October in your garden, cup or glass
I had a wonderful week filled with birthday celebrations and am once again grateful for my October birthday. In South Africa, it is the pret...Read More
Trieste – a terminology of treats
Sometimes you are surprised by what you find in a place that you visit for the first time. At another time, you know exactly what to expect....Read More
Our Warmest Welcome
Cape Wine, the Cape Winelands' international trade showcase that takes place every three years, was presented from the CTICC this week. The ...Read More
The Liquid Art of Hospitality
"Kom drink 'n teetjie!" This invitation for someone to join you for a cup of tea is at the heart of hospitality. It could just as well have ...Read More
Coffee – Island Style
When you dream about the drinks you’ll be sipping on when holidaying on a tropical island, coffee might not be on top of the list. It migh...Read More
We Want it All
They say that although younger generations drink less wine, they drink better wine. (Read more) And that the demand for quality coffee is ab...Read More
Global perspective for local support
The Cape Winelands is a wonderful place to live. Much of its appeal is of course the beautiful setting, proximity to Cape Town, exceptional ...Read More
Per Capita Consumption, captivating per se
Do you think the French drinks the most wine, the Dutch is the world leaders in cheese consumption and pizza-eating patterns are a close-cal...Read More
Friends in Business
Trump's “In many cases, the friend is worse than the foe in terms of trade", made me think of the importance of having friends in business...Read More
Counting on Cape Town
Cape Town is having a bumper tourism season and it is good news all around. While South Africa has done little over the last couple of years...Read More
Harvest 2025 – it’s a celebration!
The most exciting time in the Cape Winelands has arrived with the 2025 harvest kicking off across the various growing areas. It is such a ti...Read More
Ageing – an asset in 2025
With the arrival of a New Year, one sometimes has the same ambivalent feelings that you have with a birthday. Grateful for having made it th...Read More
A Sense of Community
The Franschhoek Village Market has been a trending topic on Franschhoek social platforms recently. A request from some local businesses to l...Read More
Variety is on the menu
Ask any foodie you know and they will probably list Italy, Spain and Japan as their dream food destinations. Whether you have been there, ar...Read More
An Economy of Sharing
Recently when we tried out a new bake in the La Motte Bakery, I noticed that it fell open into beautiful petals when it was cut - just ready...Read More
Exploring Danish Wine
Have you tried Danish wine? On a recent trip to Copenhagen, I learned that Denmark is about much more than Carlsberg and that this northernm...Read More
Tourism – Sustainability is our Responsibility
September announces a new season, and in South Africa, we take the opportunity to celebrate our heritage, our love for braai, and the import...Read More
Tourism – can we have too much of a good thing?
Tourism is such a positive concept to most of us. For tourists it implies travel, holiday and leisure and for those of us in the industry, i...Read More
All’s fine with fine dining
Are we even talking about the future of fine dining anymore? Perhaps, by now, we've come to realise that it will always be there, it will ju...Read More
The Poetry of Fynbos
Terminology like biodiversity and sustainability are part of our everyday wine jargon and in the Cape Winelands, fynbos is at the essence of...Read More
Keep a line in the water
To win a raffle, you have to buy a ticket. It is as simple as that. Your chances might be slim and you might have no way of influencing the ...Read More
Trends and Truths
Most of us agree that the world is a challenging place to live in today and there are many reasons why we might feel a little despondent. In...Read More
The Earth: Love It, Don’t Lose It
With Earth Day on 22 April, I was thinking about a call to action. This year's theme is planet vs plastics and my initial thoughts were abou...Read More
Custodians of Cape Winelands Culture
Following one of the windiest nights I've experienced while living in the Cape Winelands, we awoke on Sunday morning to social media sharing...Read More
Restaurant Reality
I remember when I grew up, farmers used to say that if in your lifetime, you manage to double the land you own, you know you are farming su...Read More
Wine – its place, beauty and business
Here we are - at the end of 2023! I always love doing an overview of the top performing blogs to see what appealed most to readers in the pa...Read More
Raising a glass to SA Wine Tourism
This week I attended the awards ceremony of the South African edition of the Great Wine Capitals of the World Best of Wine Tourism Awards. (...Read More
The Beauty of a Building
When we opened La Motte's historic werf to the public earlier this year, it introduced a new era for the historic Cape Dutch buildings on th...Read More
What’s on in Franschhoek?
Last week I wrote about our wonderful walking holiday through rural Italy. Often during this unique experience, I noticed similarities with ...Read More
The Charm of Hidden Italy
I've been fortunate to enjoy many wonderful holidays in my life, but a recent walking holiday in the Italian countryside has bowled me over ...Read More
Wine for Africa!
