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9:47 PM

August - Summer Wine

Another Great Summer Wine Article

Worcester Travel Guide in the Winelands - South Africa


The town of Worcester in South Africa was founded in 1822. The town today is mainly the service centre for the surrounding wine and fruit growing areas in the Breede River Valley. Worcester lies at the N1 freeway connecting Cape Town and Johannesburg and is an ideal place for a stopover, since it has some interesting tourist attractions to offer.

At the Kleinplasie open-air museum one can gain an insight into the living conditions of the first settlers. A farm from the 18th century, a hut of the Trekboers and a Khoikhoi camp have been rebuilt and furnished true to detail. Actors in historical dresses reinvoke the rural life of the old days. Visitors can watch how they manufactured soap, rolled tobacco, forged horseshoes, milled wheat, spun wool and much more.

To the wine lover, Worcester offers a big Wine Tasting Centre, where one can savor the excellent Breede River wines. Definitely worth a visit is the KWV Brandy Cellar, where one can gain an insight into art of brandy distillation.

Another attraction is the Karoo National Botanical Garden, about one kilometer north of Worcester. In this 144 hectare semi-desert nature reserve one can find a whole spectrum of Karoo plants.

Glider-flying enthusiasts find the only glider flying airfield in the Cape in Worcester. The Cape Gliding Club owns a whole range of one or two-seater glider planes, a towing aircraft and a tarred runway. Flying activities are usually limited to the weekends only. Visitors are welcome and can, under the supervision of a teacher, try flying themselves. Thermal winds and weather conditions in the Breede River Valley are excellent most of the year.

Worcester lies on the main route to and from Cape Town, Johannesburg and Port Elizabeth. With its wide range of services and commercial facilities, it has become the business and shopping centre for the entire valley and surrounding towns.

Things to See and Do:

Kleinplasie:

The Complex (next to the Robertson Road) comprises the agricultural showground's, an Open Air Living Museum, restaurant and wine cellar, as well as the Reptile World.

Kleinplasie Open Air Living Museum:

The unique open air museum depicts the lifestyle of the early pioneer farmers. Throughout the year a variety of activities are presented.

Karoo National Botanical Garden:

This jewel of a garden with 144ha of natural semi-desert vegetation and 10ha of landscaped gardens, features the unique plants of the drier parts of the country. Its greenhouse boast world famous collections of stone plants.

Brandy Route:

During the 325th brandy producing year in South Africa in 1997, the world's first Brandy Route was introduced, causing a stir amongst the world media. Public awareness was roused and brandy-lovers set about finding out more about the production and finer side of this noble fruit of the vine, by visiting the cellars along the Brandy Route.

The KWV Cellar, the largest of its kind in the world, is one of eight cellars on the Brandy Route. It's uniqueness lies in the 120 Woudberg potstills, huge maturation cellar and demonstrations of the ancient craft of barrel-making by the coopers.

The Olof Bergh Solera Cellar, at Goudine, is the other cellar in the Worcester region. Small but prolific, it accommodates 22 Woudberg copper potstills, similiar to those used in Cognac, France, for the distillation of high quality colombar wines. It is the only cellar in South Africa to practice the famous Spanish Solera method of maturation and blending.

Institute for the Blind:

Visitors are invited to come and see how the visually impaired are trained and how they work.

Institute for the Deaf:

Visitors are invited to come and see how the hearing impaired are trained and how they work.

Nuwe Hoop Centre for the Hearing Impaired:

A centre where children between the ages of three and twenty one years receive formal and technical training. Visitors are welcome.

Architectural Walking Routes:

Worcester was laid out according to a definite plan with parallel streets. This enables the visitor to take an easy walk through town and visit some prime examples of early architecture. Brochures are available at the Tourism Bureau.

Gift and Antique Shops:

Several interesting shops are dotted around town.

Gerald Crawford was born in South Africa, studied electronics, telecommunication, eco-travel and african travel concepts. He taught responsible tourism in South Africa. If you have any questions or comments please e-mail me on. E-mail Address: southafricantravelarticles@12234455.co.za Website Address: www.12234455.co.za



A Short Summer Wine Summary

Worcester Travel Guide in the Winelands - South Africa


The town of Worcester in South Africa was founded in 1822. The town today is mainly the service centre for the surrounding wine and fruit growing area...


