Olive Hamilton Russel
Olive Hamilton Russel

Sipping on champagne on a British Airways (BA) flight to London on New Year’s Eve! Anthony and I grinned at the craziness of seeing the new year in somewhere over the Democratic Republic of Congo with a planeload of strangers (to BA’s credit, it didn’t force any celebrations). But then we decided that it was rather appropriate, considering the hours we spend on aeroplanes and in airports every year.

We have the privilege of being the current custodians of a unique piece of land in the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley, where we produce one pinot noir and one chardonnay, sought after the world over. Last year we visited 12 countries, showing our wines at tastings and fairs, hosting lunches and dinners, and attending some spectacular parties. Bemused, we realised that in 2016 we spent more hours in Heathrow than in our little seaside village.

January 1 was celebrated with very dry Belvedere Martinis at the Connaught and a lovely lunch of native oysters and grilled sole at Scott’s. It was rather fabulous to be seated at the table next to the restaurant’s best-known denizen and his fashionable girlfriend, and order our very own Hamilton Russell Vineyards Chardonnay off the list. That afternoon saw us crossing the Atlantic and most of Canada, to finally arrive at winter wonderland Whistler.

I do always marvel at heavy snow with childlike delight — perhaps something to do with living near the southern tip of the African continent, where we don’t experience dramatic seasonality.

Over the next week we fell into a splendid routine of bagels and hot chocolate (with marshmallows, and occasionally a little Baileys), skiing, Glühwein, skiing, lunch (with more Glühwein), skiing, long hot bubble baths, dinner, and bed by 8pm. Our jetlag is perfect for West Coast skiing —early to rise and early to bed.
We experienced exceptional conditions, and gliding down a mountain through fresh powder snow with the sun glistening on the surrounding peaks and fir-tree tops, all under a big clear blue sky, has to be one of the most incredible feelings on earth. Or one of the most terrifying, if you are a beginner like me. I am, however, very happy to report that by the end of the week, I too could appreciate this extraordinary pleasure, and decided that my personal resolution for this year would be to continually push myself physically, mentally, and emotionally.

We are lucky to be doing something we adore, on South African land we love so deeply

On our last evening in the Canadian Rockies we joined the owners of well-known British Columbia winery, Poplar Grove, at their chalet, to share some lovely wines and admire their extensive collection of Haida wood carvings and Inuit stone carvings. We are now very tempted to build our own version of an Inukshuk on our farm.

January 9 and we are on a plane again to join our US importers at their national sales meeting in Birmingham, Alabama. It was a pleasure to present the new vintages of our Hamilton Russell Vineyards wines, as well as our Ashbourne and Southern Right, and field such excitement and enthusiasm from a sales team of about 60 people, working with one of the most respected portfolios of great French wines in the US. Another upside to being there was the opportunity to taste some of these. The pre-release 2015 Clos de Tart (one of the five Grand Cru monopoles together with Romanée-Conti, La Tâche, La Grande Rue, and La Romanée) was a definite highlight.

At the first festive dinner we were indulged with Ernesto Catena’s big but bright Tahuan Cabernet Sauvignon 2011, and I had the pleasure of sitting next to Matias Fraga, a former Catena employee, who now owns Maal wines in Mendoza. His unwooded Malbec Biutiful was truly beautiful and pure. On the second night, we relished consuming vast quantities of Delamotte Brut Blanc de Blancs 2007 and Domaine Weinbach Riesling 2008 from 3l bottles. A fabulous evening, but a horrid 3am start to get to Toronto. Will we ever learn?

Our time in Birmingham was not dedicated solely to wine appreciation. It would be remiss to visit Alabama and not spend time exploring the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. As South Africans of a certain age, we could really empathise.
The first sun we saw on January 12 was back in Canada, in vibrant Toronto. I am always taken with the profusion of glass-clad high-rises. We packed the day chock-full. Distributor meeting, customer visits, a press interview, and a customer dinner, and then a drive back to our hotel along Yonge Street — according to many Canadians the longest street in the world.

We felt rather nostalgic about our time on the slopes when greeted with almost Arctic air outside Trudeau airport, arriving on another early flight for only 10 hours in Montreal. More meetings, customer visits, and tastings! This beautiful city feels as if it could be in France (it even has its own Gothic Revival
Notre-Dame Basilica), and we were surprised by the extent of the monolingualism in Quebec.

Settling in on our flight home from Heathrow (more champagne!), after a quick en-route lunch at Le Caprice in St James’s, we reminded ourselves how lucky we are to be doing something we adore, on South African land we love so deeply; something that affords us the opportunity to meet so many fascinating people and spend time in such varied and interesting places. Much as we loved this trip, the home air was deeply comforting as we stepped off the aeroplane


February 2017

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