As we approach the festive season, with which celebration is synonymous, you are invited to join Philip on an exploration into the personality of each of his acclaimed bubblies and decide who you would welcome as an auspicious guest at your festive affair. Philip, the wordsmith, confesses that wine is indissolubly part of his make-up, pulsing through his veins: it is, he says, a love affair ‘was birthed founding great-grandfather in 1912, before he was born’. He invites you to share in a taste of his experience: the enchantment that is his life. Join him on a journey into the sublime world of wine and words: his passion and his art.
Entheos, a blend of 60% chardonnay and 40% pinot noir, is an exquisite blend of creaminess and vibrancy and is ideal for daily enjoyment. It is arguably the most obvious choice for inclusion at any festive celebration in that it is highly acclaimed - the wine was awarded Best Non-Vintage Cap Classique at last year’s Wine Magazine Amorim Cap Classique Challenge and is also the recipient of the SAA Trophy for Best MCC served on SAA Premium Class for 2010/2011 – while, at the same time, easy-drinking and delicious. Philip reckons that Entheos is a ‘must have’ daily tipple and should have a ‘set place in the fridge’. Enjoy Entheos on its own or with oysters, sushi and most light canapés. It is also the most fitting to the festive theme in that, its very name, from the Greek root, denotes all that the festive season is meant to embrace: namely, enthusiasm, exuberance, joy and excitement.
The inaugural bubbly in the Weltevrede Philip Jonker Cap Classique Collection, The Ring, a 100% chardonnay Blanc de Blancs vintage Cap Classique originally called Philip Jonker Brut - was first produced twelve years ago, and was afforded the highest honour of being hailed overall winner at the 2005 Wine Magazine Amorim Cork Cap Classique Challenge. The Ring (current vintage 2007) denotes a tribute to friendship and commitment given that it demarcates a highly charged sentimental milestone signifying the covenant of marriage between Philip and ‘Cragmere-farm-girl’ Lindelize – the first cork of the bubbly was popped under a Karoo Oak tree where he wed his lovely barefoot bride. Two to three years on the lees, The Ring is ideally suited to salmon, oysters and flavourful canapés.
Lindelize, released last year, is Philip’s latest addition to his range of gorgeous Cap Classiques: a rosé made from pinot noir. Named after Philip Jonker’s wife, Lindelize celebrates the first ‘butterflies’ one feels when falling in love . An excellent dessert wine, why not culminate feasting with fresh strawberries and cream or Turkish delight paired with the luscious Lindelize? A salmon-coloured Cap Classique with a delicate mousse; a yeasty nose with hints of cherries, strawberries and freshly picked rose petals; a slight peachiness on the palate with a lingering finish.
Aletheia – A 60% pinot noir and 40% chardonnay blend matured in French oak barrels before the second fermentation - Aletheia celebrates honesty, integrity and unpretentious living. During the festive season, when all the guests have left and the void remains where joy and joviality and love once dwelt, enjoy Aletheia with your beloved and revel in the beauty of not needing to don a mask, but being loved for the primal soul within. Here, with the withdrawing grate of festivity and the sweet-sorrow of parting, you may stand with your beloved and be comforted, real, genuine. Aletheia is a rich, yeasty style of Cap Classique with flavours of orange peel, vanilla oak and cream permeating throughout. With a minimum of 3 years on the lees, Aletheia is a bold, complex vintage Cap Classique (current vintage 2006).
Philip suggests that all of the Cap Classiques in the Weltevrede Philip Jonker Brut Collection are ideal complements to a variety of delicious canapés, as well as hearty and eclectic culinary celebrations. The festive season provides every perfect excuse to sip on the so-fizz-tication of bubbles … . with all the manifold experiences and emotions that come with reuniting of families and friends, festivity, intimacy and the sweet-sorrow of farewell… there is a time for every one of these delightful bubblies in the Philip Jonker portfolio!