Dinner @ Le Quartier Francais 3/19/09 W/ MORESON'S Hannes Meyer, Clayton Reabow and Richard Friedman

This is rated one of South Africa's Top 10 Restaurants and I have to say it was a magical evening for John Morrison and me in the heart of Franschhoek! I spoke French to all the waiters and waitresses to see if any of them would respond or recognize what I had said? I got lots of smiles back and an occasional giggle but no French, none at all and I have to say that did disappoint me. Oh well, the food was superb, so was the service : so many attentive people there close by and ready to assist in any way.

I also loved the open, airy, spacious and yet comfortable, intimate look to the place. I loved the play on silverware in all the paintings and artwork, too. The images were blurred and represented in odd or certain angles that made you think at what you were looking? Was it forks and knives and spoons? Was it something else? I liked the playful, creative and interesting colors or lack of being used.

I'm an artist and I notice that type of thing, perhaps more than I should : but I am fascinated by what people in their homes and in their businesses put on the walls. I will often stop and really focus my attention on these works for minutes at a time. I did this evening.

I was hungry and in need of red beef and I ordered some here : the rib eye steak. It was excellent but I would have ordered something more inventive or typical to Franschhoek if I had stopped to realize where I was.

As it was I was feeling very special and pampered and I wanted to give back something for all of this. My answer : was to draw quick sketches of everyone there and that's exactly what I did! I started with the MORESON three men gathered around the table with John Morrison and me.

As we arrived I met the sister of the owner of MORESON : she owns this restaurant. I also met her manager of Le Quartier Francais. The owner did not join us I am sorry to say. It would have been nice to have gotten to know her some as I am sure she is quite interesting. The manager did stop by and I quickly sketched her and gave it to her.

I was asked to also draw one of the waitresses and I did, asking her to sit down for just a brief moment. All my sketches I did as people talked and moved and enjoyed themselves and so they were more to capture the moment and the idea of these people. It was fun and absorbed me as I ate my excellent rib eye and before that mussels.

Because I was drawing I did not take as many pictures. These show our wine-tasting before at MORESON and then later at the restaurant. I hope you like them. Unfortunately my camera was playing tricks on me at the time and I was without my knowledge still taking pictures with a red/pink/silver tint to them. Sorry. They do still capture the moment and the event.

Cheers, and thanks everyone. TONY

MORESON Vineyards, Happy Valley, S. A. With Hannes Meyer(Winery Manager ), Clayton Reabow ( Winemaker ) & Richard Friedman Thursday, Mar. 19th, 2009

The morning sun , that's what the word Moreson means and John Morrison and I arrived there at least once in the morning ( our second day ). Wow! This was something else, really : the whole experience from start to finish which included many parts from saying " hello " to many of the cheerful, energetic, youthful and bright, professional staff in their office. Their smiles say it all. Look at their smiles, especially the lovely brunette seated at her desk by the door working at the computer. What's her name? I feel bad now that I cannot recall it, cannot recall the name of many of the people that I encountered on this wonderful trip. It's a good thing that there are business cards and that I have some of them as well as Theresa Morrison's " Winelands " book which I had many of them sign copies of ( one for John & Theresa Morrison, owners of Boutique Imports and my hosts for this trip , and one copy for me ) signed.

I will have to check later the book which I have now at work at Cleveland Park Wines & Spirits ( 3423 Connecticut Avenue N.W. Washington D.C. 20008 Tel : 202-363-4265 sales@clevelandparkwine.com www.clevelandparkwine.com ) where I manage the wine department with Mike Martin. Some are signed in English and some in Africans. I will add some of them here as I have time.

It's a complicated task this one of mine of recording and telling in prose, stories, anecdotes, phrases and many pictures this amazing first-time visit of mine to Africa ( South Africa in this case ). I can't wait to download the video clips that I took with sound. That will be special, too. For the time-being these pictures will have to satisfy you. I am sorry that so many of them are tinted in hues of reds and pinks and grays. My " new " camera was playing tricks on me and I did not even know it at the time. The pictures are meant as a caring record from me of all the wonderful people, places, etcetera that I visited in this short-stunning week with John Morrison which has now added immeasurably to me, my life and my wealth of intangible, without-price experiences.

