Introducing Back’s Blend 2014!

Charles explains: “This red wine is a reflection of my winemaking philosophy. As you might know, I started wine-making in 1978, and have been fortunate enough to be able to travel through the Cape Winelands discovering new sites and unique blocks of vineyard. I have also been instrumental in bringing Mediterranean varieties to our shores, all of which has led to the creation of exciting and interesting wines. In the past much of this work has never reached the market.

I have now decided to bottle a range of these unique wines to share with you. Bear in mind, however, that due to their exploratory nature, these wines can change from vintage to vintage and this may be the last bottle of its kind. The first of my Back’s Blend private range is a blend of Shiraz, Merlot and Tannat.

I’ve crafted this wine to thank my loyal club members and Fairview fans. Due to its limited quantities, Back’s Blend will be released to the Wine Club first, with a permanent allocation on reserve. Should there be any left, we will then open Back’s Blend up to our greater Fairview family.”

Charles Back | Back’s Blend 2014

Back’s Blend is crafted from Tannat, Merlot and Shiraz. It has a deep red colour with ripe plums, hints of black pepper and lavender on the nose. The palate shows fresh raspberries with well integrated tannins and a savoury finish.
Price: R100
Available online only.
Click here to purchase

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In 2015, I met Diane de Villiers – a super smart and successful businesswoman with as much drive and passion for her business, that she reminded me of me! Her business – Daily Dish – was ingenious, offering delicious pre-packaged dinner boxes delivered straight to your door. After learning about her pioneering initiative that started in 2013, I knew I wanted to get involved and partner with her and her incredible team – and so that’s exactly what I did!

The reason I did this is because Daily Dish’s offering, just like Fairview, is centred around bringing you only the highest quality, fresh, seasonal, local, and sustainably produced food. If you’re a working mother or convenience junkie looking to find an easy way to put delicious, freshly prepared food on your table every day but simply don’t have the time to head to the grocery shops – then Daily Dish has you covered.

I’ve watched from the sidelines as Daily Dish has risen to success year-on-year, gathering a committed following of regular ‘subscribers’ that love having an answer to the sometimes dreaded question of ‘what’s for dinner?’ every night.

Diane and her team have become experts at selecting suitable recipes from their inventory of 3,500 dishes, matching and pairing them to your weekly box and ensuring that the fresh and dry produce are delivered straight to your door or office in a nifty, refrigerated box that keeps your food cold for up to 24 hours (I’ve tested it – it works!). Another reason I am proud to be collaborating with the Daily Dish team is that they endeavour to continually innovate and accommodate. For example, one can select from 6 different dinner box options depending on your dietary requirements. This includes everything from a Classic Box, to Family, Banting, Vegan, Goodie and Pork-Free Box (ideal for me!).

As Fairview works our way towards being more sustainable, we are able to offer the Daily Dish subscribers our wide variety of artisanal cheeses, olive oil, breads and deli products. Some of Fairview’s experimental wines which are not widely available to the general public will also occasionally be included in the boxes. In the coming months, we will be working with Diane and her team more closely. I recommend you head to their website – www.dailydish.co.za – and sign up to their newsletters to look out for some exciting specials, and naturally, keep up to date with our extended family.

For now – we look forward to helping you share amazing home-cooked dishes with people you care about.

– Charles Back

VISIT DISH DISH: www.dailydish.co.za

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At Fairview, we have a shared passion for ethical and authentic produce, prepared with love. To produce fantastic produce – whether it is our wine, cheese, vegetables or meat, it all starts with sustainable and holistic farm practices. Over the years,  our team has been implementing better practices to ensure we can always yield the best results. Here are just some of the ways we have been doing this:

HEALTHY SOIL:

We believe healthy plants begin with healthy soil. Healthy plants mean less pests and disease. In and amongst various techniques we are currently using to keep our soil in the best of health such as crop rotation, mulching and  composting, we have also started planting Lupins, a flowering plant, in the weaker soils. Lupins are wonderful as they fix nitrogen in the soil from the atmosphere, thus acting like a natural fertiliser. We will dig up these plants next year and replace them with proper crops.

GROWING OUR OWN WHEAT:

We’re growing our own wheat! We have planted 250 hectares of wheat, as we have a 100 ton per year requirement to make our own bread.

FEED FOR OUR ANIMALS:

Over the years, we have planted 120 hectares of feed for our animals. Fairview is home to five key types of livestock – poultry, pigs and beef cattle, goats and sheep. They serve to supply the restaurant, produce milk for our cheese and produce store under our ‘farm to table’ model, as well as help to maintain and improve the health of our soil. Healthy soil means healthy plants, which in turn means better quality produce. Our animals are free to roam as much as possible, fed a natural, varied diet and treated with compassion and respect by our farmers. We welcome you to watch our animals, but please do not touch.