While it seemed most Capetonians chose Mauritius to escape the cold and wet winter, we were doing the same, but just ended up a little to th...Read More
Taking a Rain Check
What a start to winter! The Cape Winelands have been receiving good, albeit unseasonal, rain from as early as March, but June has been an ex...Read More
Every wine has its day
This week we celebrated Chardonnay Day and like most of these days – Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day… - enjoying your favourite wine o...Read More
The Brand Being
In business, brand is always top of mind and for me, even more so after yesterday's Wine Tourism Conference with the theme Brands, Brand Bui...Read More
The Company We Keep
Some sayings just always stay relevant. “You are the company you keep” refers to how the people you choose to associate with - as well a...Read More
Events – evaluated
How do you keep the economy of a tourism focused area alive in the off-season? You create a reason for people to come. According to a recent...Read More
Charm & Courage
Authenticity is a buzz word in tourism today. For many travellers and holiday makers, it is about having a once-in-a-lifetime experience or ...Read More
Keeping the dream alive
This is the time of year to reflect on the biggest stories, events and highlights of 2022. At the beginning of 2020, we didn't expect a pand...Read More
Honesty, Bravery & Passion
As a family, we are always looking for interesting and creative ways to share our passion for wine and food with our guests. Reinventing you...Read More
Reconciling Wine Production with Conservation
Sustainability is the buzzword of the century. Yet, acting on its pivotal role in economic viability, environmental protection and social eq...Read More
Are we cruising for a bruising?
This time of year, going on a cruise sounds like a dream. Such escapism! Cruises are popular holidays and they make an important contributio...Read More
Value – it’s a question of expectation
Regardless of whether you're able to spend R25 or R85 on a cup of coffee, we all want value for money. So what is the value of that warmin...Read More
Rethinking Tourism
Summer holidays and the festive season are upon us and this means harvest time for the tourism industry. With Covid hardships behind us, wha...Read More
The Sun Shines in Franschhoek
The Franschhoek Valley has just been announced as one of TIME's 2022 World's Greatest Places. What an honour for our small community and wha...Read More
Coping with Criticism
Minister Bheki Cele didn’t react well to criticism this week. (See video) He was called on some police matters and, in his response, made ...Read More
A Jargon Issue
Important historic events often result in changes to our vocabulary. Recently, Covid made an existing term like lockdown part of our everyda...Read More
Smile! It’s contagious.
No more masks! What a relief to hear that this Covid protocol has been lifted. Not only because it indicates that we might be over the worst...Read More
Give me the Good News
There seems to be so little good news these days. The madness of war in Europe affects us all - even if it is only because of the prices of ...Read More
Look East, but not too far
A week or two ago, in my blog Tourism - creating sales for Africa, I asked whether we are really capitalising on South Africa's exceptional ...Read More
A Valley of Dreams and Doers
The Franschhoek Valley is very close to my heart. It is where I live and make a living and it is important to me that it goes well with the ...Read More
Tourism – creating sales for Africa
When thinking about wine marketing, we often focus on consumer trends and we look at what is new within the wine drinking community. But how...Read More
Trends for 2022
Other than the usual resolutions for a healthier lifestyle and more conservative spending habits, I felt predictions for 2022 have been rath...Read More
In our own backyard
Without the opportunity to travel as extensively as we usually do, my blogs for 2021 had a strong local flavour. Other than the lessons from...Read More
“Bounce Forward”
A rollercoaster ride for SA wine in 2020 - the topic of my blog on 24 January last year. The caption proved to be right on the mon...Read More
Burst that Bubble
In a world of less travel and socialising and even lockdown (!), we had time. Time to reconsider relevance and importance and also to think ...Read More
More than fire and food
September sees South Africans celebrate tourism and heritage. The official Heritage Day on 24 September is also fondly called Braai Day and ...Read More
A New Season for Tourism?
