Last week, I spent yet another fabulous evening  in the company of good wine, sumptuous food and great friends – all thanks to Savvy Sisters.  Savvy Sisters is a women only wine club and this was my third tasting with them. You can read about the earlier events here and here.

In support of breast cancer, the theme of the tasting was pink and 6 varieties of Rosé wines awaited us.  A part of the ticket money was also going to go to CANSA (The Cancer Association of South Africa). In a nutshell – drinking for a good cause!

Savvy Sisters holds its tastings in different restaurants across the city. This not only gives us a chance to taste new wines but also helps explore new eateries. This time around, the selected venue was the Full Stop Cafe in Parktown North. Large inter-leading rooms, a nice bar, a big indoors dining area and a beautiful outside garden and patio is what the Cafe offers its diners. The wine tasting was being held outside, amidst twinkling fairy lights. The cool Jozi summer evenings are best enjoyed outdoors!

We were greeted with a glass of bubbly on arrival and shown to our allocated table. Promptly at 7:30pm, the speaker for the evening (his name eludes me now), started the tasting, explaining each of the 6 wines in great detail. Although rosé wines have traditionally been sweet wines, you can get some great dry ones these days.

Not being a big fan of sweet, I had my inhibitions about this tasting but I was pleasantly surprised. Light, fruity and zesty – some of the wines were ideal for a hot summer afternoon!

The tasting included wines such as Gorgeous (Graham Beck), Daisy Darling (Cloof), Provenance Shiraz (Saronsberg) and Caruso (Morgenster). But the big winners of the evening were Flat Roof Manor’s Pinot Rose Light and Zandvliet’s My Best Friend.

The tasting was followed by dinner and dessert. Ample portions of bread with yummy dips, served during the tasting had kept the hunger at bay but we were all looking forward to the mains which was a portion of stir fried noodles with a choice of beef, chicken or prawns. Although the food took a while, when it came, it was hot and delicious. The only disappointment was the caramel custard, which did not really make the mark. However, it did not really hamper an evening full of fun, laughter and good wine!

The next tasting is on 27th November. It’s a bubbly event and also the last one for this year. I am already looking forward to it and in case you are interested, visit the Savvy Sisters website to know more.