Last week, I had the privilege of joining the #Stellenblog group of bloggers on an amazing journey of discovering the magic of Stellenbosch. Acting as the local host, I had the opportunity to show them around the streets and sights, and tell them more about my home town as one of the top destinations in the world.
It was a whirlwind week of fine dining, wine drinking, street hopping, spa pampering, local food discovery, sight seeing, breathtaking views, and making friends. While the rest of the world were enjoying the content on a digital platform, I was experiencing everything first hand with real people. It wasn’t only the Stellenblog group that left an impression, but also the winemakers, restaurant hosts, chefs, local food experts, hotel staff, tour managers, and drivers. Stellenbosch truly is a magical destination with unforgettable people and mesmerizing offerings!
Here are my #Stellenblog highlights in pictures – I’ve picked my favourites from the week, as taken by myself , Niamh Shields , Matt Long , Norman Roehlig , Keith Jenkins and Natalie Roos . You can track all of the #Stellenblog social feeds here .
Thank you Stellenbosch Wine Routes and Destinate for an unforgettable week!
See more pictures of the official media tweet-up and launch party here .
Click on the thumbnails below for a larger view.
Day 1: The breathtaking view from Dornier’s restaurant, Bodega (by Keith Jenkins)
Day 1: Norman enjoying the fabulous tapas lunch at Dornier’s Bodega Restaurant (pic by Niamh Shields)
Day 1: Pictures always come first at every meal! Matt taking a shot of lunch at Dornier. (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 1: Keith’s at the tweet-up, starting at Bartinney Wine Bar (by Keith Jenkins)
Day 1: Niamh, Nicola, Christine & Norman at the tweet-up at Brampton Wine Studio (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 1: Stellenbosch’s Cape Dutch architecture (by Keith Jenkins)
Day 1: The red carpet entrance to the Stellenblog launch party at Dornier Manor House (by Stuart Buchanan for Stb Wine Routes)
Day 1: Partying up a storm with my friend Fritz Brand at the Stellenblog launch party at Dornier (taken with my phone by my friend Erin Nel)
Day 1: Niamh, Norman, Keith and Matt at the launch party (by Stuart Buchanan for Stb Wine Routes)
Day 2: Breakfast at the majestic Lanzerac Estate (by Keith Jenkins)
Day 2: A wine drive and private wine tasting at Warwick Estate (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 2: Pinotage and splendid views at Warwick (by Keith Jenkins)
Day 2: Cheese, olives, charcuterie at Warwick (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 2: Natalie & Keith seated for lunch at Tokara (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 2: Tasting some top class wines at Tokara Restaurant with Norman (by Keith Jenkins)
Day 2: A lunch collage, Tokara (by Matt Long)
Day 2: Chef Richard Carstens telling us more about our starter, Tokara (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 2: Bertus Basson from Overture with his new braai wagon “Braai Spice”, braaing for us at the Dornier villa (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 3: Ready for a little bike tour! Keith, me and Natalie (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 3: On our Adventure Shop bikes, heading for Waterford (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 3: A wine drive with Kevin Arnold of Waterford, Matt taking the opportunity for a picture (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 3: Kevin Arnold giving us a wine tasting at the top of the hill at Waterford Estate (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 3: Wine & chocolate tasting at Waterford (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 3: Wine blending experience at Middelvlei Wine Estate, with braai pairing (by Keith Jenkins)
Day 3: Latiefa Palmer from Bites & Sites Tours ready to cook alongside me for our food demo (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 3: Everybody’s cameras on Latiefa as she shows us how to roll out rotis (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 3: Norman tries his hand at rolling out a round roti (taken by Niamh with Norman’s phone)
Day 4: A royal breakfast spread at Majeka House (by Keith Jenkins)
Day 4: One of the rooms at Evergreen manor, where I had my spa treatment. They are located right on campus. (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 4: Ma Lily from Khayamandi teaching the bloggers how to cook traditional Xhosa food (by Niamh Shields)
Day 4: The most beautiful Ma Lily in her traditional Xhosa attire (by Matt Long)
Day 4: Norman gets to pose with the children in Khayamandi. He calls it “my African moment” (by Norman Roehlig)
Day 4: Chef Michael Broughton from Terroir explaining the fabulous menu for our last dinner (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 4: Prawn risotto at Terroir, Kleine Zalze (by Natalie Roos)
Day 5: Coffee at Schoon de Companje, our last breakfast before saying good bye (by Ilse van der Merwe)
Day 5: The classy baristas making their magic at Schoon de Companje.
Looks like you had an awesome time! Wonderful post!
Well done on a very interesting blog. Lots of great pictures too.
It looks like you guys had a really great time. We hope to welcome you back to Warwick again soon.
@WarwickWine
Thanks Mike, we had a splendid time at Warwick, thanks for having us! x