Land of the Free

So, here I am in the US of A and it's summer. I have nothing to do, but sit around and checking e-mail like crazy!!!! Can't wait for the others to come, so we can get a car and we can start going around and to see the world. The house live in is awesome, Tami is fun, the kids she minds during the day are cute and then her mom is endearing. The dog, Teddy and the cat, Max just makes this a house you can live in. Tani just can't get over the fact that Max peed in my shoes the very first I got here. It's all fun here and I can't wait to get started in the winery - let the good times role.

CAROLINE'S RED WINE REVIEW 2007

Went to Caroline's Red Wine Review on Wednesday, 25 July 2007. Only had 2 hours to taste the 50 best red wines on the market (according to Caroline). I must say I enjoyed the people and the mingling more than some of the wines. My favourites for the evening, that I tasted, was Thelema 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon and Le Riche 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon. I'm gonna trade my Trilogy 2005 for some of this wine. Then there was a couple of wines that really disappointed me - Vriesenhof 2003 Kallista and Waterford 2004 Family Reserve blend. Then some that surprised you, in a good way, - Raka 2003 Quinary, Veenwouden 2003 Merlot and Springfield 2002 The Work of Time(smelled like black olives). Ofcourse I had other good wines like Da Trafford 2005 Cab, Diemersfontein 2003 Carpe Diem Cab, Dalla Cia 2003 Giorgiom Beyerskloof 2003 Field blend, Jordan Cobblers' Hill, Bilton Sir Percy 2004, Ernie Els 2004 and then Warwick 2004 3 Cape Ladies. Then still some more.
What surprised me most was the fact that i seemed to have missed all the shirazes on show, and that's my favourite cultivar. Then at the end i tasted one Shiraz from Scali, but i should probably not have done that - not the best wine ever.
I did have a good time and saw some of the old friends and new ones.
I love the wine industry, its people and vibe, but not the grapevine.
Wine Rules!!!!

Can you believe it?
I can't believe this is the second time this year that someone in my family is being diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer. At least with my aunt now, they found it early and they can treat her. I don't think I'll be able to take another hit like that. I just look around me and see how the devil takes and destroys - he has no mercy. I heard the other day this saying that i at first didn't believe at all, but know starts to make more sense "the Lord allows suffering,so we may know His mercy". Now that I can believe, because in all this suffering, i still can see His mercy and i wait for it, believing in it.

Here we go again

A couple of days ago I thought life was being fare again and I had a fighting chance. Then the damned thing threw another curve ball at me and I didn't even see it coming.

nie altyd maanskyn en rose nie

Yeah, die dieët gaan aan, het darem al 'n paar kilo's verloor en ek doen actually elke dag oefening en dit was lank terug toe ek laas dit gedoen het. Dis nogal lekker om soggens op te staan en te gan stap - al is dit so koud. Op die oomblik is ek platsak, die amerika toe ganery vreet maar aan die bank balans. Maar ek het altyd 'n geldtjie om te kuier met die maaikies - was vandag by hook line and sinker in pringlebaai, nou dit was lekker !!!! yum - lek sommer my vingers af om daaraan te dink.

