Posts Tagged ‘Atlanta’
Passion on the Vine – a review
Tuesday, August 12th, 2008
When one looks at a vineyard – you’re not looking at it in the same way as you would look at an orange orchard. Instead one sees a multitude of experiences past and of moments yet to come – moments of intimacy, memorable occasions, conversations and treasured friendships. Since time immemorial, vineyards have not only been the touchstone of certain regions, but have often been the lifeblood of local communities and the cornerstone of entire generations of families. Every vineyard contains a family, a history, a culture and a purpose. This was at least, the sentiment I had before embarking on a mission to New York City, where I would promote and sell wine’s connected to my family in some ways, and more importantly – wine from my country. During that time – having spent much time in preparation for the mission, I left with those stories and sentiments of culture and family fresh in my blood. But with every sales-call and wine event I began to feel further and further from the vineyard. Soon it was about laid in cost, case-discounts and what kind of Point of Sale material was on offer. I travelled the country in a rental car with a case of wine, a corskrew and a power-point presentation along the way having people from Westchester Wine Warehouse cruelly spit wine on my shoe after having left me waiting for an hour, sitting in cold-rooms of cellars in Maryland, helping do stock-takes in Ohio, presenting to Wholefoods buyers in North Carolina and pushing on-premise retail in Atlanta: and with every step I became a bit more confused and lost the focus of what I was doing. Having believed that wine was so important to my country and stepping into the States to tell the story of South African wine, it was very dispiriting to suddenly be faced with the fact that no one really cared so long as they could make a profit.
Tags: aid, Atlanta, Business, Culture, Energy, event, Food, friends, history, market, New York, philosophy, power, preparation, purpose, read, restaurant, restaurants, review, Sales, SC, South Africa, step, tasting, Travel, Vine, Wine, wineries, winery, world, writing
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10 Degrees South, Atl, Ga
Monday, June 23rd, 2008
This so far is my favorite restaurant in Atlanta. Incredible representation of South African cuisine and atmosphere. Part of the restaurant is an outdoor awning with design style very close to a restaurant on the Cape Town coast. Very rustic and breezy. I had the Kingclip fish, indigenous to South Africa, and it was nothing short of amazing – I’ve got to rate it up there with salmon as one of my favorites. My gf had ostrich, which seems like a stretch, but it was equally as tasty. Very fresh concept with exotic food – Love it! The Ferraris usually parked out front don’t hurt either — *****, $$
Tags: Atlanta, restaurant, review, South Africa
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The Grape – getting it right. Restaurant 2.0
Tuesday, July 24th, 2007
Jake and Greg were at The Grape this last weekend, and over the past year or so in our brainstorms The Grape has come up time and again as a place that just gets it. Take for example their wine list and wine food recommendations – which is perhaps the first time I’ve ever seen a wine list that makes sense.
We know how different Shiraz can show, that Sauvignon Blanc rarely has the same face region to region and that Pinot Grigio doesn’t always go well with food – and a restaurant/ bar does its clientèle no favors by just dividing wine into Red and White, or they divide it into countries – and the emerging trend is to divide it into varietals.
The Grape does something unheard of to date: they divide their wine into taste. More than that they then give you a taste profile match on their menu, dish by dish. I have probably sampled less than a thousand wines in my life – and I certainly don’t remember all the names because I’m no Michael Broadbent. When I’m looking at a wine, I want to know its taste flavor profile – and if I’m paying $20 a bottle, I’ll be pretty ticked if its not what I want. This kind of a menu system is helpful to anyone… I know because when I’m out to dinner with friends they always ask me to help pick the wine: but The Grape allows people to choose the wine for themselves. What I further like about The Grape is that its more than a restaurant – because their venues are usually really good places to just hang out. It’s a destination brand – allowing dining, entertainment, exploration and with their innovative wine list: education. It’s really refreshing to see a mainstream brand that has begun to take its customer’s taste seriously.
allows you to design your own tasting flight of three or more wines from our One through Eight Grape classifications and from our Nine and Ten Grape specials. Choose from all wines with a “Grape Bunch†designation in our wine menu to create your unique tasting flight, served in our special glasses for your ultimate tasting experience. At The Grape, Your Taste is All that Counts.”
Tags: Atlanta, Food, pairing, restaurant
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