On 14 July 1789 the French peasants stormed the Bastille in Paris marking the start of the French Revolution and the birth of democracy. Here in our little French corner, we celebrate with our Huguenot forefathers the same freedom, raising a glass of Pinot Noir or Pierre Jourdan MCC bubbly to liberté, egalité et fraternité.

The annual Bastille Festival will be taking place in Franschhoek from 11 to 12 July. Once again the village will be festooned in the traditional red, white and blue tricolor and there will be many stalls and events for old and young.

It has become tradition that Pierre Jourdan sponsors the boule tournament which takes place on both the Saturday and Sunday from 08:00 to 17:00 in the grounds of the NG Church. This is a fun but also a nail-biting competition for an excellent cause. All proceeds go to our local SPCA! Come along, have a go and join in the passion! There'll be a Cabrière stall in the grounds offering Pierre Jourdan 'Champagne equivalent' bubbly for boules participants and supporters. Remember Napoleon's wise words: "Champagne is well deserved in victory and much needed in defeat".

There will also be a stall for tasting of several of our popular wines in the main marquee. Furthermore, make sure you visit the Haute Cabrière Restaurant stall, serving tempura prawns with lemon and chermoula mayonnaise. This will go down a treat with our Haute Cabrière Chardonnay Pinot Noir!

The restaurant will be offering a special winter menu: a 2 course set lunch with a glass of Pierre Jourdan Brut for R100.00. This special runs from 1 July until 30 September, but remember the restaurant is closed for the last 3 weeks of August for renovations, so book now. The tasting venue at the Haute Cabrière cellar will be open for your convenience during the Bastille festival days till 16.00.

You can look forward to tasting the newly released 2006 Haute Cabrière Pinot Noir during the Bastille Weekend. It is deliciously rich and fruity and will go well with lamb, pork fillet with Dijon mustard sauce, guinea fowl or veal. Make sure you stock up well, as you will need to keep some bottles in your cellar. Achim opened a bottle of the 1998 vintage the other day, and it was sublime: still full of fruit but backed by gentle, well-rounded wood flavours, a decade after it was put in the bottle.



The French with their love for life have, interestingly enough, always had a woman symbolizing their culture, known as Marianne. Delacroix's famous painting [above] titled 'Liberty leading the people' depicts Marianne leading the peasants to victory in the French Revolution. The Huguenots, whose 'revolution' for spiritual liberty was suppressed a century earlier, brought her with them to Africa as the symbol of their courage. Please note the magnificent female figure, broken free from the chains of suppression, in the centre of the Huguenot monument in our village!

As we, at Cabrière, recently had the pleasure of a visit by Freshly Ground female lead singer Zolani Mohala, a dynamo of energy and poetry, we feel it appropriate to let her big smile brighten up this letter that celebrates the spirit of Bastille. Quite fascinating that one of her best known songs is titled "Ma Cherie" the French for "My darling". Zolani professes Cabrière to be her favourite winery! She enjoyed slicing off the top of a bottle of Pierre Jourdan Belle Rose with great aplomb and a little help from Achim.

We look forward to celebrate Bastille day with you!

All the best to you,
Hildegard and the Cabriere team.

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