Whatever your plans for Christmas lunch are, whether it’s a, traditional turkey or a barbeque (for those of you like us in the Southern hemisphere), our KWV The Mentors range has a fantastic selection of award winning choices to accompany most Christmas fare. We asked Johann, our The Mentors winemaker for his suggestions on what to pair with your X-mas feast.

These were his recommendations:

Q: Which of The Mentors wines would I serve if I was preparing a traditional Christmas meal?

A: Am I only allowed one choice? If I could be allowed to suggest two then my choices would be The Mentors Orchestra 2007 and the Mentors Pinotage 2007.

Q: Why?

A: The Mentors Orchestra is an elegant wine with a perfect synergy between fruit and oak flavours. It delivers a beautifully structured wine with well rounded soft tannins  which complements non-red meat dishes.  When it comes to versatility towards pairing with food, The Mentors Pinotage 2007 is a wonderful choice and therefore the  perfect match to a multi dish Christmas table.  Again, the soft tannin structure and aromatics will go well and complement both red and non-red meat dishes.

Q: What flavours would I pick up on the palate and nose of The Mentors Orchestra 2007?

A: Mulberry, Blackberry, herbal and mint on nose. The palate is soft and well balanced with plum, cherry and cinnamon flavours complemented by hints of oak.

Johann’s comment: To fully open the nose and flavours of The Mentors Orchestra, I would suggest that you decant it before serving.

Q: If I was living in the Southern hemisphere, planning a barbeque instead of a traditional Christmas meal, which of The Mentors wines would you   recommend?

A: The Mentors Semillon 2009

Q: Why?

A: The style of Semillon we produce is fresh, clean and crisp which is perfect match to salads, but this wine, being a Semillon, also has the aromatics and structure to  stand-up and complement barbequed dishes. The zesty, austere finish is perfect to clean the palate for the next bite (Perfect……. I can just imagine it!)

Q: That sounds delicious! What flavours would I pick up on the palate and on the nose of this wine?

A: Look out for a touch of herbaceous, cut grass, lime, subtle floral, green apple notes on the nose.  The palate is tight, fine and floral with fresh zesty notes from the natural acidity.

Tip from Johann: Keep well chilled and serve in open shaped wine glass.

Q. If I am planning a vegetarian spread, which of The Mentors wines would I purchase to accompany a vegetarian dish – fish and cold fresh salads or  vegetables and pastas?

A: The Mentors Chenin Blanc 2008

Q: Why would you recommend The Mentors Chenin Blanc?

A: This wine is the ideal match for seafood and pasta as stone fruit and light butterscotch flavours create a wonderful wine-food harmony, together with the rich and creamy palate, resulting in a fusion of flavours. A personal favorite is to serve this wine with a lemon-butter seasoned Cape Salmon dish, prepared on a the Barbeque and served on a bed of spicy Moroccan couscous salad drizzled with a  creamy white-wine sauce.

Q: What flavours would I pick up on the palate and on the nose of The Mentors Chenin Blanc?

A: The intense gold yellow colour of the wine reflects the concentration of flavours. The wine is rich in apricot, peach, honeysuckle and pear flavours complemented by soft butterscotch notes. On the palate the wine is soft and smooth with almonds and orange peel flavours. This rich and creamy wine ends with a refreshing balance and  lingering aftertaste.

Q: And lastly, would you recommend any of The Mentors wines to complement a sweet dessert dish?

A: Yes, The Mentors Viognier 2009

Q: Why?

A: This wine had very prominent, multi-layered fruit aromas which are finished by integrating marzipan and nougat flavours, derived from oak and kept in balance with a  kiss of the residual sugar left in the wine. This results in a delicious dessert partner or accompaniment to your post-dinner cheese platter.

Q: What flavours on the nose and palate should we experience?

 A: Green figs, musk, peach flavours showing the stylish complex varietal characters of Viognier.  The wine has good definition, structure and complexity. Orange blossom, concentrated lemon, grapefruit, apricot flavours with subtle, well integrated cherry, marzipan  and nougat finish.

Great, thanks for the insight Johann. To read more about our Mentors range click here.

KWV Wines is looking for three couples, from some of the different countries in which our wines are enjoyed, to join us for an exclusive dinner party among the vineyards in Paarl, South Africa in November 2010. We’ll bring the couples from all over the world to sunny South Africa to share their stories, culture and experiences over some of our finest wines and a gourmet South African dinner, cooked by Shane Sauvage, a South African chef renowned for his authentic cooking style and fun-loving approach to food.

We’ll also host winners up for a week in Paarl, our home in the heart of the Cape Winelands, to enjoy a Spring holiday in the South African sunshine.

To enter, send us a photo of you and your friends, family or partner enjoying a dinner party that you feel represents the culture of your homeland. We’d also like to know who was at the party, what you served and what you talked about.

Click here to enter.

We had a word with our viticulturists, Cobus and Unathi as well as Chief Winemaker, Richard Rowe about climate change and its effect on South African wines. This is what they had to say:

2009 has been a stellar year all-round for KWV Wines. The Mentors 2006 Chenin Blanc walked away with a gold award at one of the globes most prestigious competitions, the International Wine Challenge, held in the UK in May. Our 2006 Shiraz also scooped a Gold medal at the Shiraz du Monde and both the Mentors 2006 Shiraz and the Cabernet Franc 2006 each won a Gold at the Michelangelo International Awards.

Our Lifestyle and Reserve ranges have also collectively received 15 medals during the course of 2009, three of these being awarded with Gold. Johann, our senior white-winemaker is particularly excited that the 2008 Reserve white blend received a Gold at the German competition, MUNDISvini International Wine Awards, as this is a new addition to the Reserve family and a lot of hard work and effort went into producing this wine.

For the full low down on all the awards, see here, here and here.

We’d like to introduce you to Unathi Montshongo, one of the KWV Viticulturists. Unathi is originally from Umtata, in the Eastern Cape, South Africa – but it was a few years later that her love affair with winemaking began at Stellenbosch University where she completed her B.Sc.Agric. with Oenology and Viticulture. She later furthered her education with an Honours in Viticulture and a Certificate in Business Communication.

Welcome to the KWV Wines blog. Here you’ll get a behind-the-scene view of life at KWV Wines and hear from some of the people that make our wines a global success. We’ll be following the team (at a safe distance) during the upcoming harvest and throughout the following seasons. We’ll also be tackling some of the questions we’re commonly asked about, such as environmentally-friendly winemaking, sustainability, the impact of climate change on South African vineyards and how we support the communities around us. So if you enjoy our wines and want to know more about how they’re made and who makes them, then this is the blog for you!

You’re welcome to ask us to cover anything you’re interested in, so please drop us an email at KWVWines@kwv.co.za or leave a comment below.

Also keep an eye out for some special competitions on the website. Our first one is to win a place at the KWV Wines global dinner party which takes place in our vineyards in the Western Cape in November 2010. See below for more details.

And to celebrate our launch we’re giving away 200 cookery books from South African chef, Shane Sauvage to the first people to sign-up for regular updates. So hurry, these are going to go quickly. You’ll find the details here.

Dan, Tessa and Anika (the KWV Wines bloggers)