I arrived with John and we were greeted by a nice gift shop, restaurant and garden all there close together and next to the winery, cellars and offices off back and to the left. We had to find our way through the restaurant of happy diners and saw the lion fountain and the other Bacchus/cherubs' fountain, stream amid many colorful flowers as we wound our way over to the offices where Hannes, Clayton and the lovely brunette all awaited us. I just missed meeting the owner as he had to fly to Johannesburg that morning I believe.

Hannes Meyer, the vineyard and cellar master lead us around at first and showed us the MORESON bubbly being corked properly with corks and not the bottle caps. I've taken pictures of that and included them here. We got to see it all as it was occurring and to try some of the bubbly there, on the spot with Hannes. I loved the Cape brut and loved it's brightness and head and crispness of softer palate of flavors with great citrus accents, too.

Next winemaker Clayton Reabow joined us and took us through a series of tastings from the stainless steel tanks where the whites and the reds were still fermenting - one day, two days, one week, two weeks : and then we tried from the barrels and enjoyed the full bevy of wines from Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blancs, Chenin Blancs, Merlots, Malbec ( yes, a Malbec, the second one they have made! ), Cabernet, Petit Verdot ( I love these Petit Verdots and believe that South Africa should start bottling them and not blending them - they will add something nice to our whole world of wine experiences in my humble opinion ), Shiraz ... am I forgetting anything? I probably am.

This visit was very visual for me. I am an artist and I like to share and record memories in an artistic fashion. I feel strongly that more of these wine moments should be recorded and shared to add to the mountains of technical reports, scores, reviews and points that we mostly have at our disposal. I want to get behind the wine to discover about it's people and who makes and pays for it and what their personal involvement/commitment and purpose is. What motivates them, why do they do all of this?

Both Hannes and Clayton are very young and completely devoted to their jobs. They both gave us excellent tours. I also photographed a young lady, a brunette that was working I believe analyzing and recording the various states of development of these wines as she went from stainless steel to another and back to her desk in the cellars.

Later we met an older black man that had been at MORESON LONGER and made some of the older ones. Here in their tasting room we tried one of this gentleman's wines and I really enjoyed it for it's development and maturity, complexity, depths from highs and lows to solid middle range flavors, too as well as it's classic style that was clearly made to be drunk with a meal and not replace the meal entirely as so many more modern-style wines seem to be designed to do. He didn't take any short cuts with this wine and it showed gloriously in the tasting room this Thursday, March 19th, 2009. Thanks guys and gals, you made this an especially wonderful, enriching tour and tasting at MORESON for me.

Later we caught up with these three gentlemen at the famous restaurant in Franschhoek ( supposed to be one of the Top 10 in all of South Africa ) for dinner called Le Quartier Francais. I had a blast with my cameras and my sketch pad as I sat there at the table and proceeded to draw sketches of these three men, the manager of the restaurant and one of the waitresses. I was in artistic heaven as well as heaven on earth with great wine from MORESON, great food from Le Quartier Francais and great company. The owner ( the sister of the owner of MORESON ) we met as we entered the restaurant. That was nice. We saw her again the next morning at MORESON as she showed up there ( we were in the shop ) and head chef ( another one of the TOP 10 restaurants in South Africa ) Neal Jewel showed us and tasted us on a broad range of the meats that he had cured and sells there. That was when we saw the morning sun at MORESON. I will have a separate entry about this shortly.

I spoke French the whole time with the waiters and waitresses hoping that someone would respond with one or two words even in French. No such luck. They did respond with smiles, giggles and big, broad beaming smiles. I loved that! The service was fantastic and very attentive and the food was excellent, too.