GOATSHED RESTAURANT 

Sourcing from the surrounding fields and pasture, as well as other local farms, the Goatshed Restaurants highlights the abundance of our Paarl-based farm and valley. Every week, our chefs team brainstorm and curate a weekly special so that all our guests are offered a multi-taste feast featuring the best offerings from the field. As of late, we’ve also introduced a Wine on Tap concept to our restaurant, meaning the wine comes straight from the cellar and is available on ‘draught’. There are various benefits about wine on tap, with one of the key factors being that it is more environmentally friendly. The Goatshed’s ‘no-fuss’ way of dining and commitment to buying locally farmed produce makes us proud to be seen as frontrunners in conscious consumption and a hit with visitors who are recognising the love of real food.

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Vineyard Consistency Award: 2nd Place Overall (following last year’s 1st place) 

Top 100 & Double Platinum awards
Three Double Platinum/Top 100 winning wines, including: 

Fairview Nurok 2016
Fairview Beacon Shiraz 2014
Fairview La Beryl Blanc 2017

Grand Cru National Champion Best in Class
A Grand Cru First Place in category win

Fairview Nurok 2016

Double Gold awards

Six Double Gold Awards, including:

Fairview Paarl Chenin Blanc 2017
Fairview Rose Quartz 2017
Fairview Caldera 2016
Fairview Homtini 2015
Fairview Extrano 2015
Fairview Viognier 2016

Charles and the team were thrilled with the news, with Charles sharing his thoughts on the Top 100 winning wines below: 

“Much like last year, our three Top 100 winning wines are all so different – which reflects the talent I believe our winemaking team has, as they are capable of traversing various varieties and winemaking styles to produce consistently refined and award-winning wines.

With the drought on the tip of everyone’s tongue, I am grateful that our team has prepared accordingly and that our vineyards continue to yield fruit of excellent quality, giving the wines richer depth and character.  

As far as the Top 100 wines go, Nurok is from one of our more vibrant and most food-friendly ranges, the Regional Revival Range, which highlights the value of using Mediterranean style varieties.

Our Fairview Beacon Shiraz is a favourite from our Single Vineyard range, and I have a hunch that it’s striking new, award-winning label must have added an extra bonus point for its shining performance this year!

Finally, our La Beryl Blanc, a traditional straw-dried sweet wine made since 1998, has been a consistent accolade winner for years. Named after my mother, Beryl, I think this wine reflects her warm and nurturing character, and clearly hits a sweet spot with its dedicated following.”

Overall, the Fairview winemaking team is delighted with our wins, as they span the gamut of our winemaking capabilities. We are particularly humbled by the recognition for our Vineyard Consistency Award for a second year running. Over the decades, the goal has not only been to refine our craft, but to be able to continue on that deliverable year on year, as after all, consistency is only the starting point! 

Cheers to our vineyard, cellar and winemaking team – you are clearly all doing something right!

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Mother block vineyards are just like what they sound – the first vines to be grown in a region that give rise to the rest of the same variety’s vines in that region. At Fairview, we are very fortunate and proud to have the original mother block of Viognier, planted in 1997 by Charles Back.

Charles desire to bring the aromatic white variety to the Cape stemmed from a visit to France’s Rhône region in 1989. During his trip, he tried Viognier for the first time, and explains how he was immediately struck by the unique nature of the wine, with its intriguing balance of fragrance, deep fruit and austere structure.

“I knew at once that the terroir of the Cape would be well-suited to Viognier, and as we tasted the wines I was thinking about the soils and sites that I was fortunate enough to have found come across over the years,” shares Charles.

When he returned to South Africa, Charles carefully started the process of sourcing the vines to bring to South Africa – a lengthy, complicated and often laborious process. It’s not easy bringing a foreign vine to local soils! But being determined, by the early 1990’s, Fairview was harvesting fruit from our Viognier vineyards.

Today, our trellised Viognier vines grow on the slopes of Paarl Mountain, on decomposed granite soils. Despite the beating summer sun, the resilient grape results in full, ripe and healthy grapes, and after maturation in bottle, shows its well-loved subtle perfumed fruit and great mouthfeel with every vintage.

In 2017, we celebrated 10 years of bottling this varietal. Our Fairview winemakers enjoy sculpting this variety into various styles, including as a single variety (try our Fairview Viognier), as well as being the frontrunner in our unique Brut MCC, and a leading component of our celebrated Nurok white blend. It’s even featured in our Goats Do Roam White Blend and Goat Roti!

