How much? nfs;
Where? Boschendal, Franschhoek 27 (0)21 870 4200;
Why? Adam Gopnik kicks off 2011 in the New Yorker writing about the future of dessert. At lunch with Sanlam art curator Stefan Hundt, Stefan makes a point “why do wine writers write about dessert wine so infrequently?” He has a point as this is the 48th entry in my Wine of the Day series and is the first sticky.

Boschendal Vin d'Or @ the Troyeville Hotel

Does anyone still order dessert in restaurants? Adam gives two reasons why he gave them up: 1) diet and 2) giving up something you love the most may placate the gods – a piece of New York angst if ever there was one. A more prosaic reason is keeping the cost of the meal down to merely outrageous with another, the dearth of stickies on the wine list coupled with the recent enthusiasm show by Mr. Plod for breathalyzers.

South Africa makes some of the best dessert wines in the world and has been doing so for centuries. Certainly some of the best value for money dessert wines, although as this one showed, they do not last forever. Information about this Vin d’Or is hard to come by but I’m assuming it’s a natural sweet (i.e. no botrytis) Semillon. The main problem? Too old – the colour is muddy brown like old café au lait and any varietal character is long emigrated. Old dilute balsamic vinegar without the bite about sums it up.

Probably not the kind of thing to drink with strawberries in a hare broth as prepared by Alberto Adrià, Spanish pastry chef and brother to Ferran of El Bulli fame. Alberto uses molecular gastronomy to take desserts to the Next Level, or as he prefers to put it, techno-emotional cooking. If the New Yorker is wondering about the future of dessert, perhaps SA wine should ponder the future of dessert wine.

Rating: **

*****: tiramisu
****: pavlova
***: baklava
**: kulfi
*: deep fried mars bars