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Recommended Summer Wine Items

Black Springs Reserve Shiraz


The Black Springs Shiraz makes a triumphant return! The McLaren Vale of South Australia is where this big and bold reserve is produced. With challenging soil, a hot climate, and only modest rainfall to work with, the winemaker, Neil Mcguigan, has created a full-bodied and fruity Shiraz, the King of Aussie dry red wine. Perfect wine gift! BSS04 BSS04


Price: 35.99 USD



Current Summer Wine News

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Sat, 26 Jul 2008 15:09:36 PDT
A friend's journey with wine over forty years, mainly with an Australian and New Zealand flavour. If you are a wine lover, this will be a good one to follow. If you love food it will be good too. Pork Tikka Masala will be on our menu this week. Thanks, Mike.

Top 10 Wines Under $10

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Choosing a good wine you enjoy can be complicated enough, but finding wine you enjoy that’s under ten dollars can be frustrating. Top Tenz is here to help. The next time you feel like having a nice bottle of wine but you only have $10 to spend here is a list you can trust to find the best wine for $10.

Woe to those who call evil good Isaiah 5:20-25 NIV

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Take Heed Necon's who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. 21 Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight. 22 Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine and champions at mixing drinks,..............

Confessions of a Wino - Lemelson Pinot Noir

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Seven Deadly Glasses PICs]

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Absolutely beautiful. Seven Deadly Glasses wine glasses are meant to physically represent each sin. So there's the phallic Pride glass, contrasting with the curly Greed glass—that hangs on to a few sips in its tentacles—and Sloth, which needs someone else to drip-feed you the good stuff.

Bingo Bango! 17th in a series. Photoshop Any Winehouse

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17th in a series of photoshop humor. Find a funny picture to throw your buddy's face on and mass mail to your company. Good old fashioned fun! Artist Luke Hodsdon. Title: "Amy Winehouse + Justin Moore-Brown = Justin Wine-Brown"


People Wine

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8:01 PM

August - Port Wine

A Featured Port Wine Article

Wine Classes: When School Gets Cool


When most people think of school, they are usually transported back to their elementary school days, a time of crayons, grumpy cafeteria ladies, and tennis shoes filled with playground gravel. Because they are taken back to a time of youth, people don?t usually think that ?school? and ?wine? belong in the same sentence; the school board would have had a fit the instance cartons of chocolate milk were replaced with bottles of Pinot Noir.



However, in adulthood wine and school often go together, merging with each other in the form of a wine class. A wine class, despite what some people may think, isn?t merely a class where students read the Grapes of Wrath or A Raisin in the Sun. Instead, a wine class teaches its students about wine tasting, wine clubs, wine glasses, wine openers, wine corks, and just about every wine related subject on the vine.



Why Take a Wine Class

From the newest novice to the ripest connoisseur, wine classes offer all sorts of things. For beginners, wine classes teach people how to truly taste wine, savoring its aroma and intricacies. This wine tasting helps novices to learn their preferences, get to know the vintages they really like, and allows them to identify the differences in wine, arming them with the ability to provide evaluation.



For the connoisseur, there is always more wine knowledge to obtain, no matter how much is already known. This is because wine contains so much information. From learning about the variety of wine glasses to learning about the differences in wine corks, the most accomplished wine drinker will still benefit from a class. When it comes to wine, the knowledge is nearly bottomless.



Wine classes also provides an outlet for people with commonalities to get together, discussing their hopes, their dreams, their Merlots. The classes are fun, lacking the monotony of reading a book or watching a film, and give the learner more hands on learning, a chance to grab the grape by the vine.



What Happens During a Wine Class?

On the first day of a wine class, people may understandably feel nervous, they might not know anyone or be worried that they have forgotten their corkscrew. But, of all the classes known to ever fill a schoolroom, wine classes are among the neatest to take. Trigonometry has nothing on ?em.



The syllabus of a wine class will differ from class to class and level to level. Overall, however, classes touch on a variety of topics. Some of the lessons include the basics of wine tasting, how to recognize specific flavors, how to compare wines, wine history, reading a wine label, navigating a wine store, at-home wine tasting, compiling a wine tasting kit, the differences of wine regions, using wine vocabulary, pairing food and wine, wine openers, wine corks, and ordering wine in a restaurant. Many of the courses include several in-class wine tastings as well as a few bottles for practicing at home.