Ek is natuurlik nie net gelukkig nie - my ma en ek sit alweer vas. As ek iets sê vir Danie, en sy hou nie daarvan nie - dan hap sy my gat, of haal iets aan wat ek verkeerd gedoen het, en dit maak dit oraait dat Danie maar sy verkeerd kan maak.
Ek het ook vannaand iets gesien wat my ontstel. Toe Jennie vannaand by die huis instap, na die 2 weke vakansie, het ma haar omhels en lank vashou - ek wonder toe skielik of sy my ook so sal terug verwelkom as ek terugkom. Ek sal daarvan hou, maar ek dink nie sy sal my so baie mis soos enige van die ander kinders nie. Die rede hiervoor is dat Danie is haar "aangenome kind" en sy baby hom vreeslik en dit pla my. So as hy iets doen wat my pla, sê ek so en dan raas my ma met my. Nou, die ander kinders sê nooit iets nie en hulle is om die rede vriende met Danie en my ma raak nooit vir hulle kwaad nie. Nie oor Danie nie. (Ek dink soms ek moet net my bek hou en sy nat handoeke en vuilborde ronddra en wegpak. My oë styf toeknyp en wegkyk en met my vingers in my ore sit en niks sê. Almal dink ek is jaloers en kinderagtig, maar my ma het ons geleer om vir jouself te sorg en jou eie sokkies te soek. Nou kom die 24 jarige in die middel van 'n gesprek ingeloop en vra vir ma waar is sy sokkies - dan gan soek sy dit vir hom. Dit pla my. WHY?) So as ek weggaan, is hierdie bron van oorlog uit haar huis, wat vir haar lekker gaan wees, vir my ook. Ek dink net, ek moet uit die huis trek, maar dan kort ek permanente werk as ek terugkom van amerika, of net ander blyplek, wat te veel geld gan kos of 'n ander land.
ek weet nie.

DIET!!!! can someone please just shoot me. No! not really. My wicked ways has led my down this awful road of dieting. Well, it either this or become a diabetic and suffer a heart attack and die. I'd rather just go through the humiliation of riding my bike through traffic - big butt and all, eat food that desperately needs flavour - all fat free and non fat. And don't forget the teasing from every guy I meet about how girls always diet. And even some girls, getting frustrated at me, because I need to nit pick everything now and not be the same carefree me. That carefree me... she had a heart attack and DIED!!! I choose life!! sorry if I'm not gonna be as much fun as I used to be.... It sucks for me too.

Congratulations

I am so happy to report that my brother got engaged yesterday. He finally went on one knee and asked the coolest girl to be his wife. Finally I can really call her my sister-in-law to be. It's been a long time coming and I just hope that I'm back in South Africa before they tie the knot.

!!!LIVER ALONE!!! GET IT !!!

My liver has left the building. Literally. I was told today that because of fat build-up in my liver i can't drink alcohol anymore. Are you kidding me. This is probably one of the worst things you can say to an aspiring winemaker. Now every time i want to enjoy a glass of wine i need to takes pills they usually prescribe to alcoholics. Can you believe it, well, I'm still having a hard time wrapping my mind around it. But at least it's not anything deadly. Thank God for that. Small miracles, ya, you can call it the silver lining as well. For a little while there i was fearing cancer, and just losing my uncle that way - it totally freaked me out.
Well, if any one's looking for a designated driver? I'M IT !!!! A lot of spitting for me from now on. Yeah sorry, I don't swallow, I spit - this is breaking my heart. really. really.
One good way of looking at it is this, I'll never drink bad wine again. If I'm to drink wine, it better be damn good and worth my liver.
The pleasure of alcohol came with a very steep price for me. And I'm only 23. How do you like me now.
I know. i know. I'm sounding like an old lady. but forgive me for a second. I'm allowed my day of self-pitying.
DONE !! I think...

SPITTOON

Here's a random thought.. well l not so random for me, but actually disgusting, SPITTOONS. Oh my goodness that is probably the worst thing ever. I can handle blood, puke (with my fare share of gaging), shit (also gaging), but saliva Aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!!!! I just want to hurl whenever i see it. So for me cleaning out a spittoon is the worst part of my day. If people empty their glasses into it, that's fine, but if they spit!!! Those little pieces of cracker floating in there and those darker stringy bits of spits, made darker by the tannins stuck to it. Aaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!!! Probably shouldn't work in a tasting room if this grosses you out, but what else is there. The sacrifices we make just to be near wine.
You know they say that if you smile, it works against the gaging reflex. So you'll see me cleaning a spittoon, but smiling while doing it. Yeah, I must look like the happiest person in the world.
Nothing more to do than sucking it up and smiling. !!! hahahaha

proes

Vandag voel ek soos 'n opgekoude, herkoude slaaiblaar. Dun, bewerig en nat. Ja, die hartseer feit is dat ek is besig om 'n griepie af te skud. En dan moet ek nog werk ook. Dit sou als oraait gewees het, as hier actually iets was om te doen !!!! MAAR, hier gan niks an by die werk nie. Ek sit en doen boggerol, ek kon veel eerder by die huis gewees het en lekker in die bed herstel het. Nou is ek die enigste een in die proelokaal vandag so ek kannie eens huis toe nie. DIT SUCK.!!! Ek hoop net dat teen moreaand die siekte my verlaat het, want ek wil gan kuier by skapie.

