High summer in the Boland

Due to general holiday season busyness, I have neglected my little blog shamefully! And here we are in 2012 already halfway through January. It's perishing hot in these parts right now, typical Boland high summer weather, but very necessary for the ripening and harvesting of fruit, especially GRAPES! Oftimes we have to endure the south-easter (prevailing summer wind) but once again we don't complain, as it is air-conditioning for - you guessed - grapes! In any event the village is a little sheltered, being in the lee of a hill - think the voorvaders sited the town well.  Neither the heat nor the wind last long, generally there is a temperature inversion at night and it is such a relief when that fist of heat relaxes and opens to a cooling breeze off the West Coast.

I must say I love this season of being able to live in a bathing costume and sarong. Sometimes the magnificent cupola of mountains that surround our village look like dreams of themselves, shimmering like a mirage in the heat haze. I also like floating in the pool at night, gazing up at the grand gesture of the Milky Way in the heavens - the night sky is splendid here because there is little light pollution.When the moon is full I love being able to see the silent ring of mountains standing sentinel beyond the lights of the village, and to listen to the cicadas sing the song of the night. I also like to water the garden late at night and walk barefoot on the spongy wet lawn starred with droplets reflecting a myriad of tiny moons...

Scary stuff...

Latterly we've had some distressing veld fires - being a winter rainfall area it is tinder dry at this time of the year and a little spark can go a long way. Recently almost the whole Obiqua range of mountains including the forestry reserves went up, fanned by the wind along their length, and we had a week of choking in smoke with soot raining down. However, every disaster contains the seeds of its redemption - one being the amazing way the community rallies to help affected individuals and the tremendous effort that went into feeding and generally supporting the firefighters.When the season turns those blackened mountains will be greener than green, the fynbos fertilised by the ash.

Wedding Venue Walkabout

Fellow accommodation suppliers and others were privileged to go on a tour of Tulbagh's wedding venues this week.  What a wonderful day we had, and it made us even more appreciative of the beautiful valley we live in.  Every single venue is unique and always those glorious mountain views which offer such spectacular photographic opportunities... All six are situated on working wine or fruit farms with the special ambiance that brings, either with chapels attached or gorgeous garden gazebos.  Brides can also choose to hold the ceremony in the quaint museum church in the village - fourth oldest in the country and the only one in its original condition.  From ultra-modern Morgansvlei to historic Montpellier (with its charming chapel in the vineyards); secluded Roodezant and verdant Mont Rouge, Rijk's boutique country hotel with its signature iceberg roses and stylish Manley's, every taste is catered to - AND at very reasonable prices. Not only are facilities affordable, but happy couples can source every need for a successful wedding right here in Tulbagh with local suppliers - from gifted photographers, florists, hairdressers and make-up artists to fabulous food (and wines, of course!) not to mention comfortable and affordable accommodation for themselves and their guests...
Here are some websites - do yourselves a favour and have a gander!
www.capecountryweddings.co.za
www.manleywinelodge.co.za
www.montpellier.co.za
www.morgansvlei.com
www.rijkscountryhouse.co.za

The joys of country living...

Isn't it wonderful to know where your veggies come from, and also that they are totally organic? Recently I was blessed with bushels of spinach, now blanched and happily residing in the freezer to feature in future scrumptiousnesses. Soon I will be laying in crates of locally grown sun-ripened tomatoes. I skin and render them down for freezing in recycled margarine bakkies, enough to see us through next winter for all those delicious soups, bredies and pasta sauces...

Although olive trees only bear properly every second year, I had a record crop off two of my five trees in the garden which I have just bottled (making over 40 jars!). For the uninitiated it is a labour of love to leach the bitterness out of them (now we know why the most prolific genus is called Mission!). I preserve mine with fresh spring shoots of rosemary also from my garden, and the jars are recycled, naturally.
Whilst on that topic we are so thankful that a wonderful recycling initiative has come to Tulbagh - now we can safely dispose of cans, glass, paper and plastic, knowing that not only are we doing the right thing but that it is providing work for the disabled in our community as well as funding tokens to feed hungry children...

All the pretty horses (and flowers)

It's springtime in our lovely valley and blooming into summer - the best of the flower season is already over. The arums have been particularly prolific this year - obviously they liked the early winter rain. Here is a pic of the flower hall taken at the annual Spring Show demonstrating the point, and the proteas were also rather fine! The hall is prepared by enthusiastic volunteers, working with farmers and Cape Nature Conservation, who carefully select a cross-section of wildflowers for display in as natural an environment as possible.
At this time of year the valley is still gloriously green, although already the wheat is starting to ripen presaging harvest time.  Driving anywhere in the Boland one is treated to drifts of flowers along the roadsides and sometimes the glory of golden canola in between the ubiquitous wheat and fields dotted with sheep. I am pleased to tell you the vines are sprouting too! Hats off to our enterprising farmers who not only victual the nation but give us something special to wash it down with!

Apart from flowers and showcasing agricultural prowess, the Tulbagh Spring Show is actually an equestrian event of note - this year featuring the SA Championships. Ah those gorgeous prancing horses, gleaming and rippling with muscle, with their well groomed tails streaming behind them like smoke... what a joy to behold!
At the end of October Tulbagh will also host the 2011 Witzenberg Summer Show featuring amongst other delights (such as the Cape Coons) the pony championships and hackney horse show.
Chez Nous has only two cottages still available for this event!