Different Types of Wine Classes

Wine classes, like wine itself, come in all shapes and sizes. There are classes aimed at teaching people the specifics of wine glasses and there are classes that focus only on pairing wines with desserts. Some classes only offer instruction on tasting Italian wine, while some are focused on the tasting of wines from Australia. Certain classes may instruct a person how to purchase wine, while others may focus on the variety of wine openers.



While there are a variety of wine classes offered all over the world, some people may not be able to locate one near them. Others, wanting to get a leg up on other students by doing extra ?homework,? may simply be better off not driving. For these folks, online classes are offered. While these don?t allow for the interaction of physical wine classes, they are the next best thing. Some people, wanting to study independently or go at their own pace, may even prefer online classes to others.



The length of the wine class, as well as the cost, can drastically vary. Some classes are only a few hours long and cost around 40 dollars while other classes can last for several weeks and cost a few hundred dollars. Many of the classes have access to study materials online and offer, upon completion, certificates and diplomas (to frame and hang from the wall of your wine cellar).



Wine classes are a great, easy, and quick way to learn about wine. They allow you to go from novice to connoisseur in no time at all, arming you with the knowledge to impress friends, family, and yourself. Along these lines, they are also fun and enjoyable; while a pottery class takes a field trip to an art store, you may find your wine class taking a field trip to Napa Valley.

Jennifer Jordan is the senior editor at http://www.savoreachglass.com. With a vast knowledge of wine etiquette, she writes articles on everything from how to hold a glass of wine to how to hold your hair back after too many glasses. Ultimately, she writes her articles with the intention that readers will remember wine is fun and each glass of anything fun should always be savored.



A synopsis on Port Wine.

Wine Classes: When School Gets Cool


When most people think of school, they are usually transported back to their elementary school days, a time of crayons, grumpy cafeteria ladies, and t...


Click Here to Read More About Wine ...

Featured Port Wine Items

Baby Basket Boy Premium


Three cheers for the proud new parents! Celebrate the precious new infant with a Baby Bottle, Flannel Baby Blanket, Baby Cotton T-Shirt, Baby Booties, Plushed Stuffed Animal, Rubber Ducky and a Baby Teether. A bottle of the outstanding Vintage 2000 Methode Champenoise is included for mom and dad to celebrate a fantastic new achievement. A baby basket dedicated to celebrating the pleasures of newborn joy. BBB04P


Price: 108.95 USD



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Bull Street Beer Tasting

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 12:50:30 PDT
Bull Street Beer Tasting August 20, 2008 – 2:50 pm If you haven’t dropped by and seen the sign on their door, you may not know that Bull Street Gourmet is having a $5 beer and wine tasting on Thursday, August 21 (yes, five dollars!). Bull Street hosts the tastings every other Thursday to provide a place for people to sip some goodness and raise money for charity. This month’s charity is the World Wildlife Foundation, the famed panda-logoed organization helping to protect endangered species.

Swedish Hill 2007 Vidal Blanc is NY's top wine (AP via Yahoo! Finance)

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 12:34:54 PDT
Swedish Hill Winery in New York's Finger Lakes region swept the top two categories at this year's New York Wine & Food Classic, walking away with the coveted Governor's Cup for producing the state's best wine, and the title of "Winery of the Year."

Omnivore 100: How many have you eaten?

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 12:34:51 PDT
I've been seeing this for the last few days, but when Baking Soda, of Bake My Day published hers today I just had to give in to temptation. I had to find out how I stacked up in the world of culinary conquests, food finds, taste tests, nervy noshes.... And I really want to know how many other have eaten roadkill?!?! So, here it is: The list is from Very Good Taste on the 100 foods any self respecting omnivore should try at least once. Like to play along? 1) Copy this list into your blog or jo

Poconos to Host Wine and Food Fest (PAHomePage.com)

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 11:26:34 PDT
SHAWNEE ON DELAWARE - The Pocono Mountains are known for beautiful scenery, nature and outdoor activities. One group of people wants to add some things to that list...food and wine.

Swedish Hill 2007 Vidal Blanc is NY's top wine (The Post-Standard)

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 10:18:38 PDT
(AP) — Swedish Hill Winery in New York's Finger Lakes region is in high spirits after sweeping the top two categories at this year's New York Wine & Food Classic.


Wine Project

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