Rising Syrah star on Vivat Bacchus list
South Africa twice in a month - I told you it was all happening there. Well, now it's happening here, too, as Vivat Bacchus opens its doors. The new restaurant and bar near London's Smithfield has 300 South African wines on its list, many of them showing for the first time in the UK. The question on every sommelier's lips (if last year's London International Wine & Spirits Fair is anything to go by) - does it list Boekenhoutskloof Syrah? And the answer is, yes, it does.
Owned by Neleen Strauss and partners, this is their second restaurant venture. The first is called Browns (no relation), in Rivonia, near Johannesburg, which is also well known for its gem-packed wine list - all 400,000 bottles of them at the last count. It was there they developed long-standing relationships with some of the country's top producers. Who exactly? The likes of Veenwouden, de Trafford and Meinert, plus wines from Hamilton Russell, Brampton and Paul Cluver.
And just to make things a little more exciting, the wines are all on show behind a glass wall in the restaurant, with all the usual cellar temperature requirements. In fact, staff actively encourage diners to bypass the rather short list offered at the table and have a nose around the cellars before picking their wine straight off the racks, to accompany lunch or dinner.
For those who really get interested, Vivat Bacchus offers special wine evenings. Paul Cluver was due for a visit; and Anthony Hamilton Russell soon after that.
Another point worth mentioning is that mark-ups are modest here, so getting your hands on some of these wines isn't as painful as you might think.
The food? Let's call it Pan-European: celeriac and apple soup with smoked bacon dumplings; wild mushroom risotto with Parmesan and chives; roast cod wrapped in proscuitto and rosemary with balsamic roasted cherry tomatoes. The chef is South African, too - ex-Launceston Place's Robert Staegeman.
Most frequently requested boutique wine? "Meerlust Rubicon," replies Tea Roos, who also looks after the temperature- and humidity-controlled cheese room, also visible from the basement dining room.
So just how did they get hold of so much Boekenhoutskloof? "We bought 3,000 bottles five years ago, but it's taken us this long to set up the restaurant," Roos explains.
And in case you're wondering what the name refers to, Vivat Bacchus is one of Veenwouden's best-selling wines - also available to drink in the restaurant.
shorts
Organic Chile
Chilean winery La Fortuna introduces a range of organic wines through distributor Darlington Wines (020 8453 0202). There are five wines to choose from, including all the usual suspects from Cabernet to Chardonnay. All the wines are made at the winery in the Central Valley just outside Lontue, some 200km south of Santiago. About a quarter of the 250-hectare vineyards is under organic management, with the rest coming on line by 2005.
California roll
According to new AC Nielsen figures, the USA, which is 95% California, overtook Italy in both value and volume in the UK wine off-trade in 2003. The figures show the Golden State growing by 23% by volume and 20% by value, and achieving the number-three position behind Oz and France. Way to go.
That's the spirit
The Wine & Spirit Education Trust (020 7236 3551) has kicked off the New Year with the Level 2 Professional Certificate in Spirits firmly in place, following a pilot course in London last November. The course is intended to "provide a basic level of product knowledge of the spirits and liqueur world, to underpin job skills and competencies". Those who pass can expect to chat a bit more confidently about all the major brands. The first WSET course starts on 17 February, running every Tuesday evening for seven weeks, and costs £269. Fees include study material, ISO tasting glasses, samples, tuition and exam. Bargain.
Rare malt
And while we're on the subject, the so-called birthplace of Scotch whisky, Lindores (01862 871651) in Fife, is home to new release Lindores Abbey 30 Year Old Pure Malt, a snip at £150 a bottle. But hurry, there's only 500 bottles of the stuff. Why is Lindores the birthplace of whisky? The earliest recording of Scotland's national drink appears in the Exchequer Rolls in 1494, which states that Friar John Cor, a Tironensian monk of Lindores Abbey, paid duty on "8 bolls of malt in order to make Aqua Vitae for King James VI". Medicinal purposes, eh?
Free Rum book
McKinley Vintners (020 7928 7300) is offering new Classic Rum customers buying a six-bottle case (duty paid or under bond) of aged rums from the Classic Rum Collection a copy of Rum, by Dave Broom (Caterer, 22 January, page 54) while stocks last.
