From the wine side, this year we launched our brand new Fairview Wine Club. This was something that never existed at Fairview before, and in the space of a few short months, I was amazed to see the positive response and growth that we experienced. It is clear to me that there was a desire to be part of the greater Fairview family, and I am so happy we are finally able to offer this to all our members. For me, the key was the simplicity, as all it takes to join is to purchase 12 bottles. Thereafter, you get access to all the membership benefits for one year – not too shabby if you ask me!

Our wine and cellar team are always hard at work, and this year, I believe they really reaped the fruits of their labour, receiving a flurry of accolades and awards. Here is our awards honour roll and highlights from the year gone by:

Tim Atkin’s ‘Medal of Excellence’ South African Report 2017:

Fairview Bloemcool Vis & Tjips 2016 – 94
Fairview Bloemcool Di’Tjie 2016 – 93
Fairview Caldera 2015 – 90
Fairview Drie Papen Fontein 2016 – 90
Fairview Homtini 2015 – 90
Fairview Nurok 2016 – 90

Platters: 4.5 Stars

Fairview Caldera 2015
Fairview Drie Papen Fontein 2016
Fairview Eenzaamheid Shiraz 2015
Fairview Extraño 2014
Fairview Homtini 2015
Fairview Jakkalsfontein Shiraz
Fairview La Beryl Blanc 2016
Fairview Nurok 2016
Fairview Petite Sirah 2014
Fairview Stok-By-Paaltjie Grenache 2015
Fairview The Beacon Shiraz 2015

2017 National Wine Challenge Top 100: 

Fairview Eenzaamheid Shiraz 2014
Fairview Extraño 2013
Fairview La Beryl Blanc 2015

2017 Shiraz SA Wine Challenge Top 12:
Fairview Beacon 2014
Fairview Swartland 2014

Winemag Signature Red Blend Report Awards 2017:
Fairview Extrano 2013 – 90 points

Winemag Sauvignon Blanc/ Semillon Report:
Fairview Drie Papen Fontein – 92 points

Rosé Rocks:
Fairview’s Goats Do Roam Rosé 2017: Gold Medal

Paarl Wine Challenge 2017:
Fairview Eenzaamheid Shiraz 2014

MCC Challenge:
Fairview Brut – Bronze

2017 Wine Label Design Awards
Fairview Bloemcool Range – Silver
Fairview Extrano  – Bronze

Review on our Fairview Rose Quartz by Matthew Jukes, voted most influential wine writer in the UK by OLN in 2011
“Made by the massively talented Anthony de Jager, this is the finest rosé I have ever tasted from the Cape. Made from a blend of Grenache, Carignan and Cinsault, with a careful touch of old French oak barrels to add a creamy texture, this is a pink grapefruit and watermelon-kissed wine with serious appeal and a magical touch”

Speaking of awards, we handed out some rather shiny Goat Trophies in September, marking the start of Spring and the annual La Capra Goat Run. This year, the Goat Run added even more festivities to the agenda with the introduction of a lively festival. The festival offered a colourful array of fun activities and food stalls for both spectators and runners, including a range of delicious treats from the farm, such as freshly baked patisseries (think croissants and danishes), health smoothies made from Fairview’s full fat yoghurt and locally-made, artisanal ice cream. The event was very well attended, and marked the pilot run of one of our latest concepts – Goat Yoga!

Yes. You read that right! Goat Yoga is now a trend. After first gaining traction in the USA, the animal therapy-meets-exercise concept has been grabbing the attention of everyone, with videos going viral across social media and the key message being about having fun, getting out in nature, bonding with an animal and getting exercise. Due to the overwhelming response to the pilot session, we have decided to open the paddock to the public over the summer, and what a great success we enjoyed! It was an African first as well as a Fairview first, and we hope it allowed for all participants to relax. After all, the world is so serious all the time, that sometimes it’s necessary to take a deep breath, stretch and let a baby goat nibble on your hair.

Then onto the Goatshed, which hosted their annual Charity Dinner in October. The dinner is unique in its approach, in that the full ticket price goes to charity. Nothing is deducted, no remainders sent off. Instead, we’re proud to offer every cent earned to a well-deserving organization, with this year’s beneficiary being the The Athlone House for Abused Women and Children. On the night, we earned over R100 000. This would not have been possible if it wasn’t for our Goatshed Manager, Shannon, as well as Executive Chef SJ, Head Chef Heila and our incredibly kind and passionate Goatshed team, all of whom stayed behind to work on the night for free.

Finally, on the 3rd November we officially opened our newest venture called Back’s. This has been a culmination of close work with my long-lost cousin Raphael Bak. Together, we envisioned providing fresh, local produce and value for money prices to our community. After a lot of brainstorming and effort, we acquired a central spot along Main Road in Paarl, and hope to welcome plenty of feet through our door in the season.

