Pair a dish of fresh, spiced seafood with its ultimate match.
A glass of crisp yet creamy-textured Sauvignon blanc; Nederburg’s Heritage Heroes The Young Airhawk barrel-fermented Sauvignon Blanc of the 2016 vintage, is just right.
Awarded a gold medal at the prestigious The Drinks Business Global Sauvignon Blanc Masters 2017 competition, this wine is an excellent choice.
Its layered flavours of gooseberries, green figs and minerality, coupled with complexity and slight creaminess, provide an apt counterpoint to slightly spicy dishes. Popular South African chef, Pete Goffe-Wood’s salt and pepper squid with jalapeno and honey dipping sauce provides an ideal complement to this wine. – Nederburg white-wine maker Elmarie Botes explains.
Elmarie works closely under the leadership of multi-talented cellar-master Andrea Freeborough at the Nederburg winery in Paarl. A winery with a rich history dating back to 1791, its pioneers had an immense appetite for innovation, but went about their exploration in a very disciplined manner.
The Heritage Heroes is a collection of handmade, ultra-premium wines, with each individually named to honour some of the legends who shaped the winery. For example, The Young Airhawk honours the son of Johann and Ilse Graue: talented young winemaker, Arnold Graue.
A young man who loved action and adventure, he signed on as a trainee air-gunner with the South African Air Force straight after school, In 1942. After World War II in 1945, his parents sent him to the Wädenswil Wine Research Institute on Lake Zurich and then on to the world-famous Geisenheim in the Rheingau region of Germany to study and grow. On his return to South Africa in 1948, he was immensely excited to stretch his wings with his newly acquired wine-growing and wine-making skills.
He set up a laboratory to refine the cold-fermentation technique his father had introduced and found an innovative way to sterilise wine bottles. Although undoubtedly focused on his role at Nederburg, he always found time for fun and enjoyed hiring a Piper Cruiser to fly over the Cape Peninsula, sometimes passing low over Nederburg, dipping a wing in greeting.
A talented winemaker, his life was tragically cut short after he hired a light aircraft to celebrate a perfect spring day and died in a fatal collision with another aircraft in 1953. Less than two weeks after his untimely death, Nederburg broke all records on the Western Province Wine Show held in Paarl, winning 12 first prizes, the General Smuts trophy for best wine and a gold medal for scoring the highest number of points on the show. His exceptional winemaking skill lived on.
Nederburg The Young Airhawk Sauvignon Blanc captures the spirit of this driven young man.
Owing to the hot, dry conditions of the 2016 vintage, the grapes, sourced from selected vineyards in Elgin, Darling and Cape Agulhas, were hand-harvested earlier than usual to maintain the freshness typically associated with Sauvignon blanc. The fruit was fermented and matured on the lees, in second- and third-fill oak barrels for six months, to add creaminess and complexity to the eventual wine. Sourcing grapes from different areas contributed different facets of the varietal’s character – Elmarie elaborates.
Pair The Young Airhawk Sauvignon Blanc, which celebrates Arnold’s creativity and daring sense of adventure, with this Salt & Pepper Squid Recipe below.
RECIPE: Salt and pepper squid with jalapeno and honey dipping sauce, by chef Pete Goffe-Wood
Paired with Nederburg Heritage Heroes The Young Airhawk Sauvignon Blanc 2016
Serves 4
Ingredients
360g squid
Flour seasoned with salt and pepper
20g rocket
Jalapeno and coriander dipping sauce
Method
Dredge the squid in the seasoned flour and drop into the deep fryer until crisp and golden brown. Arrange the rocket on the side of the plate. Place the fried squid in a pile next to it. Serve with a jalapeno and coriander dipping sauce, and a lemon wedge.
Jalapeno & coriander dipping sauce
Ingredients
4 egg yolks
2 tblsp pure honey
2 tblsp Dijon mustard
500ml canola oil
50ml lemon juice
6 finely chopped chillies
1 handful roughly chopped coriander
Salt
Pepper
Method
Put the egg yolks and mustard in the mixer. Slowly add the oil and honey, and as it begins to thicken, add a little of the lemon juice. If the mixture is still a little thick then thin it out with a dash of water. Add all of the chopped ingredients and season to taste.
