Guy & Adam in L.A.
My guest this week is Adam Mason winemaker at South African producer Mulderbosch. I had the pleasure of meeting Adam at the Los Angeles Food & Wine Festival and taste many of the current release wines. Always a favorite, Mulderbosch has been producing some of the best examples of high quality wine making from South Africa and Cape Town.
Since its founding in 1989, Mulderbosch Vineyards has widely been accepted as one of South Africa’s foremost wine producers. In 2011 Mulderbosch was bought by California-based investment company Terroir Capital with well known wine investor Charles Banks at the helm, who had long desired to invest in the Cape Winelands. Banks overhauled the winemaking and management teams, bringing in top winemaker Adam Mason who he had met several years earlier in the Napa Valley where Mason had worked a stint with highly regarded Napa winemaker Andy Erickson.
Although wine guide author John platter famously referred to the Mulderbosch Sauvignon Blanc as ”South Africa’s most celebrated Sauvignon”, Mulderbosch’s entire portfolio has consistently represented high quality wines of distinction for which it has gained an enviable track record. Offerings include our Faithful Hound Bordeaux-style blend, a varietal Cabernet Sauvignon Rosé, a Barrel fermented and lightly wooded style of Chardonnay, a Chenin Blanc sourced from predominantly old bush vines and a deliciously decadent Noble Late Harvest made from Sauvignon Blanc. Learn more here.
Adam Mason
ADAM MASON – WINE MAKER
After receiving his winemaking degree from Stellenbosch University in 1997, Adam spent the next six years working harvests in France, Spain and South Africa, acquiring the practical skills necessary to complete his formation as a winemaker. His tenure at Klein Constantia from 2003 to 2011 provided a valuable arena in which to explore one of the world’s great terroirs, “…a hugely grounding experience…” in his own words. Since joining Mulderbosch in 2012, he has found a new home full of challenges and opportunities, not least of which remains to pay tribute to the original ethos of this groundbreaking and distinctive wine company.
Good Life Guy’s Wine of the Week:
The South African Wines of Mulderbosch
Late in the second half I’ll be talking to David Haglund an Old Cowtown board member about this Sundays Old Cowtown Wine Mosey. An annual fund raising event that offers some great wine, Old West Entertainment, fantastic BBQ prepared by the Wagon Masters, and a great live auction.
Only at Cowtown could wine tasting and stagecoach rides make such a perfect combination. The Museum is hosting its 6th Annual Wine Mosey from 4-8 p.m. , Sunday, Sept. 14. Tickets are $50 per person, and are available online, in person at Cowtown or by phone at (316) 303-8100. The event is sponsored by Historic Wichita Cowtown, Inc., and is a fundraiser for the Museum. With the purchase of a ticket, attendees may visit wine stations throughout Cowtown to taste a assortment of wines. Western/casual attire and comfortable shoes are recommended.
Gun fight re-enactments, stagecoach rides, a show by the Dixie Lee Saloon Girls and outdoor antique bowling will add to the fun. Hors d’oeuvres will be provided by The Double Tree by Hilton Airport with a BBQ dinner courtesy of Cargill and the Wagonmasters. Dinner will be outdoors surrounded by the sounds of the Diamond W. Wranglers. And then it’s time for the the live auction with some fabulous packages featuring food, wine and more.
Chef Louis Foreman has found the perfect place to show case his eclectic, fresh ingredient driven, casual food style in beautiful Rose Hill Kansas. With roots in Louisiana and a great background of home cooking, catering, fast food and casual dinning Chef Louis has made an impact with neighbors and friends in Rose Hill and beyond. This isn’t fancy, no linen table cloths, just casual fun food.
100% Muscat Alexandria. Pale straw color. Fresh, fragrant and brimming with the aroma of Muscat grape, apple, mandarin orange and a pinch of wilted flowers. This generous white offers alluring flavors of peach, orange blossom, vanilla and spice. Off-dry, but this shows enough acidity for balance, and the wine remains light-footed. Wine Spectator 89
Most likely, when you think about Malibu, vineyards are not what come to mind. Beach mansions filled with celebrities or surfers riding the waves are more typical images. However, tucked into the Santa Monica Mountains is one of Southern California’s best-kept secrets — the vineyards of Malibu. Due to the hidden hills and remote canyons, it is possible to drive through the mountains and never see these vineyards. But from one-half acre backyards to thousand acre estates, there are more than 50 independent vineyards in the area today. And, with the imminence of Southern California’s newest American Viticulture Area, the Malibu Coast AVA, it is finally time that Malibu’s soil and climate are recognized as unique in their ability to grow wine grapes of distinction.
A typical blend of Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot, this wine is a great value from a storied Chateau. Wine Spectator: “Features dark, roasted alder and mesquite notes mixed together, followed by juicy layers of linzer torte, blackberry pâte de fruit and plum sauce. The long, anise-framed finish displays a serious graphite spine for length and definition. Best from 2014 through 2020. 12,000 cases made. Score: 91. —James Molesworth, 2013.”
All Things Barbecue, “Where Barbecue Legends are Made!”
