If you think this year has gone past fast, then consider the 5 weeks (35 days) at Painted Wolf Wines and compare us to the painted wolves we love so much – we have been on the trot, covering thousands of kilometres to spread the word on wine and wild dogs. On 31 October, we celebrated the opening of our tasting and sales room at 125 Main Road Paarl with an all-day party. Following that wonderful wine sipping event, our pack dispersed to spread the word around the country.
Except Emma.
E is for Emma, exceptional and east
Emma, cementing her role as our Far East adventurer, jetted off to Shanghai for Prowine China. It took Emma 24 hours and 3 different planes to reach Shanghai, but then only 7 minutes and 20 seconds to travel the 30km from the airport to the city on the Shanghai Maglev (magnetic levitation) train. That’s 14.6 seconds per km or in bush terms – 5 times faster than a painted wolf at top speed. This was Emma’s second time pouring our wines in China at the international show, ProWine. In 2015 she came away with a thick wad of business cards and a small order. This year there were a great deal fewer cards, but those visiting were looking for higher end wines offering great value for money. The Peloton blends were chosen to be poured at SA wines tasting seminars at the show, while our single vineyard Pack wines and premium Pictus wines drew a lot of attention.
Meanwhile in South Africa
Jeremy took our wines to the first Bottl’d event at Sea point,
entertained three members of the Wine Mafia from Russia (and interpreter Alexei) in our tasting room – that is really the name they go by, proving that tough guys love small fluffs.
Next stop was Abingdon Wine Estate in KZN to present our wines to about 60 guests. The event was incredibly well received with many of the tasters ordering wine to take home. A result we love!
Then it was up to Joburg to present our wines at Saturday lunch at Possums on Burnside Restaurant in Craighall, ride the 94.7 cycle challenge the next day and then zip up to the Lowveld for meetings in the bush (tough life) and an Endangered Wildlife trust fundraising dinner in Hoedspruit.
Back to Joburg for an open house for our best Gauteng pack of supporters and then a six course Sunday lunch at Stef’s Table in Hartbeespoort.
Can we breathe yet?
By this time, Emma was back in Paarl and we were gearing up for Wine In Paarl – an event organised by our building partners in Paarl, Sit Café. Several wineries set up tables on the porch and around the building, Sit café offered a delicious lunch menu and Cathy Milner held a pop up studio sale of her artwork. It was enjoyed by all who attended and hopefully, the word will be spread and more people will attend further WIP events.
Coming up?
Wine On Wednesdays! We have decided that the middle of the week is a perfect time to open until 8p.m. and give our working fans the opportunity to stop by after work and have a glass of wine with us. Sit Café will also be open for the odd light nibble and any wines purchased during our barking mad hour (6-7 pm) will be discounted.
We will be presenting various special wines at these events. On December 12, visitors will be able to indulge in a pre-launch tasting of our latest Pictus white blend – Pictus VI. Despite not being launched into society yet – this little debutant has impressed the wine judges and achieved 92/100 in the Cape White Blend report (Pictus V achieved 91/100 and Peloton Blanc 2016 93/100 in previous years) as well as 4½ stars from Platter.
Pop in if you are in the area. Not in the area, but planning a visit? Wine on Wednesday will continue throughout December except for the 26th when the tasting room will be closed.