hoes, proes
arriwarri

NAMIBIA

NA.MEEEEEEB.iJA

Dit voel of jy face first van duin7 afval en hele landskap hervorm tewyl jy die helfte van die duin in jou mond tot by die voet van die duin vat. Maar dis lekka. Nou jy dink seker, waarvan praat hierdie kind - as jy skapie is, sit jy nou agteroor en herleef daardie wonderlike aand toe die nameeeeebija gebore is.

Nogsteeds in die duister ???? Sorry. Die wonderlike beskrywing wat sommige mense as "wild" sal beskryf en geen begeerte sal hê om ooit te beleef nie, is inderdaad, die beskrywing van die nasmaak van die nameeeeeebija.

Ek en skapie het die aand avontuurlustig, nie lustig (duits) nie, gevoel en die barcounter genader. Met geen idee wat ons wil hê nie, vra ons die gawe meneer om vir ons 'n "shot" te maak. En wat sal jy raai, hy sê hy kannie, oftewel hy mag nie. Daar sit ons sak en as, baie bedroef. Die volgende oomblik dring 'n engele stem ons bubble van selfbejammering en vra wat ons wil hê. Weereens gooi ons die charm aan en gee die grootste glimlag ooit. Ons plaas toe die versoek en sal jy nou meer, hy sê toe hy kan. Verjeug ryg ons die verskillende dranksoorte in, wat ons in die shot soek - neem natuurlik glad nie in ag dat daar net 25ml in so 'n glasie kan gan nie.

Ons wou iets maak wat die kleure van die woestyn, met die son wat agter die golwe sak illustreer. Die rooi van die son was aftershock, dan amarula vir die woestynsand. Dan kom die groen, rooi en blou zappa - wat die son, welwitchias en die see voorstel. En dan om als af te rond kom daar cream bo-op. Maggies, ma dit klink so lekker!!!! Wel 1,2,3 toe gan die shot by die keel af en die koeël is deur die kerk. Die sneller getrek en die mossie is dood. Jy hoef nie te verstaan wat ek hier bedoel nie, weet net dat dit hakken lekker.
Skapie kon genoeg van dit kry nie en nou elke keer as ons uitgaan is dit nameeeeebija-tyd.
AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH !!!!! die vreugdes van alkohol.

Piece of my mind

Finally things are in motion. I was starting to worry myself that I won't get started and end up not going to the USA. Let me tell you, this isn't all that much fun, it's a truck load of paperwork that needs to get done. The other day I had to write an autobiography. Putting my life on paper like that made my life seem so dull up to here. It seems dull, but living it has been fun, but don't get me wrong it has had bad times too, times i don't ever want to experience again. But history won't just let you be, it has the nasty habit of repeating itself. And history usually wasn't picnics and bunny rabbits, but WAR !!!
But looking forward and pushing the fear of history out of my mind, I can't help but feel hopeful. There is something in my mind that tells me, expect to enjoy life. I get this feeling that I'm going to have a wonderful life. Now; every body's opinion about what a wonderful life is, will be different, and my idea of a good life won't be all candyfloss and merry-go-rounds. I will have challenges, but i will succeed, I will have great friends, I will meet a man, he will be my best friend and we will marry. He won't always be wonderful, he'll sometimes break my heart, but he will always try and heal it again. Me and my family are currently going through a difficult time, to be honest i don't know when we weren't going through one. But someday it will end, maybe when we don't see each other every day.
And of course the wine won't be far behind. Good wine, will make my life good, but only as good as the people I enjoy it with.

