Sunday 19 June is Father’s Day, and Groot Constantia, Cape Town’s iconic wine estate that is the oldest wine producing farm in South Africa, has created a special Father’s Day gift hamper to mark the occasion.
The gift collection contains a bottle of Groot Constantia’s Shiraz wine, paired with a slab of their specially crafted artisanal Shiraz dark cherry chocolate, a jar of plump black olives, a package of South African fynbos culinary salt, and a hand-crafted leather key organizer.
The inspiration behind this special gift was to make it possible to bring Groot Constantia’s much-loved chocolate and wine pairing experience into people’s homes and treat special father figures at the same time. All of the items in the hamper are locally sourced and produced too.
Chocolate paired with wine is deliciously decadent, and the combination of the Groot Constantia Shiraz – with its spicy flavours and aromas of pepper, coriander and liquorice – with the specially created Shiraz chocolate that has white pepper, coriander and liquorice aromas, and a velvet, buttery cherry flavour, is a perfect match. Dark chocolate is the easiest to pair and matches well with deep, dark reds such as Groot Constantia’s award-winning Shiraz.
Some tasting tips
It’s important to tap into all five of your senses when doing a wine and chocolate pairing. First open the chocolate and be sure to listen to the rustle of the paper and slowly tear off the paper to reveal the delicious chocolate. Smell the chocolate and savour the aroma. Take a small piece and let it melt slowly in your mouth. To fully appreciate the chocolate’s scent, make sure you inhale through your mouth and out through your nose – this allows for the flavours and aromas to fully penetrate your senses. Think about the aroma, consider the flavour, texture and how long it lingers.
Then do the same with the wine. Look at the colour, smell it, enjoy the aroma. Take a sip and before you swallow, savour the flavours. Now it’s time to taste the two together. Take another small piece of chocolate, and allow it to begin melting in your mouth. Then take a sip of the wine. As you swallow the chocolate and the wine think about how the flavours work together. Are they both equally sweet? Do the flavours of the wine and chocolate meet at the end, or do they stand apart? Is the combination better than the two separate parts?
The special edition Father’s Day gift hamper is available to purchase online at www.grootconstantia.co.za or on the Groot Constantia Estate during the month of June only and stocks are limited. The hampers retails for R580 and are not offered in conjunction with any member discounts or vouchers.
For more information visit www.grootconstantia.co.za or connect with Groot Constantia via social media on Twitter, facebook and Instagram @GrootConstantia.