Heritage Day

Along with many other folk in sunny SA we celebrated with a traditional braai. It was a balmy spring day in Tullieland, the sun gently warm with a slight breeze. While I was fraternising with my friends at Fraaigelegen, my guests were happily braaiing in our back garden and my boys doing likewise with their pals! There is something about the scent of woodsmoke and marinade charring on the coals which is deeply atavistic - and very familiar, as it wafts around Tulbagh at least every Saturday and often Wednesdays (klein Saterdag) too. So here is Andrew explaining the mystique of meat to Pierre - who is looking skeptical because he is in fact our champion braaier!

Nataniel's tips on braai etiquette were circulated on the e-waves earlier in the week - in his inimitable style he tells us braaiing must be taken very, very seriously. In the old days your butcher was almost family; in any event you saw him more than your doctor. Today supermarket shelves have replaced faces and the younger generation has gotten out of touch with what constitutes a good cut of meat - packaging definitely does not make up for deficiencies in the contents! The basic rule of thumb is the thicker the better and wors must bend without breaking when it comes off the coals. Steak must be eaten medium to rare - if you like it well done you should rather resort to a blowtorch and he recommends running into a wall - repeatedly - to get your ideas right. Nataniel also lists appropriate topics of conversation around the braai fire - rugby, 4x4 bakkies and the neighbour's wife's bikini tan lines are much more acceptable than politics, interest rates or babies. Fishing tales must be kept until everyone is half drunk so they can join in talking nonsense. In addition your braaier must be treated with suitable deference, as his braai fork is in fact a scepter!

Just by the way, Tulbagh itself is of course a wonderful heritage treasure.  The town dates back over 350 years and is the fourth oldest in the country.  Church Street is the only street in South Africa where every house is a national monument (each gable is different too!) and the museum church the only one of its kind preserved in its original state. Take a stroll down memory lane, see the earthquake display and visit No 27 which is a step back in time to how life was lived in the early 1700s. Now one can also take a short hike along the Galgeheuwel meander through the fynbos to a lookout point above Tulbagh which offers lovely views of this special village.

A Tulbagh Master

Last night I was privileged to attend the opening of the new Christo Coetzee House Museum and Gallery in our little dorp. The heavens opened just as we were en route, and we nearly got stuck in the drift with damp spark plugs! On arrival and whilst battling with umbrellas and eyeing the leiwater ditch in which a churning torrent raged, I was just bewailing the tragic dearth of true gentlemen who will come to the aid of damsels in distress, when lo! Sir Walter Raleigh himself appeared and ushered us all safely inside... o ye of little faith! Despite the weather rent-a-crowd had turned out in force, and the more the wine and delicious local bubbly flowed the more intelligent the conversation - after awhile we all fancied ourselves art critics!
What a wonderful restoration of the famous artist's former home - a Rhenish missionary house - and studio. For the opening  many works on loan from the University of Pretoria and other private collections are swelling the standing collection. There is also a fascinating photographic record of Coetzee's Tulbagh years by well-known photographer Jean du Plessis, and his wife Ferrie Binger-Coetzee's work is also on display.  Coetzee's claim to fame is documented as: “broadening art in the sense that he contributed to the fading of the traditional boundaries between painting and sculpture and because he insisted on viewer participation in the creative process.  As Marcel Duchamp is today known as the twentieth-century father of conceptualism, so Coetzee is the most important innovative artist in South Africa.”  Of course, being a complete philistine, I liked the floor best - a chunk of the original preserved bespattered by the tools of his trade, and also his worktable, similarly decorated...

Not only is the museum a major new point of interest in our town, it has also been the impetus for the very first Tulbagh Spring Arts Festival to take place this coming weekend (see the full delightfully varied programme on www.tulbaghtourism.co.za). We are so excited - as it is very much in tune with the ethos and ambiance of our special little historical dorp - and we dearly hope it will become an annual event.

Sop & Soeters

So here is Team Tulbagh trickling round the cellars of the Breede Valley on the annual Sop & Soeters weekend... At the first venue one purchases an enamel mug into which soup is ladled and then one gets to taste all the sweet wines - hanepoot, muscadel, Jerepigo, late harvest, port - which one can then purchase at discounted prices.  Of course, being seasoned troupers, we tasted everything else on offer as well - including witblitz - thank God for Melvin our designated driver!

We agreed that the biltong & blue cheese soup at Slanghoek was very good, as was the roasted red pepper and tomato with homemade Worcestershire Sauce at Opstal. Badsberg boasted a mushroom & port special and Botha's Hill curried chicken and crunchy veg. Some cellars had real country craft and comestibles (no Nigerians!) and one could even do food & wine pairing at various venues.  It was a wonderful day altogether...

BTW en route spotted some crazed mountain bike fiends pedalling furiously against a strong headwind in the Wolseley MTB Challenge - thought our choice of spending Saturday infinitely preferable!

Country life is never dull - there is always something going on. At the end of August Tulbagh will be hosting a Spring arts festival centering around the opening of the Christo Coetzee museum and celebrating the arts in their myriad forms. In September it is our Spring Show - an agricultural and equestrian event with a wildflower display - and in October the Witzenberg Summer Show. Then we're into cherry picking season and TJ's summer elegance festival...

AND I'm told by people passing through Namaqualand that it is greener than they've seen it in years, which bodes well for the flowers this year!