Viognier is very flexible, working in a wide variety of seafood, roasted or grilled chicken, pork, spicy flavors and Asian cuisine. A Malay curry with delicate spice and dried fruits is particularly delicious when paired with Viognier. This Mother’s Day, our recommendation is to grab yourself a bottle (or two) of our very own mother block wine, Fairview Viognier, and celebrate!

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Off the coast of the Greek isle of Santorini lies a sea-drowned caldera, a vast crater left behind by one of the biggest volcanic eruptions in history. Once a cradle of heat and magma, today that energy is still channeled into the Mediterranean dishes cooked in cauldron-style pots by locals. To celebrate the warmth and richness of this culture, we’ve crafted our Caldera wine to masterfully match with any meal… and the Goatshed Caldera Evening is just the fit for this experience!

Our sixth Goatshed dinner is coming up on the 24th August 2018: The Caldera Greek Evening!

Caldera was so named after Charles Back’s travels to Santorini in Greece. During his stay, he enjoyed the view of the mostly submerged caldera, located in the southern Aegean Sea, 120 kilometers north of Crete. Upon his return from Greece, he was inspired to create a Grenache-Syrah-Mourvèdre blend that would complement Mediterranean style food, such as the Greek cuisine he has experienced. And so Caldera was born – the oldest member of our Regional Revival Range, and one of our best!

This year, we’ve decided to introduce a strong relationship between the food and wine pairings, by complementing the Goatshed dinners to our most food-focused wine range, titled the Regional Revival Range.

The Regional Revival Range consists of the following 6 wines:
1. Fairview Brut MCC
2. Fairview Drie Papen Fontein
3. Fairview Nurok
4. Fairview Homtini
5. Fairview Extrano
6. Fairview Caldera

Here is a breakdown of the menu you can expect to enjoy on the evening:

Mezze
Greek style breads, olives and hummus
Homemade Dolmades
Spinach & feta tartlets
Haloumi & sundried tomato salsa

Starter
Prawn Saganaki & zucchini fritter

Main Course
Baked lamb meatballs with crushed potatoes, baby marrow, aubergine puree and rosemary jus

Dessert
Greek Style Fresh Cheese & Yoghurt tart, apricot compote

***

R325 per person
Wine Pairings included

Click below to purchase your tickets.

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Here is a breakdown of the menu you can expect to enjoy on the evening:

First starter
Onion bhajis, spiced aubergine dip
Butternut samoosa, sweet chilli yogurt
Bobotie springroll, turmeric aioli
Mango atchar chicken Roti
Curried and pickled fish pots

Second starter
Cauliflower and potato Tarkari, lentil cake & fried paneer

Main course
Mutton curry with tomatoes, garlic and garam masala with Basmati rice, sambals & poppadum

Dessert
Saffron sabayon with roasted fruit, cardamom cake and toasted almonds

***

R325 per person
Wine Pairings included

Click below to purchase your tickets.

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Our second Goatshed Dinner is coming up on the 8th June 2018: The Nurok Moroccan Evening!

This year, we’ve decided to introduce a strong relationship between the food and wine pairings by complementing the Goatshed dinners to our most food-focused wine range, the Regional Revival Range.

The Regional Revival Range consists of the following 6 wines:
1. Fairview Brut MCC
2. Fairview Drie Papen Fontein
3. Fairview Nurok
4. Fairview Homtini
5. Fairview Extrano
6. Fairview Caldera

Each wine from our Regional Revival range has an exciting story to tell, and a veritable feast to go with it, with a specific wine region in mind. Our second dinner is all about Nurok – a true labour of love. Charles Back tells the story:

“My wife, Diane, whose painting is depicted on the front label, is descended from the Nurok family, originally from Lithuania. At the end of the 17th century, Lithuanians were taking on the Catholic faith and built a cathedral in Siauliai in celebration. A heavy bell being transported to the cathedral fell into a frozen river, and the locals could not retrieve it. A young boy named Wulf dived into the river, attached a rope to the bell and, with some help, hauled it onto the riverbank. Refusing all reward, Wulf asked that the Jews be allowed to return to Siauliai. His wish was granted, and the citizens bestowed on him the name Nurok, meaning diver. From then on, he and his descendants were known by this name, and there was harmony between Christians and Jews. This admirable example of religious tolerance and mutual respect serves as one of the cornerstones of our philosophy at Fairview. This wine pays homage to the revered blends of the Old World.”