When all is said and done, 2017 has been an adventure – as all previous years before it – and I look forward to seeing what 2018 has to bring. Happy Festive season to all – and enjoy your New Year!

The post Looking Back on 2017 | By Charles Back appeared first on Fairview.

Fairview Online Shop

Naturally, first stop is our home base of Fairview.co.za. Fairview is the only website that sells all of the Fairview Wines (all 60+ of them, yes!) from classics like Fairview Shiraz to our flagship Fairview Cyril Back. We also have a few limited wines, such as Broken Barrel (exclusive to the Tasting Room and online shop), as well as our Bloemcool range – a small batch selection that allows our winemakers to experiment with unusual varieties and blends. Of course, the site wouldn’t be complete without our old faithful’s like our lifestyle offering of La Capra wines, and our beloved blended Goats Do Roam range. (Hint: Sign up to our newsletter to hear our regular and unbeatable specials – many of which included once-off batches that are high value for money!)

Visit https://www.fairview.co.za/shop/

Winefolk

We like the folk and Winefolk, and are happy to say that almost the entire Fairview Wine range is available on their site – making it one of best selections outside our online shop and tasting room. Winefolk was established by a few passionate wine personalities to supply wines directly to consumers, door to door in South Africa. If you love a bargain, this is your bag! Winefolk specializes in deals (especially in export overruns and such), with regular wine specials ranging between R25 – R45. Sign up to their newsletter – their wine sells fast!

Visit https://winefolk.co.za/

Yuppiechef

As one of South Africa’s premier online kitchen & homeware store, Yuppiechef has a formidable wine selection, and we’re proud to be part of their cellar selection. The site is user friendly and it’s all too easy to spend way too much time on it (trust us!) – after all, if you’re going to buy some fine Fairview wine, why not upgrade your glassware while you’re at it? Yuppiechef offers our wine in 6 bottle cases, securing really get value for money.

Visit https://www.yuppiechef.com/fairview.htm

Norman Goodfellows

Norman Goodfellows relentless focus on service and attention to detail has earned them a reputation as one of South Africa’s finest wine and spirit merchants. They have also won Best of Joburg 2014 – Best Bottle Store Award. Now online, they offer many of the same wines they stock in their retail stores – including, naturally, our Fairview selection. Check them out:

Visit: https://www.ngf.co.za/catalogsearch/result/?cat=0&q=fairview

Wine.co.za

Wine.co.za is a content hub of electronically stored information of lip-smacking South African wines and the remarkable people and magical places behind these wines. The Wine.co.za site is best known for finding places and wines in South Africa. It also offers a range of other options like news, a diary, shop and tour routes. If you want to get a better idea of Fairview’s vast range or learn more about the brand, this is a one-stop shop:

Visit http://shop.wine.co.za/

The post 5 Places to Buy Fairview Wines Online appeared first on Fairview.

So gather around, fellow wine lovers! Our second session starts with an Italian stallion – Sangiovese!

The Basics:
Grape Variety: Sangiovese (sahn/djoh/VEH/zeh)
Origin: Italy
Style: Dry red wine
Colour: Ruby red
Aromas & Flavour: Savoury, maraschino cherries, cloves, tomato
Key Regions Planted: Italy, Corsica, Argentina, US
Food pairing: Think Italian foods – rich roasted meat, cured sausages and hard cheeses. Bellissimo!
Fairview Wines: La Capra Sangiovese and Homtini

Sangio-who? Outside of its native home of Italy, Sangiovese is actually quite scarse. So we’re proud to be able to grow and work with this champion red grape variety. Known as a more savoury grape, Sangiovese wines offer a wide range of tastes from very earthy to round and fruit-forward. Regardless of where it’s grown, it always exhibits cherry flavors with more delicate notes of tomato. We first spotted Sangiovese when we brought our Darling vineyard – and we liked what we found! Our Sangiovese works very well in the cooler Atlantic region of Darling, bringing forward a vibrant fruit and fresh acidity.

With our very own Italian descendant here on the farm, chief winemaker Anthony de Jager, it came as a natural evolution to release a Sangiovese-based blend called Homtini. Having quickly risen in popularity since its maiden 2014 vintage, the wine is now loved not only for its outstanding flavour but also for its wallpaper-inspiring label! If you’d like to try this grape variety as a single variety, our La Capra Sangiovese is the perfect opportunity to do so, and is absolutely perfecto with tomato-based sauces like marinara and pasta dishes.

La Capra Sangiovese is available for R50 a bottle, click here.
Fairview’s Homitni is available for R160 a bottle, click here.

The post Cellar Sessions #2: Sangiovese appeared first on Fairview.