First of all: a huge thank you to all our supporters who voted Creation the winner of Klink’s ‘Great Pairings’ category for 2017. The winners were announced on Friday 31 March and Creation is delighted to have won this distinction for the fourth time! As a pioneer in the field of wine and food pairing our estate offers no less than eight pairing options with an exciting new concept aptly named ‘The Story of Creation’ to be introduced soon. When it comes to wine and food pairing, there’s always something new and unique in the Creation pipeline!
Commenting on Creation’s recent Klink achievement Creation co-owner, marketing director and pairing guru Carolyn Martin points out that a pairing is only as good as the wine allows it to be. The award-winning Creation wines made by Jean-Claude (JC) Martin are exceptionally food friendly, making them versatile pairing partners. “When pairing our wines we look at taste, texture, aromatics, deconstruction of flavours – to mention but a few. Myriad cross sensory experiences come into play, all of which make the pairing experience a great adventure!”
Asked why Creation’s wines are so food friendly Carolyn refers to the cooler climate experienced on the Hemel-en-Aarde Ridge which is advantageous to the development of good natural acidity in the grapes. The crisp acidity in the wines cleanses the palate between mouthfuls of food. Creation’s cool climate also allows phenolic ripeness to occur before sugar levels become excessive and while acidity is still good, resulting in supple tannins. Gentle tannins are key to producing food-friendly wines as extreme tannic dryness tends to overwhelm subtle elements in a pairing.
Asked for the secrets behind her successful pairings, Carolyn says there are very few absolute rules. “I would say intuition rules and the most unexpected pairings are often the best. The ultimate goal of wine pairing is of course to enhance both the food and the wine.”
She concludes: “A big thank you to every member of the Creation team who helped us win the prestigious Klink Award again this year. And last but not least a huge thanks to the organisers of the 2017 Klink Awards. Klink offers South African wineries the platform to showcase their excellence and thus plays a very important role in the industry.”