I had only one beef with myself here : I ordered a rob eye steak. Up until this moment I had been ordering quite a bit of the indigenous foods only found in South Africa from Springbok and Ostrich, Hake and Kabeliou and more ) and felt like some red meat after all this wine I had been enjoying on this trip this far. I would have ordered something more adventuresome if I had realized at the moment where I was. Oh well, the rib eye steak was delicious and I did enjoy it with all the reds we were tasting from MORESON this evening.

Thank you all for such a wonderful meal. You all signed my book and the menu I asked for. I appreciate that, really I do.

I stated years ago selling the MORESON wines and bubblies at Cleveland Park Wines & Spirits. It all began one eventful day with my family and John & Theresa Morrison ( Theresa's daughter, too ) on a boat ride off Annapolis, Maryland with guest Anton Beukes, then of MORESON. We later did in-store wine-tastings and a dinner with Anton at Ardeo restaurant down the street from the store.

We sell a whole lot of the PINE CREST wines because they are less-expensive as well as lots of the Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, bubbly and the Pinotage and the Merlot. It's great to have them ready-at-hand now that I am back to sell lots more. We have a great special on the 1999 Merlot now MORESON ON SALE for $19.99 a bottle and it is drinking superbly. Everyone that tries it loves it and returns for more.

For any questions you might want answered please call Mike Martin or me ( Anthony - TONY - Quinn ) at 202-363-4265. For any information about MORESON go to : MORESON Happy Valley Road , Franschhoek, Tel : +27(0)21 876 3055 www.moreson.co.za.

I am sure that I have forgotten a million things I want and intend to say but I must post this now ( Sunday, April 5th, 2009 here from home in northern Virginia at 3 PM ) and add them later. Cheers to one and to all and may all your mornings' be filled with sunshine as I truly believe they are at MORESON in the Happy Valley! TONY

















The full tour and tasting once again. I loved it. Got to see the sparkling wines being bottled, taste wines still fermenting, from stainless steel, from barrels, from bottles, later in the tasting room, too! TONY

Hannes Meyer shows John Morrison and me the grounds and the Cuvee Cape being corked here.

Hannes gave me a cork which I brought home with me. It's upstairs with my other " collectibles " in a dish on the dining room table. Hannes translated Africans to English and I understood you perfectly Hannes. I did have to listen carefully at times but I heard it all and understood it all. Thanks.

I love these artsy photos that I take of reflections in the glass as well as how the wine glass fractures the light and makes the images on them smaller, broader? THey also show the cloudiness of the white, fermenting wine here - a Chenin Blanc was it? I'll ask John. He recorde notes while I snapped pictures quickly as I framed them, Exhausting work but so rewarding.

I love the reflection of Clayton here in the stainless steel tank, though I am sorry everything came out in hues of reds and pinks.

Nice to see these detailed notes on the 2009 dry rose , still fermenting that we tasted here.

I love the reflections of the buildings and sky around us here in the glass as well as our shadows here on the pavement before we four walk into the winery. Lots going on, many fractured realities living peacefully side-by-side.
It was a treat to try the Magia here from the barrel just to the right of Clayton's right hand.

I love the white t-shirt that both Hannes and Clayton wore at different times here with the image of the shining sun and the big " M " for MORESON. I have one that I brought home with me and gave to my son.

I twas great to try all the bubblies here with the dry rose and the Cuvee Cape, the Premium Chardonnay, the contrast of the 1996 with the 2006 Cabernet Sauvignons : both great in their own ways : both still very much alive and enjoyable.

It was also great to try the Magia 2003 here in the bottle. We enjoyed them later at dinner.

Funny, here I have the afternoon setting sun pictured and not the morning sun. I like it, too.

These last two pictures here are from DIEU DONNE winery and I loaded them on by accident ; woops!

A le solei du matin, j'espere que c'est toujours avec vous ... a la prochaine ... TONY

Some South Africa Sneak Preview Pictures ( Camberley, Beaumont, Moreson, Blaauwklippen, ) 2009 With John Morrison

I'm just back from my wonderful trip to South Africa last week with importer John Morrison ( Boutique Vineyards ) and I'm still a bit jet-lagged and have lots to do to catch up from a week away from work.

