Vondeling celebrates ‘Seven Days of Shiraz’ with Venison-inspired feast

Vondeling Wines, situated in the Voor Paardeberg ward of Paarl, will soon be celebrating ‘Seven Days of Shiraz’ with a Shiraz and Venison feast on Thursday 14 June at the farm in Paarl. Matthew Copeland, Vondeling’s winemaker, has teamed up with the chef duo from The Goose Roasters, Craig Cormack and Beau du Toit, to marry the estate’s acclaimed wines with a venison-inspired four-course dinner.

‘Seven Days of Shiraz’ is the brainchild of the Shiraz Association and will take place during the heart of the winter season from 10 to 17 June. Winter is synonymous with bold and spicier reds and all things game and venison and the initiative presents the perfect opportunity to create exposure for one of South Africa’s most-loved red varietals: Shiraz.

The event follows the recent release of the Vondeling Monsonia, a Shiraz-based Rhône-style red blend and the estate’s flag-bearer, which will also make its appearance during this once-off food and wine affair.

The evening will start with a welcome drink served on the lawns overlooking the majestic Paardeberg as the picture-perfect backdrop. The four-course dinner will kick off with a vertical Shiraz tasting and venison canapé pairing. Think Wildebeest biltong bitterballen and wholegrain mustard, Kudu salami, and venison carpaccio with pecorino shavings. Guests can also expect decadent flavours such as cauliflower puree with exotic mushrooms and truffle oil as well as braised venison “denningvleis” with turmeric arancini and gooseberry achar. The dining experience will conclude with Vondeling Baldrick Shiraz-poached apple pie with apricot and almond frangipani and amoretto anglaise.

Cauliflower Puree and Wild Mushrooms

“I’ll be presenting a tasting of some older Vondeling Shiraz wines from our wine library which is restricted in quantities and typically not available to the public, as well as new releases such as the Monsonia and the latest vintage of the popular Baldrick.  It has been a real pleasure to work with Craig and Beau to devise the menu and they’ve come up with hearty South African-inspired dishes, but with all the contemporary elements to it”, says Matthew.

Winemaker Matthew Copeland.

The cost of R450 per person includes welcome drinks, the four-course dinner, eight wines from the Vondeling portfolio and gratuity. Space is limited to 40 guests to ensure an intimate dining experience in which the winemaker and chefs collaborate to bring you the ultimate winter feast in front of a cosy fireplace.  The dinner is set to start at 18h30 and bookings are secured with pre-payment and can be made with Riki Koch on [email protected] or 021 869 8339.

To conclude the ‘Seven Days of Shiraz’ initiative, Vondeling will have a Shiraz sale on Saturday 16 June from 09h00 to 13h00 at the farm. Venison pies, biltong, and venison boerewors rolls and coffee will be available to keep the cold at bay.