WARWICK WINE ESTATE

Currently you'll find me working at Warwick, in the Simonsberg district of the Stellenbosch wine region. 110 hectares of vineyards, 65 working and a quaint little cellar, but don't let size fool you. In south Africa small can be a good thing, but then you need quality. If that this small farm has an abundance of and they don't mind sharing their exquisite wines with a appreciative wine community. Most of the people that visit this winery, nestled between hills covered in vineyards, have heard great and many promising things. And it feels good to meet and fulfill and sometimes exceed their expectations. I know my job is to sell the wine and present it in such a way that people won't for get the wine or the name and will go and tell their friends. See that's our biggest angle - connecting with the people and giving close to perfect service.

At the end of the day, I don't smile 'cause I sold wine to people. I smile 'cause I know that those people will share in a passion of mine, wine. It's not about the money, but maybe it should be, but for me, I just want people to appreciate, enjoy and when they take that first sip of wine - not be thinking of me, or the price of the bottle but be looking into the eyes of a friend, lover or a scenery that will take their breath away.

I sometimes wish I could give my heart to people, so they may feel the joy and pleasure and love I feel when ever I drink wine. I want people to love wine the way I do.

STONESTREET CALIFORNIA

RED, RED WINE....i just got news that i'm going to be part of the harvest crew for Stonestreet winery in the Alexander valley, California. i'm so excited, now all i need to do is arrange everything to go to america. My friend skapie was going to go with me, but she was offered a permanent job here in South Africa @ Jordan winery. It's sad that she won't be going with me, but i'm happy for her getting a good job and at a winery she loves.

So, i'm going there, but not all alone. My friend Christo will also be going for the 2007 harvest, but he's going to Stags' Leap in Napa Valley. We'll be close to one another, but he's not one to get in the car and come visit me, and i will probably do the same. I'm luckily not the only south african that's going, an old class buddy will be working at stonestreet aswell, Emily Worthington.

So the next harvest will be in August 2007 and all the way from the states, can't wait...

In loving memory

Matthys Johannes Steyn

Born 8 February 1956 - Died 23 April 2007

April 24, 2007 at 05:15

The thunder woke me from a saddend sleep. My uncle had passed away the previous afternoon and it all still felt wrong. We first heard he had colon cancer in January. We all knew he was ill for a long time, he never seemed himself anymore at family gatherings. On my birthday we went to see hom in the hospital, just two days after they removed the cancerous growth from his colon. They couldn't remove anymore than that, the cancer had spread to far.

They sent hom home and three weeks ago he came for his first chemotherapy. My mom and her sister were terribly sad when they got back. My uncle was to sick and the doctors had told them the chemo would probably not work.

I immediately went to my uncle. He looked at me and said: " I should be grateful, I have lived a good life." He didn't smile, he laid there on the bed and starred at the ceiling. I felt tears stinging my eyes, so I left the room. Everyday they went for chemo and everyday he looked less like my uncle and more ....

Last saturday, my grandma phoned, my mom answered, she started crying. I thought it was over.

My grandma just let her know that they think it'll be that day. Almost the whole family went to say goodbye, but he made them wait a little bit longer... He only passed away onthe monday.

The next morning the thunder woke me and as i laid there listening to the rumble i thought it was my uncle trying out the lighting... it made my feel less sad and a little bit more hopeful.

Goodbye uncle.

SUNSETS OP SEIDELBERG

SOME OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL SUNSETS I HAVE WITNESSED FROM THE LAWN ON THIS FARM.

THE REASON FOR THEM BEING SO AMAZING? BECAUSE I HAD A GLASS OF WINE IN THE HAND AND I HAD FRIENDS WITH ME.

I HAD A WONDERFUL HARVEST, AND SOMETHING SO BEAUTIFUL AT THE END OF THE DAY, MADE THE HARD WORK OF THE DAY JUST MELT AWAY. THE FACT THAT I WAS TAKING IN ALCOHOL, ALSO HELPED.