Yesterday morning I started to download some pictures ( Tuesday, March 24th, 2009 ) before heading off to work and it was great to see a very few of them and remember just how glorious my trip was as well as what a beautiful landscape I was in, really delicious fresh foods ( seafood and game and fresh vegetables ) and wines that are just getting better and better and better.

I had nothing really negative to say about the wines on this trip : even the wines served to me on South African Airways were delicious, especially the Stonecross 2007 Pinotage which I liked a lot but John Morrison did not.

John Morrison was an excellent tour guide for me. He's from South Africa, clearly knows it very well and is both proud of all it's accomplishments as well as natural beauty and resources. He gave it 150% this trip with me and for that I will always be very grateful. Thanks John.

I hardly have put any pictures here to tease you with : I filled up all four memory cards that I took and that includes some very fun, close-up video clips of the winemakers and owners as they spoke passionately about their wines.

Here I have pictures of the drive in the wine country as well as along the coast on Saturday morning as we headed back to Cape Town after a week of tasting wines starting in the morning and not stopping until we collapsed on our beds after dinner.

The pictures here of the wineries include BLAAUWKLIPPEN, CAMBERLEY, MORESON and BEAUMONT. These are just some of the ones that I had on one memory card. Prepare yourselves for a whole lot more!

At BLAAUWKLIPPEN are pictured winemaker Rolf Zeitvogel ( rolf@blaauwklippen.com , Tel: +27 ( 0 ) 21 880 01 33 - also his blond-haired, smiling assistant who's name escapes me now ! ), Carolyn Carswell ( Asst Sales & Marketing Manager, carolync@blaauwklippen.com P.O.Box 54 , Stellenbosch , 7599 ) and Delia Colborne ( Sales & Marketing Manager, Stellenbosch delia@blaauwklippen.com - Delia came last year to our store at Cleveland Park Wines and Spirits, 3423 Conn. Ave. N.W. Washington D.C. 20008 Tel : 202-363-4265, sales@clevelandparkwine.com www.clevelandparkwine.com ) to do an in-store tasting with Theresa Morrison ), owner Ian and Anette Corder of ELGIN VALLEY Vineyards ( info@elginvalleyvineyards.co.za Tel?Fax 27 21 846 8083 ) and two of their four dogs. They have two lovely children as well and each has a favorite dog, all different!















































At MORESON I have only included here the pictures of the chef of the restaurant there ( one of South Africa's Top 10 ) Neal Jewel. Neal was nice enough to the next morning ( Friday ) give us a tour and tasting of all his cured meats that he makes himself. Neal is British and this was a grand treat and surprise for both John and myself. I've got great pictures, too of winemaker Clayton Reabow ( of MORESON, +27 ( 0 ) 21 876 3055 www.moreson.co.za ) which I will have to include later with many others.

























I have also included some of BEAUMONT Vineyard where on Friday evening John Morrison and I stomped the grapes that they use to make their small batch of delicious port-style wine that we have enjoyed selling now along with all the rest of their wines for years. Pictured with John Morrison is Ariane the sister of winemaker Sebastian and daughter of Jayne. I will have to include all their other pictures later as time permots. Oh, Sebastian's assistant winemaker is included here lighting the candles in the room where we were shortly to stomp those grapes that were three feet high in the vat? Is that possible? It sure felt like it : quite a weird, odd sensation - my first ever. I am thrilled to have had this opportunity and I was called later by Sebastian as the Best Grape Stomper after all was done and we were enjoying our meal outside the winery on a beautiful but chilly night.

I have also included pictures of me hosed down after the grape stomping, looking like a dishevelled mess, smiling and content. I even included one of myself after I removed my white t-shirt, khaki light pants. Even my underwear was soaked in red grapes. It took Val at least three minutes to clear all the grapes clinging to me and my clothes once I finally got out of the vat after two hours or more of stomping, stomping, stomping and splashing and thumping my feet hard some more. I drank the BEAUMONT dry Two Rivers' rose after all of this. I could not drink the port-style red. I am pictured holding it later in my room after I finally left to really shower and get cleaned up and ready to collapse on my welcome bed.






