Curly, you look so pensive in these two first pictures. What are you thinking about ?
Fun pictures of Curly , John & our wine-tasting, continued into the bowels of the tasting/barrel room! Nice.Some fun, artsy photos for you all to enjoy and marvel at here at HILLCREST, Durbanville, South Africa. What an amazing treat for me here in Curly's office ans surrounded by barrels and cases of wine and wine in our glasses!
I was having trouble with my camera here as you can see I got it onto a setting that gave me shades of pinks, reds and grays : rather eerie and other-worldly ...
And yet I really like what these hues of specific colors do in fact bring to these images of Curly and John Morrison who are friends now for a very long time.
As much as I enjoyed being here in Curly's office/ wine room/cellar with all his binders and business.cellar info I enjoyed even more our dinner later that evening in Cape Town. This set the ground work and I loved trying here just the three of us Curly's excellent Petit Verdot. I loved it, really I did! I kept telling him that he should bottle some of those barrels there as Petit Verdot and not simply blend them with his other reds such as the Merlot that John and Theresa Morrison would be getting later in the year.
They have it now and I still have not tried it. It is Monday, December 7th, 2009 at 10:26 PM here at home in northern Virginia. I should have already posted this a long time ago as I have been back from South Africa now many months and many moons gone by.
It sure was a great time and besides discovering the excellent Petit Verdot of Curly's I also heard a lot of fun vignettes of the times that Curly and John had spent together. I also learned all about Curly's other ventures with crustaceans and non-related wine interests and expertise.
Curly is completely invested in HILLCREST Winery just outside of Cape Town. Without Curly and his enthusiasm and commitment there would not be any wine. It would all be sold off to other wineries so that they could use it in their own blends.
The Sauvignon Blanc has got some real weight , depth and personality. I like it and think that it makes an excellent food wine as it has some edge, some intense mineral and citrus fruit flavors that need a bit of taming and grounding from the food to disperse , dissipate and properly distribute it's flavors so that they shine together in a fine marriage with the food.
I am looking forward to trying Curly's Merlot now and I will mention this to Theresa when we talk this week. I'd like to have some at the store this December before the end of the year. I want to taste it so that I know what I am selling : the style and the weight, levels of acids and tannins and the openness of the fruit now? How drinkable is it now and does it need to age more and what foods will enhance it's flavors and support them now so that it may be enjoyed this holiday season? These are all important things for me to know if I am going to sell it well and successfully.
Stay-tuned for more updates. Cheers Curly and John : thanks for the great times together, TONY
I love these photos of Curly pulling the Merlot and the Petit Verdot from the barrels. How about some more now Curly? I could use a glass about now.
Wouldn't it be great to own one of these very barrels filled with the Petit Verdot? I think so. What about it Curly? What do you say? Want to ship me one of John and Theresa's next order? I'm all for that ...
I also love the picture with Curly pouring the wine from his glass to mine with both his hands in the picture and the barrel, too.
It's also nice to see his hand with the glass and the red wine and his watch to let us know what time it was then.
The close-up of Curly's hand and watch is nice here.
I love this picture with both our hands in it as I hold my glass by his wrinkled hand as with the other he puts the cork back into the bung hole of the red wine barrel.
Folders and office info above all neatly identified in block print/handwriting and below and award ... nice touches : human touches. All part of the process of making wine.
I'm calling you John and Theresa tomorrow morning to check-in on the progress of Curly's Merlot as I am now more curious than ever to try it, perhaps here at home with a meal? I think that that would be the perfect scenario for me. Maybe even this week if I do not forget to call tomorrow and make my request for a bottle to take home and enjoy with my wife by this weekend at the latest...
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