LAST DAYS AT SEIDELBERG

In the beginning of harvest i asked cerina for a weekend off at the end of harvest, or end of march. We (family and friends) were going on a quad biking weekend near my old home town. As harvest went on the grapes didn't come in like clockwork because of the rain and cool weather - which slowed down ripening. Well by the end of march, not all the grapes were in and pump overs were still going on every night. So with insecurity I left for the weekend. I also left earlier the Friday, because it was a three hour drive to Vanrhynsdorp, west coast.

Before left for the weekend, that week was so busy at the cellar. We did about 70 tons that week. I remember the Friday, we started sorting Cabernet sauvignon grapes (which they harvested the previous day) at about 06:30 and we finished 14:30. By that time, when you looked up from the sorting table nothing was in focus. I did the last bit of work and then said goodbye to everyone. I remember the guys in the cellar were all down because i got off, but also because i left earlier.

The plan was to go back on Monday morning and continue working for about 2 more weeks. Well, apparently there were other plans for me. Saturday on the farm, vanrhynsdorp, i sprained my ankle very badly and i couldn't go back to work. That evening was the end of harvest for me. It broke my heart knowing i was done with harvest - i didn't have time to prepare myself for the shock. Then also i felt like shit letting down everyone in the cellar, especially cerina.\

I got back Sunday and i was so scared to phone her.... i feel i let her down.

Viva la France

For 2 weeks I lived alone and then my French "connection" arrived. Her name is Léa and she's from Alsace. In the beginning we didn't speak that much, not knowing what to say to each other. My first harvest in 2006, I also lived with a french girl and it didn't go that well. So in the beginning I was afraid it was going to be the same. She soon dismissed all my cares and we started being friends. She never looked down at me, because she's from France, the wine capitol of the world, and I'm from SA. Pretty soon we got along very well. She works in the tasting room so she became part of the nightly wine-on-the-lawn team. She has a friend from France that's also doing an internship here in SA. He's at Dornier winery. So one night we drove to Dornier and picked Pierre up and went out for a night on the town. I took to Tollies, it was to busy anywhere else. The second time we went out, Léa had her car so she drove for the first time. She was so scared, but for the first time she didn't make any mistakes. I'm so very proud of her. Pierre also by then had his Vuka (scooter), that was hilarious. He calls himself the Vuka-legend. He's pretty funny, I had a good time with them. Viva la France...

The tasting room

After the rush of the pinotage, Cerina thought we should get someone to help us in the cellar, 'cause we get to bed too late. So I phoned around and Liaan finally said he would help. He started the 5th of February. He brought with him, such an energy that just charged up the whole place. He bonded really quickly with everyone in the cellar. Him and Jimmy, now that was a combo that was fun and trouble all rapped up in one. He made everyone in the cellar more lively... fun things just started to happen. We weren't that busy in the cellar, because all the pinotage was in and we got in some whites, but it was a lot chiller. I was mostly outside driving around on the forklift moving grapes while the others were in the cellar, racking juices, doing pump-overs and cleaning tanks. Let me tell you, cleaning tanks is hard work. You first need to get into one of those 10000L tanks (looks like a rocket) with a door just big enough for your ass to fit. I got the hang of it eventually, and cleaned my fair share of tanks.
Me and Liaan lived together in the cottage and then one afternoon after work, we went to the tasting room just under the cellar. There we met the gang...
Before Liaan moved in I shared the cottage with an intern from Germany, Sylvia. She's German-Italian and very beautiful. She moved out and invited us to a kiwi barbecue at the other cottage on the farm. There was a wide variety of weird there, but we quickly found the normal afrikaans group and hung out with them. Elrine and Johan (brother and sister) and Charles + his polish girlfriend, Jatsha. We danced a bit, but couldn't stay too late 'cause we had to be at work at 06:00 the next morning.
Me and Liaan always did the pump overs and punch downs at night, because we lived on the farm, it was fun. We'd put on the music and just work, it's very relaxing just spacing out while working.
Back to the tasting room gang. Pieter, Jan, Zelna, Elrine(marketing), Carol(office), Sharon(debt collector) and Bergette(marketing) just to name a few. Every night after work we'd go down to the lawn and share a glass of wine, chat and watch the sunset. Just thinking about it makes me sigh and long for it again.
I should thank Liaan for dragging me out of the cottage and making me go with him to the tasting room. Life on the farm would have been awful if I hadn't met them.
After being with us just for two weeks Liaan left for university 'cause an opportunity came knocking and he took the chance. Everyone missed him so much and me too. For the next 2 weeks I lived alone and it was quite scary, 'cause it can get very dark. And i missed the jokes and the conversations. I used to lecture him about his choice in girl, because he always seems to make the wrong one. During his 2 weeks with us, he met a girl, fell in and out of love and told me he still loved his ex-girlfriend.
He left, but it wasn't the end of the world, things in the cellar were quiet, because of the rain we had had. We worked slowly and kept ourselves busy.

