The Vineyard Hotel will continue its tantalising ‘Tastes of 2014’ culinary calendar this year, by serving a series of themed dishes and wine-paired dinners in the elegant Square Restaurant. The annual ‘Tastes’ campaign will run throughout winter from April to October, and is dedicated to the year 1894 when The Vineyard Hotel first opened.
Luck of the Irish
In May, we’ll be honouring the formidable Irishwoman Mrs O’Sullivan, the hotel’s very first manager, by serving Irish-sourced cuisine – explains food and beverage manager Matt Deitchman.
Starters include a hot smoked salmon trout and horseradish mouse with fresh soda bread, watercress purée and sundried tomatoes; or a warming potato and leek soup. “For mains, we’ve planned a pulled short rib and Guinness ‘Pie’ with colcannon purée and split-green peas; or a typical Irish lamb stew with roasted butternut, turnip, baby onion and beetroot with fried herb dumplings,” says Deitchman.
Rounding off this fine Irish display are a steamed Guinness ale and dark chocolate pudding, toffee ice cream topped with rich Irish coffee cream; or a delicious Bailey’s baked cheesecake with pistachio shamrock biscuits.
‘Tastes of 2014’ showcases additional wine-paired dinners co-hosted by several of the country’s most distinguished estates which, like the Vineyard Hotel, have the number 120 built into their stories. Roy Davies, general manager, says: “We wanted to find the best possible way to augment our 120-year message of origin, so we requested that each wine estate provide a motivation on how ‘120’ ties into their history too. We were intrigued by the responses!”
The first dinner of the month takes place on Friday, 6 June, co-hosted by Simonsig Wine Estate. On the 20 June, Beaumont Wine Estate has been invited to The Vineyard Hotel.
This year the hotel will conduct a special extra: a pre-tasting. To avoid disappointment, guests are encouraged to make early reservations for both the pre-tasting and the dinner. The four-course option is priced at R295, while the five-course option costs R350.
Stay Over
The Vineyard Hotel will be pulling out all the stops by offering a special bed-and-breakfast rate to wine-paired diners. Four-course diners will be accommodated in single rooms at R995 per night and double rooms at R1 690, while those indulging in the five-course option will pay R1 055 per night for a single room and R1 790 per night for a double. Both options are applicable for Friday 9 and 23 May, and include accommodation, attendance at the wine-paired dinner, and breakfast on the Saturday morning.
For the full schedule of wine-paired dinners, visit www.vineyard.co.za, while for more info or to make a reservation, call 021 657 4500 or send an enquiry to eat@vineyard.co.za. Those on social media can stay informed of the latest culinary news by following us on Twitter @Vineyard_Hotel, or visiting www.facebook.com/vineyardhotelandspa.
Directions to The Vineyard
Colinton Road (off Protea Road)
Newlands
021 657 4500
eat@vineyard.co.za