I laso have pictures of the town of Franschhoek on the main thoroughfare here as well as of the B & B where we slept just two minutes away from MORESON. You can see that our rooms were called L'Aragne : Spider in French. I loved that and had to take an artsy picture of that as you can see.

I have these few pictures here of owners Johhny Nel and his wife Gael of CAMBERLEY ( 3/18/09 ( Tel : 021 885 1176, Helshoogte Pass , R3 10 ). You can see the traditional labels in blue and gold as well as the brand new one called " Prohibition ". Pictured with Johhny and his wife is one of their assistants Jeanine Faure. Lasse Lykkested of Denmark was also working there studying marketting I believe. I'll include a picture of him later.

I also have these incredible pictures of some wild baboons that I missed but John spotted. He quickly and dangerously stopped the car on the side of a winding, steep hillside and I jumped out to immediately snap as many pictures as possible. You have to look carefully because they really do belnd into the rocks.

I've also included pictures of the many views I enjoyed on our drive back to Capetown from BEAUMONT ( Hawk's Bay area, on the northern tip ) . The views just kept coming and changing and dazzling me so much that I could not resist snapping picture after picture after picture. I have only included some here.







The beauty of this visit is that it corresponded with part of the harvest and wine-making and so John and I were able to see the grapes arrive, be de-stemmed and crushed, taste wines still fermenting and only a day or two old, two weeks old, just in the barrels, still in stainless steel, already in the bottle - and even enjoy some of them later with the owners and winemakers in the wineries' restaurants if the had them - like at BLAAUWKLIPPEN. Impressive, all of it, really.




















I also have a few pictures here down on the Cape Town waterfront sitting in the famous pub there called Ferrymans where I enjoyed a local lager made next door at Mitchell's called " Forresters ". I asked my waitress Michele about the menu and decided to try the fish and chips because it was made with their local fish called Hake and I wanted to try it. I was worried that it would be too breaded and that I would not be able to taste anything but the crust. Boy was I wrong : it was moist and tender and firm and delicious. You can see for yourselves.

I was sitting under an umbrella on a round small table and stool. It was really hot this Saturday afternoon! Everyone was out and strolling around. I had a great view of everyone passing by and as I wrote I'd glance up and enjoy the many people as they went on their merry ways.

I was sitting across from the famous wine store that I had already been earlier that week called Vaughan Johnson's that specializes of course in South African wines. It's the mustard yello-colored builing in the photos.

Lastly, this Saturday afternoon I was exhausted and able to do some shopping for my family. The last picture here is of the young artist Laston Souhikonye from South Africa that cut andmade from tin cans animals in the shapes of lizards, frogs and other Africasn animals. They were colorful, playful and I bought two as gifts. My wife and son love them.

I also bought things from Melanie Adler of Siyakatala ( hand-crafted artwork from South Africa Tel : 083 774 8269 info@siyakatala.co.za www.siyakatala.co.za ). Both Melanie and Laston are located in the V & A Waterfront Art & Craft Market in the " Blue Shed " pavilion just by the Cape Town Aquarium. John Morrison told me that his wife Theresa helped get the funding to build the aquarium : go work Theresa!

Oh, I also bought a beautiful shell there for my mother from Lynne Nadauld ( lynnen@telkomas.net ). Her stall is named She Shell. Nice. While there I met one of her local artists that she buys from and we all chatted for awhile. I mention all these names because I found them very helpful and willing to work with me and my needs : something I value very much in salesmanship.



































This was a trip as much to taste the wines as it was to completely submerge myself in South Africa and the complete experience. I had a blast. I took as many pictures as I humanly could, composing picture after picture as I looked and tasted and listened. I had very little time to write things down so the pictures will have to do a lot of the talking for me. Hopefully as I llok at them they will jog my memory and help me as I try and fill in many of the details.

I hope you have enjoyed here a very few of the highlights from my recent South African trip March 14th-22nd, 2009 with John Morrison.

Cheers, TONY