sakura Herbs. They have wonderful notes of savouriness and a hint of bitterness and are used in dishes such as Scallop and Monkfish Yakitori with Shiso and Red Vinegar Dressing or the Crispy Duck and Watermelon with Pomegranates, Cashews and Sakura Herbs. Click here to make a booking.
Novikov
Here we met Sommelier Danilo and had a chance to enjoy rare treats from the market which looks like Harrods food hall where lobsters are twitching on ice and the vegetable basket of the world is available. You choose your ingredients and chefs cook it to perfection to match your wine of choice – which might naturally be Creation Syrah, Grenache if you are visiting Novikov. To make a reservation click here.
Fifteen
Fifteen was a real treat and the concept is now going to be extended to all Jamie Oliver’s restaurants. This is where a new team of chefs and front of house managers takes over each restaurant every year and gets trained. It’s about training kids from underprivileged backgrounds and giving them a future in hospitality. Definitely a concept to keep in mind and one we are looking at extending to raise funds for the local farm school. Click here to make a reservation.
Handford Wines – Greg Sherwood
It was such a pleasure to meet up with Greg Sherwood again. He came out for the Pinot Noir Celebration in the Hemel-en-Aarde earlier this year and now we had time to catch up and taste in his great wine store in South Kensington, London. To learn more about the wine shop, click here.
Sommelier Tastings
67 Pall Mall – Gareth Ferreira
It’s surely one of the top wine clubs in the world and it certainly is the one that everyone is talking about in London. Founded by wine lovers, for wine lovers, 67 Pall Mall is a unique private members’ club. We are very fortunate that Gareth Ferreira, arguably one of South Africa’s best sommeliers and Ronan Sayburn’s assistant head sommelier, works at 67 Pall Mall. Gareth recently took part in the Best Sommelier of the World Competition in Argentina and was placed 15th. Pretty amazing to be in the world’s top 15! Creation did a tasting with the sommeliers and then we introduced our wines to bloggers at a bloggers’ lunch where JC skyped in to taste the Creation Art of Pinot Noir. We live streamed this on Facebook in the UK and had a great deal of funThe bloggers enjoyed learning about South Africa, wines, wine tourism, experimentation by wine appreciators and we introduced Creation’s wines to the UK for those who had not tasted them before. This turned out to be a great knowledge sharing opportunity.
High Timber
Our wonderful friend and supporter Neleen Strauss kindly gave us the chance to taste at High Timber with another friend, Tobias Brauweiler from Hakkasan. We’ve known Tobias from the time he worked at The Grande Roche as head sommelier. He’s an amazing sommelier and such a pleasure to know and work with – incredibly gentle and considered in his comments and approach to wine and deeply respectful! I think he knows that working with nature can be wondrous and tricky at the same time. Thank you for your time Tobias! To book a table at Hakkasan click here.
To book a table at High Timber with marvelous Neleen where we have done a number of functions before, click here.
Vivat Bacchus
Owner Gerrie Knoetze once owned one of the most successful steakhouses in Gauteng and now owns two establishments (Farringdon and London Bridge). This is a great steakhouse concept with a great wine list and some good function rooms. We invited 30 people and 60 turned up – which was great and so good to have that lovely spirit and excitement about Creation in London with existing clients bringing some new friends. These are private clients who are amazing brand ambassadors and we often see them in the Tasting Room; many are global #tastemakers.
#Riedel supported us as they always do. What a treat to work with such an amazing company. We ended up having a standing tasting and there were a couple of seats for those who needed them. It was a fun informal affair with the most delicious canapés. Thanks to all who helped, including the Drake family as well as Gerrie’s son who helped with the set-up.
We’re looking forward to doing a similar event in October and will keep you informed of dates and locations closer to the time.
Shoot with Igor Sotric – China Tang
Igor was the first UK sommelier to take part in our Sommelier’s Choice series. We featured his take on Creation Wines in last week’s blog. China Tang was one of the first great establishments to list Creation in London – thank you Igor for your faith in us from the beginning! Click here to view the blog.
