One bitterly cold Friday night I decided to put my trust in 120-year-old The Vineyard Hotel in Newlands, who are celebrating 10 years of hosting their ‘Tastes of 2016’ festival. Surely they have wine pairing waxed by now.

The theme of this year’s Tastes of 2016 is “knowledge sharing”, with The Vineyard’s chefs and their staff swapping out to participating wine estates and their kitchens.

Matt Deitchman, the hotel’s Food & Beverage Manager, said: “We want to share some of our knowledge and experience with other chefs and staff, while gaining experience for our own. By ‘swapping’ with top wine estates we can spread the culinary love.”

That night it was Paarl Valley’s Glen Carlou wines turn to be paired with a specially designed five-course menu at The Vineyard’s elegant The Square restaurant.

I was told that many hours of research had gone into getting the pairing just right. What a job!!!

In a lively atmosphere and with Glen Carlou’s winemaker Arco Laarman seated next to me (no pressure), I was ready to sample and savour.

First course was a creamy caramelised onion and parmesan soup with a croute accompanied by Glen Carlou Grand Classique 2012. The caramelised onion was the star of this dish and was perfectly paired with this vibrant dark red.