September in South Africa is about a new season, new life and hope. Last year in September, we were going onto Level 1 of Covid regulations,...Read More
The How of Experience
Much has been said about the importance of creating an experience around your brand. On this platform, I've even called experience the fifth...Read More
When you need more than a plan
Change is part of life and I believe we have to roll with the punches - adapt, adjust, make a new plan. But the level of uncertainty over th...Read More
Beyond the Bucket list
Despite South Africa being amidst its third Covid wave, vaccine programmes worldwide are bringing back some sense of security and one of the...Read More
A Matter of Urgency
Between Ramaphosa and Magashula suspending each other and Leo Prinsloo’s Chuck Norris performance, there is little room in the headlines f...Read More
Creativity in the Cracks
A crisis compels you to be creative. There hasn't been a clearer example than Covid forcing us to rethink and reposition. In many instances,...Read More
Redefining dining
The future of fine-dining might be hot news right now, but in reality, the debate is nothing new. As with many other matters, Covid is just ...Read More
Calling on the Consumer
Tito Mboweni's Budget Speech has been well-received in most circles. Not touching taxes, the Finance Minister dismissed the gloomy forecasts...Read More
Riding the Wave
What a ride 2020 has been! Who would have thought that when we went into the initial three week lockdown that similar considerations would s...Read More
Something to Celebrate
The festive season is here. Under normal circumstances our diaries would be filled with social events, but this year our schedules are quiet...Read More
Price – a sensitive issue for all
The profitability challenges of the South African wine industry is no secret. Even pre-Covid, margins were small for most while making and s...Read More
Here’s to Hope!
It is Spring in the Southern Hemisphere and even though it had a lazy start in South Africa, the oak trees are now covered in those distinct...Read More
A Tourist in your own Town
In 2018 already, the vision of SA Tourism's CEO, Sisa Ntshona, was to stimulate domestic tourism and to create the opportunity for locals to...Read More
Back to Basics
27 September is World Tourism Day and the theme for 2020 is, Building Peace, Fostering Knowledge. I think it is quite a fitting topic for a...Read More
Survival is on the table – but recovery?
The SA liquor industry as well as the South African public breathed a collective sigh of relief when Level 2 regulations were announced - an...Read More
Partnership – the only choice
It is hard not to be moved by the phenomenal international support for South African wine via social media groups such as SaveSAWine and Mov...Read More
The Power of Protest
This week, restaurants across South Africa protested the restrictions on trade, introduced by the government's COVID-19 regulations. Althoug...Read More
Celebrating our French heritage in a new way
The Franschhoek Bastille Festival is a highlight on the Western Cape social calendar. Each year the town and valley are dressed up in the co...Read More
Two Types for Tourism
In the middle of winter, when tourism is slow in the Cape Winelands, the Franschhoek Valley celebrates its Huguenot heritage with a popular ...Read More
Finding a new way for food
Invention in a time of Crisis - the topic of my blog on 20 March. Corona was here, we already saw the impact on the tourism industry and I p...Read More
“Let’s all suffer a little”
“Let’s all suffer a little, so no one has to suffer a great deal.” What a profound quote. These few simple words give such perspective...Read More
What Waits for Wine?
It's impossible not to speculate about what would be waiting post-lockdown, post-Corona. Intelligent lockdown, social distancing, voluntary ...Read More
Perfect Time, Perfect Place
For the time being, our homes seem to be the perfect place if we want to stay safe, but this time of isolation means different things to dif...Read More
In the Eye of the Beholder
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but it is crucial to have a broader perspective. Even when something is not your taste or culture, you...Read More
Invention in a time of crisis
Times are tough. There is no denying that 2020 has turned out to be a bigger challenge than anticipated and the COVID-19 pandemic and its gl...Read More
Trends for 2020
It is the time of the year for trend watching. Here are the trends for 2020 that I found most interesting. 1. Green - from eco-st...Read More
Come to Cape Town, non-stop!
It would not be stretching to call Cape Town the jewel in the South African tourism crown, but recently no one could blame tourists for reco...Read More
“Less stuff, more stories”
"Less stuff and more stories" is quite an interesting trend, but is it a red flag or an opportunity for business? I followed the recent Wine...Read More
A Taste for Tourism
Both Heritage and Tourism are celebrated in South Africa during September and perhaps it is a good time to consider what role heritage can p...Read More
Sharing is Caring
There is safety in structure. An established business model offers guidance, best practice and experienced leadership to guide business vent...Read More
Tourists and Locals – a symbiotic relationship
A picturesque village with a unique culinary offering, arts and crafts, outdoor activities and an interesting local population are what tour...Read More
Dare to Dream
President Ramaphosa received a lot of criticism for sharing his dreams for South Africa in his latest State of the Nation address,...Read More
A chance to ‘fish’
There is some kind of pride in making your mark on election day. It is as if your contribution can really make a difference. And while colle...Read More
Cultural tolerance – lessons from food & wine
A visit to Malaysia really entices your senses and in some way, I think it is similar to what foreign tourists experience when coming to Sou...Read More
Story vs Price – that’s a story!
