Sommelier Luvo Ntezo and celebrity chef, Reuben Riffel, plan a series of fabulous evenings of food and wine at One & Only Cape Town.

South Africa, Cape Town, December 2011; One & Only Cape Town has plenty of treats in store for gourmands and wine-lovers alike in 2012! The hotel’s award-winning sommelier, Luvo Ntezo, has worked with chef Reuben Riffel and some of the top winemakers in South Africa to present a baker’s dozen of dinners where the finest of ingredients are turned into culinary delights, perfectly paired with the very best of wines. The evenings are small and intimate (only 30 places available at each one), giving guests plenty of opportunity to chat with Luvo and the winemaker as they enjoy the food and wine. “I like Reuben’s approach to food and his combining of South African and international flavours – this works very well with our wine collection which is based on the same principles”, explains Luvo who says “I tell my team that we are the hosts at a dinner where our aim is to ensure our guests never forget the combined wine and food experience”.

The outstanding combination of the hotel, the sommelier and the chef has ensured that they have attracted some of the best winemakers in the country to join them over the coming months. The programme kicks off on 28th March with Groote Post Estate in Darling. The estate is owned by the Pentz family and specialises in cool-climate white wines – Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and a particularly fine example of Riesling, a variety renowned for its food-friendly properties and sure to excite both chef and sommelier alike! The following month, diners will be joined by Arco Laarman, winemaker from Glen Carlou, who will be showing off the versatility of their signature grape, Chardonnay.  Join Arco on the 25th April as he gives fascinating insights into the use of huge concrete eggs in their winemaking!

May sees the turn of the erudite, ebullient and always entertaining Pieter ‘Bubbles’ Ferreira of Graham Beck Wines. Pieter is a renowned ‘foodie’ himself and he will be showing some of his favourite food-friendly wines including his range of award-winning Cap Classiques – now the tipple of choice for James Bond, according to the latest book, ‘Carte Blanche’! Join Pieter for an evening of bubbles and bonhomie on the 30th May.

Boekenhoutskloof Wines is the definitive Platter Guide’s Winery of the Year and owner/cellarmaster Marc Kent, will be explaining his philosophy and illustrating it with his Five Star wines on the night of the 27th June at what is sure to be one of the most popular events of the series. The following month on 25th July will see La Motte estate from Franschhoek joining the team with their organic Pierneef collection offering a refreshing and modern twist on the normal food and wine pairing. The 29th August dinner will showcase the wines of Constantia’s finest winery, Steenberg, when Cellarmaster and GM John Loubser will take you through all the thrills and triumphs of growing Sauvignon Blanc in one of the coolest regions in the country.

Ken Forrester aka ‘the King of Chenin’ will be the guest on the 26th September bringing with him his legendary wit, charm and range of benchmark Chenin Blancs. But far from being a ‘one-hit wonder’, red wine-lovers can also look forward to some stellar Grenache and Rhone blends as Ken was one of the pioneers for this variety in SA.  2012 will be the first vintage for Kanu’s new winemaker, Adam Mason, who will be hosting the dinner on 31st October. His previous experience includes making South Africa’s iconic Vin de Constance at Klein Constantia, and the wine world is a-quiver with excitement and anticipation to see what dizzy heights he can achieve at Kanu. The programme will be brought to a triumphant finale by Nitida Wines on 28th November where owner/winemaker Bernhard Veller will be getting into the festive spirit with a glass of his unusual sparkling Shiraz before showing his uniformly excellent range of Bordeaux varietals and blends.

All the dinners are limited as to numbers, and each is priced at R325 offering a high quality and excellent value evening out. Whether you are a wine ‘fundi’ (a local Xhosa term for somebody who is knowledgeable about a subject), or simply enjoy a convivial evening of good food, wine and company, these dinners offer something for everybody. As Luvo says “there are no golden or unbreakable rules with wine in my opinion, and we want to encourage people to explore their own taste preferences. If we can show them something new to enjoy along the way, we’ve done a good job”.

To reserve your table at Reuben’s One&Only Cape Town, call (27) (21) 431 4511 or mail to restaurant.reservations@oneandonlycapetown.com.

ENDS/

EDITOR’S NOTES:

Wine & Dine Evenings 2012:

REUBEN’S ONE&ONLY CAPE TOWN
28th March 2012-Groote Post Wines
25th April 2012-Glen Carlou Estate
30th  May 2012-Graham Beck Wines
27th June 2012- Boekenhoutskloof Wines
25th July 2012-La Motte Estate
29th August 2012- Steenberg estate
26th September 2012- Ken Forrester Wines
31st October 2012- Kanu Wines
28th November 2012-Nitida Estate 

About One&Only Resorts
Created exclusively for the luxury resort market, One&Only Resorts are conceived as hallmarks of excellence.  Set in some of the most beautiful locales in the world, each award-winning resort offers guests a distinctive style and personality borne of its local culture, a genuine hospitality and a lively energy that is unrivalled. 

These properties include One&Only Reethi Rah, Maldives; One&Only Le Saint Géran in Mauritius; One&Only Royal Mirage in Dubai; One&Only Ocean Club in The Bahamas, One&Only Palmilla in Los Cabos, Mexico and One&Only Cape Town, South Africa.  One&Only The Palm, Dubai opened in November 2010. More information on One&Only is available at oneandonlyresorts.com

Kerzner International Holdings Limited, through its subsidiaries, is a leading international developer and operator of destination resorts, casinos and luxury hotels.  Kerzner’s flagship brand is Atlantis, which includes Atlantis, Paradise Island, a 2,317 room ocean-themed destination resort in The Bahamas, as well as The Cove Atlantis and The Reef Atlantis.  Kerzner extended its Atlantis brand globally with the development of Atlantis, The Palm, Dubai, a 1,500-room, water-themed resort opened in late 2008 on The Palm.  Mazagan Beach Resort, a 500-room destination casino resort in Morocco, opened in October 2009.  Kerzner also manages seven of the top-rated luxury resort properties in the world, under the One&Only brand, which are located in The Bahamas, Mexico, Mauritius, the Maldives, South Africa and Dubai.  The latest addition to the collection, One&Only The Palm, Dubai, opened in November 2010.  For more information concerning Kerzner and its operating subsidiaries, visit kerzner.com.