And then there was Santos

AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!
Those first weeks of harvest we struggled to work like a team. Because of this we had to work so late many of the times. (but with the late nights came the dinners as a team. Cerina never ate with us because then no one said anything) Santos was the guy that worked in the parking lot as a security guard and at six, when he finished there, he would come and help out in the cellar. In the beginning he was like a Godsend, like a breath of fresh air.
Then one day I asked him how he was an d he told me he had woman problems. That night after work I drove him home, because his car had broken down. AGAIN. He told me that it was a girl he didn't believe he could have a future with and he thinks she will leave at end of harvest. Now I start to think he was talking about me. The ext couple of days it became clear that it was me he spoke of. He wanted to know if I would ever take coloured people to my house, kept on calling me sweetheart and touching me slightly and looking in a certain way at me. I of course got angry and told him to stop and call me by my name.
By now the late nights were over and he didn't help out in the cellar anymore. So I didn't have to see him that much anymore, now that was a Godsend.
We just say hello and walk past each other, and I'm happy with that.

First days of harvest

IT WAS INSANE !!!!! The first grapes we got in were Pinotage. We also took in white grapes. That first 2 weeks we did about 200 tons. My feet ached so much that by 11:00 I didn't want to walk anymore, and then we still had about 12 hours of work left. You only got about 5 hours sleep in at noght, 'cause you started work at 06:00. If you don't count the feet ache - I loved it.
The best time of day was when I sat outside my cottage and had that first cup of tea, looking at the sunrise and knowing the day still has to start...

The fisrt week when all our open fermentors were full, Cerina asked me to come do punch-downs with her at 23:00 one night. I went home at 20:00, got in bed and set my alarm. At 01:00 that night I flew out of bed, got dressed and ran for the cellar - hoping Cerina wasn't still there. I had set my alarm, but for 11:00. I flet like KAK.
The next morning I had preprared myself for an uitkaking van formaat. Cerina just gave me a snide remark. Later she told me she was sorry for being so mean. Apologies were exchanged and all was right with the world again.

First for the THIRST

Uiteindelik !!!!! The end of harvest. Things are just up in the air.
I just wanna use this first entry to recap some of my Harvest at Seidelberg.

The first day I got there I was so scared. The previous harvest all that, and I was mostly scared that I will disappoint people again or not get on with my co-workers. The American didn't show, he called and canceled 5 days b4 harvest started. So we were a little short-handed and that made things tight the first 2 weeks of harvest.
The people in the cellar I worked with were so nice/cool. The first time I met Jenny, boy.... Honestly, I thought she was a man. After some carefully staring I saw that she was in fact a girl and I quickly got rid of the thoughts in my head and said: "Hello." Now, the hello I got back almost made me change my mind about the sex of Jenny. It was hard and abrupt and I kinda felt violated. I knew that she was like the guys or even more than the guys she worked with, just to hold her ground. The guys were Jimmy, Jonathan, Jeremy and Jacques. I called them the J-team. The only people in the cellar, whose name didn't start with a J was me and Cerina's.