Long, leisurely, Lord’s

We are very lucky to live in a beautiful valley that produces wonderful wine and creates fabulous opportunities for celebrating not just wine, but its talented cellar masters and wine makers.  The Robertson Slow Festival is unique.  It is a genteel, intimate and relaxed festival that spreads itself through the valley.  People come together in a multitude of places, including working cellars – like the one up the road from where we live. The Lord’s Cellar is, literally, on the Road to Nowhere.  One must choose to go there –  like one chooses to come to McGregor.  You cannot decide to drop in on your way past.  That’s part of the reason we like McGregor, and Lord’s.  The other reasons are the people – and the wine!  Lord’s wines make any occasion special… Late on Saturday afternoon, we headed up the Road to Nowhere.  The day had started off cool and misty, but had cleared into a beautiful, balmy spring afternoon.  We were greeted, as always, by the ever gracious host, Jacie Oosthuizen.  Lord’s (named for the cricket ground and his passion for the game)  is his brainchild, and is a boutique winery nestled in the mountains and surrounded by fynbos.  Winter is when fynbos is at its most beautiful, so this evening showcased some of the Western Cape’s most beautiful flora.       It was a slow, relaxed afternoon and evening of friends (new and not-so-new) and families associated with Lord’s, Jacie and his wife, the wine maker, Ilse Schutte, her husband and family who were responsible for the traditional Suid Afrikaanse poitjie kos (South African “little pot” food), home made bread and brownies…   The time flew – wonderful conversation about life and wine, live music provided by our neighbour, Konrad, that had some of us dancing…not quite on the tables, but dancing, nevertheless…