Wino Wisdom

We are a fascinating bunch. Our talents range from farming, engineering, hospitality, game capturing –  we often embrace a retailer and tonight we threw in a lawyer for fun.

We are supposed to meet on a regular basis to share our Wino Wisdom breaking bread and drinking wine, but discipline and organisational skills are frequently lacking.

The Wise Wino Women

But we got it together tonight. Except our capturing team was missing, and they were sorely missed, hence the back up from the lawyer.

Our wine club was established over 20 years ago and has seen members come and go, all this happens in the bundu’s in northern KwaZulu-Natal. 

I fear not too much has been learnt over these two decades, but we persist non-the-less.

An old established family from our part of the world, Brian and Denise Blevin, were our hosts. We quaffed and guzzled wine at their home, also the nesting place of Tamboti Ridge B&B. Close by, on the road to Swaziland is their classy lodge – Shayamoya. We were indeed in good company.

Brian has a reputation of using his influence to get others to do his ‘wine club’ for him, and not to disappoint he commissioned the knowledgeable Lucia Smith from Vinimark to pour some wisdom into our pretty heads.

Lucia brought wine from two different Cape vineyards.Flagstone Wines – run by Bruce Jack, based in Somerset West, who cleverly purchases varietals and bottles under Flagstone’s name; and Rietvallei Wine Estate, a 7th generation vineyard in the Robertson Valley.

We were alerted to the fact that every vintage year is different, 

wine is so alive and the cellar changes due to a multiple of factors.

We learnt another lesson: with our twitching noses we proffered the most nonsensical comments about flavours – “cut grass, green peppers, crisp, refreshing.” And we were right. The second wine was different: more cheeky. But clever Lucia had given us EXACTLY the same wine, Rietvallei Classic Sauvignon Blanc – but a 2 – 3 degree temperature difference had changed the body completely.

Speaking of body, our token eligible bachelor/ retailer perked up dramatically when 

‘long legs’ were mentioned, 

and almost lost it when ‘wood’ was tangled up in the same sentence.

We nodded our approval at Flagstone’s “Noon Gun” affectionately known as ‘Mom’s plonk’ a wine that can be respectably opened at noon when the gun goes off at Signal Hill. We finished off our tasting with Flagstone’s“The Last Word”, a port style wine, with the fruitiness and spiciness of Shiraz with 18.5% alcohol content that finishes dry but has the sweetness (so I am told).

In between we indulged in Rietvallei’s leggy Chardonnay, with citrus, grapefruit and pineapple lingering on the tongue. The Cabernet Sauvignon offers a sweetish edge with cigar box flavours.

In the midst of swilling the Flagstone Poetry Merlot with its yummy red berries, the Blevin’s over-sized dog decided to do some rather orgasmic yoga on the Persian carpet. With sufficient wine inside us, giggles prevailed.

The Flagstone Dark Horse Shiraz was a beautiful easy to drink wine. 2009,  we hear on good authority, was the best red wine vintage South Africa has had for 30 years.

We were all getting along fabulously until our bachelor/ retailer/ soon-to-be-nephew piped up with “I like being here, I am the youngest!” 

That was quite unnecessary.

So, another sun sets on Wino Wisdom. No notes were taken (except mine) and it is my duty to share with you what may or may not have been learnt tonight.

Sleep tight Mkuze.

Other blogs by Lois Kuhle:

SMOKE RINGS IN CUBA. A TWO WEEK JOURNEY FILLED WITH SALSA, SUNSHINE AND SILLY PEOPLE: http://smokeringsincuba.blogspot.com/2013/10/smoke-rings-in-cuba-journey-filled-with.html

'LIFE'S COOL'. MY NEAREST AND DEAREST BECAME THOSE THAT GRUNTED, BARKED OR BIT. http://milimanilifescool.blogspot.com/2013/12/i-n-2002-i-was-lucky-enough-to-be-given.html

COOL THOUGHTS – LIFE IN THE SLOW LANE: http://loiscoolthoughts.tumblr.com/

FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/loiskuhlescribbler

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/loiskuhle

CAPTURING THE MAJESTIC HORSE

Perched high up on the Pakamisa Mountain Range in northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, is the exclusive lodge of the Pakamisa Private Game Reserve. Nestled below, in the low lands, are the Pakamisa stables, home to a collection of magnificent Arabian Horses all superbly trained by the owner, Isabella Stepski. There can be fewer greater thrills than exploring the wild African Bush on horseback.

It was here that artist Graham Kearney developed his unbridled love for Arabian horses. Graham is one of South Africa’s up and coming wildlife artists, and thanks to Isabella’s passion for horses, her enthusiasm rubbed off on to Graham, launching him into a new dimension where he has managed to capture the true spirit of the horse into his art.