Nurok is one of our most acclaimed award-winning wines. In 2017, it won a 90 Tim Atkin score, 4.5 star Platter rating, and 92-points in the Winemag White Blend Award! Thanks to the oak on this beautiful white blend, it complements spicy and rich food incredibly well, so we’ve opted to pair it with Moroccan-inspired dishes.

Here is a breakdown of the menu you can expect to enjoy on the evening:

Mrehba
Flat breads from the wood-fire oven, olive oil & rosemary
Khobz Kesra – Traditional Moroccan bread
Spiced carrot & chickpeas
Lemon & olive chicken drumsticks
Spicy Roast pepper dip
Eggplant salad

First Starter
Masala spiced line fish, lentil & chickpea cakes & Chermoula

Second Starter
Saffron and cumin potato curry, Poppadums & Labneh

Main Course
Lamb shoulder, apricot Cous Cous

Dessert
Almond cake,  date preserve & cinnamon custard

***

R325 per person
Wine Pairings included

Click below to purchase your tickets.

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Our labels were designed by the talented graphic design team at Jane Says, headed up by creative Victoria Peter. Victoria has worked closely with Charles over the years, honing in on his vision and executing work across a variety of briefs and designs. The competition seeks to reward the best design and packaging for bottled wine made in South Africa and judging criteria include originality of concept, execution, shelf appeal and effectiveness as a piece of communication. A total of 44 entries were received, 28 of these emerging as finalists.

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2018 marks the 20th vintage of Goats Do Roam. Have you ever heard the tale of how the brand came to be?

The idea of Goats do Roam first came about in the late 1990′s during a casual conversation between Fairview owner Charles Back and his UK importer at the time. Charles was looking to launch a blended wine within the Fairview range comprising farm’s key varietal, Shiraz and others such as Grenache and Carignan. After regaling the tale of his son’s antics with the goats from the Fairview tower, and chatting about the herd that roams around the Fairview property (and a few glasses of wine no doubt) the name ‘Goats do Roam’ popped up and the rest is history.

When Charles Back and his team first decided to go ahead with the Goats do Roam wines he was adamant about one thing – he did not want to sell wine based purely on the name and the label. He wanted people to buy the Goats do Roam wines again after they tasted them for the first time and to do that he needed to make sure that what was in the bottle got the consumers’ attention as much as what was on it. In fact, he really needed to (and continues to need to) over-deliver, as many viewed the ‘Goats’ as trying to sell wine based on the attention that the labels received. There are many wines with better looking labels that have come and gone in the time that ‘Goats’ has been around…

Charles Back says:

“When we had the idea to produce this wine we were in a little bit of a rush to get the label finalised. We had spoken to our UK importer and they were very keen to have the wine on their shelves. Anthony Lane designed the label but when it came back from the printer the colour was nothing like what was planned. But time was pressing so we had to send the order and the rather garish yellow has become characteristic!”

Goats do Roam was launched before the critter craze really hit the market and may be seen as one of the brands that pioneered this trend, but Back doesn’t really view the Goats as critter labels.  A lot of thought goes into the labels and there is a story attached to each.  They are more than just quirky illustrations.

The Goats do Roam wines first hit the UK scene in late 1999, selling in retailers including Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Somerfield, Majestic and many others, for a number of years. However, as the supermarket wine retail environment changed, Charles Back felt that this was no longer the appropriate channel for the Goats do Roam brand and he made the bold decision to pull his wines from the UK supermarket shelves. At the same time he had been focusing energy on the ‘emerging’ US market, after launching the ’99 vintage Goats do Roam Red there in 2001. The brand was well received in the USA, quickly becoming the top selling South African wine brand in the country, which Back flippantly writes off to “a big piece of a small pie” (South African wine accounts for around 2% of wine sold in the USA). This achievement has also assisted in attracting attention to the South African wines category.

The Goats were given a shot in the arm in August 2003 when the brand received coverage on CNN and BBC following a demonstration at the French embassy in Cape Town. The French had objected to the registration of ‘Goats do Roam’ in the US, saying that it was a direct play on the French appellation Côtes du Rhône. This was dismissed by Charles at the time as pure coincidence, alluding to the farm’s roaming herd of some 700 goats. A large group of placard-waving employees demonstrated in Cape Town, culminating in the presentation of a magnum of Goats do Roam Red and a rather symbolic bag of goat manure, labelled ‘Goats do Poo’! The exposure kick-started the brand in the USA and the threats of litigation fell silent.

Over the last twenty years, our vineyard plantings have matured to an extent that allows us to constantly improve the quality of fruit that is used in our Goats do Roam wines, and we look forward to continue to do so.

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