Isabella initially commissioned a painting of 5 cats occurring in the wild at Pakamisa. As Graham had shown an interest in the horses, being a horseman himself, she encouraged him to photograph her favourite horse, Baron. The painting is, as she describes, ‘Outstanding!’

Baron was just the beginning, and Graham has not looked back. He loves every minute he spends photographing, interacting and painting these amazing and truly spiritual animals. He firmly believes this is his true calling in the art world.

Recently he has completed commissions for notable horse breeders, including ‘Sandford’ from the Alzu Stud, a champion show jumper, who is a gentle soul; ‘Mullins Bay’, a proud stallion, from the reputable Summerhill Stud; ‘Joepie’ a sport horse stud from Ruach Pinto and ‘Lissabon’, with his inner strength and unwavering presence from Callaho.

One can only dream of painting like Graham with his formidable talent. 

Website:

Pakamisa Private Game Reserve: www.pakamisa.co.za

Graham Kearney: www.grahamkearney.com

Or find them on facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/PakamisaGameReserve

https://www.facebook.com/graham.kearney

By reason of his elegance, he resembles an image painted in a palace,

though he is as majestic as the palace itself.

- Emir Abd-el-Kader

Other blogs by Lois Kuhle:

SMOKE RINGS IN CUBA. A TWO WEEK JOURNEY FILLED WITH SALSA, SUNSHINE AND SILLY PEOPLE: http://smokeringsincuba.blogspot.com/2013/10/smoke-rings-in-cuba-journey-filled-with.html

'LIFE'S COOL'. MY NEAREST AND DEAREST BECAME THOSE THAT GRUNTED, BARKED OR BIT. http://milimanilifescool.blogspot.com/2013/12/i-n-2002-i-was-lucky-enough-to-be-given.html

COOL THOUGHTS – LIFE IN THE SLOW LANE: http://loiscoolthoughts.tumblr.com/

FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/loiskuhlescribbler

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/loiskuhle

The Cinderella Chronicles

Her prince will need to find 8 glass slippers. 

Right now she has to settle for ‘hoppers and crickets.

Today she is hanging like old washing on her golden web, pissed off, no doubt, with the incessant rain. Her entourage of two sneaky ‘husbands’ hang equally miserably. At first I thought she was dead, dangling there limply. I tossed a sacrificial cricket into her web. That woke her up smartly.

Cinderella is a golden orb spider. A couple of months ago she settled in the vegetable garden, a swimming pool conversion. 

Thanks to the ghastly quality of water in the Zululand bush veld the pool became a maintenance nightmare; progressed into a mossie breeding project, and is now a productive organic veggie garden. 

I consider her my secret weapon; Lindiwe calls her ‘Security’ for paying her way by keeping the ‘hopper population down.

She has quadrupled in size in two months, and grown into a formidable young lady. She is very beautiful. (Quite something coming from someone who suffers from arachnophobia).

We have become totally obsessive about her. Scouring the veggie garden for ‘hoppers, making sure she eats properly. Her every move is photographed. 

Silly really. 

Rob caught a large locust for her on his sugarcane farm 20 kms away. Clutching his unwilling passenger all the way home, he hurled it into her web. It went straight through. One locust free again. Probably eating my veggies as I type.

In fact I do believe that she has become lazy. Food comes to her too easily. Her web has become untidy and she needs to do some serious housekeeping. 

Her two fellas are so light footed she doesn’t even know they are there. Apparently they keep her distracted with food in order to mate. (Which we are providing. They can thank us.) She is unaware of her irresistible sexuality and has no idea that she is about to produce a sack full of screaming baby orbs, who will eat each other anyway.

It does worry me that she has moved out of the veggie garden onto the veranda, and she is getting bigger by the day. Her fellas show continuous interest in her, which means soon there will be more of them.

And I still suffer from arachnophobia. 

Perhaps it’s time to get a puppy.

Other blogs by Lois Kuhle:

SMOKE RINGS IN CUBA. A TWO WEEK JOURNEY FILLED WITH SALSA, SUNSHINE AND SILLY PEOPLE: http://smokeringsincuba.blogspot.com/2013/10/smoke-rings-in-cuba-journey-filled-with.html

'LIFE'S COOL'. MY NEAREST AND DEAREST BECAME THOSE THAT GRUNTED, BARKED OR BIT. http://milimanilifescool.blogspot.com/2013/12/i-n-2002-i-was-lucky-enough-to-be-given.html

COOL THOUGHTS – LIFE IN THE SLOW LANE: http://loiscoolthoughts.tumblr.com/

FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/loiskuhlescribbler

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/loiskuhle