"Do you compete on price or do you have a story to tell?" This question by Vinpro's Christo Conradie at the annual Industry Information day,...Read More
Trade & Travel
Whether it really saves you money is debatable, but there is something very alluring about duty free shopp...Read More
Entertain, but above all, educate
Experience marketing brings the opportunity of turning consumers into ambassadors. Wine Tourism is doing an exceptional job for the wine ind...Read More
Diversity – a challenge with charisma
Diversity is one of the key descriptors when it comes to South Africa - for its people, landscape, culture and wine! As challenging as it ...Read More
Employment vs Technology
JOBS, JOBS, JOBS! tweets Wandile Sihlobo on opportunities within South African agriculture. On the other side of the world in China, Alib...Read More
Mallorca – more than Spanish wine and Sobrasada
There is nothing that inspires a winemaker like the sight of vineyards in beautiful terroir. On a cycling tour with some friends on the isl...Read More
Lessons from the Michelin ratings
Being awarded a Michelin star is something restaurant dreams are made of. But as we know from wine industry accolades, the food an...Read More
Tourism – make it easy!
Exploration is an ancient desire - from the time of the Vikings to Bartolomeu Dias and Christopher Columbus. In today's world, many of us ...Read More
Tourism – a demand for innovation
Peter Drucker's "Business only has two key functions: marketing and innovation", is very relevant for the tourism industry. With ITB Berlin ...Read More
Culinary tourism – alive and well in Brussels!
European food traditions are well-known: French cuisine, the food lifestyle that is Italy, the world-renowned chefs of San Sebastián, herit...Read More
Making wine work – industry & harvest insights from #VinproDay
Despite focussing on the drought, global short supply, the challenge of pricing and branding as well as political and policy uncertainty, I ...Read More
Evaluating the odds: SA Tourism’s 5 in 5
In layman terms, I believe success is possible when you have a dream, when you have the tools and when you are willing to combine these two ...Read More
Experience – the 5th P of Marketing
Marketing handbooks taught us about the 4 P's of marketing: Price, Product, Promotion, Place but in today's world it is missing one componen...Read More
Plans for Africa! #WEFAFRICA2017
This week, Durban played host to the World Economic Forum on Africa 2017. This international organization is committed to improving the s...Read More
Eat Like a Local and Other Tourism Trends for 2017
Last week I touched on involving communities in our tourism strategies with reference to the opportunity in the Cape Winelands and tourists...Read More
Take an Interest in Community-Based Tourism
“Direct “seats” on planes into Cape Town have soared by half a million and generated R3bn in direct tourism spend for the province,”...Read More
Russia – Rich With History, Heritage and Even Some Wine Culture
I have just returned from Europe and my first visit to St Petersburg. Experiencing the rich culture and history of Russia is always amazing ...Read More
Hong Kong – Where All Things Wine are Happening
Next week we will be at the seventh Vinexpo Hong Kong, one of the most important trade-only wine and spirits fairs in Asia. I always look...Read More
Marketing South African Sauvignon Blanc
The South African Sauvignon Blanc Interest Group invited me to their marketing seminar. Passionate about the complex intricacies of wine, ma...Read More
Culinary Tourism Reconsidered
Culinary Tourism was on the agenda when renowned international guests and important global role players met in Franschhoek last week as part...Read More
How Wine Can Influence Your Choice of Airline!
If you travel frequently and you like wine, like me, you will be anticipating the wine selection on your flight. Sometimes it is a delightfu...Read More
Spring – A Season for Sustainability
Sustainability is not a seasonal thing – living in a responsible and sustainable way should be part of everyday living. The importance of ...Read More
The Wonder of Winter in The Winelands
Winter is a wonderful season. Right in the middle of the year, it allows time to contemplate how far we have come and to reconsider and plan...Read More
Hong Kong – An Important Beacon in The World of Wine
In 2014 the most expensive wine lot ever has been auctioned in Hong Kong. 114 bottles of Burgundy were sold for HK$12 556 25 = US$1.6 millio...Read More
A Well-Kept Surprise – Ireland’s Long and Rich Wine Culture
This week I visited our wine importers and agents in Ireland, Classic Drinks. Enjoying the lush green countryside, hospitality and golf cour...Read More
Stimulating Holiday Sales
Full parking lots and empty shelves are what you can expect if you have not yet done your shopping for Easter Weekend. While Easter, like...Read More
Top Travel Destinations For 2014 – Leisure, Business and Honeymoon!
I am not unique in enjoying some reflection at this time of the year. While time seems to fly, it is when we reflect that we realise that th...Read More
The Future Potential of Chinese Cruise Liners
According to BreakingTravelNews.com, Carnival Corporation, the world’s largest cruise company, has signed a memorandum of understanding wi...Read More
Marchesi Antinori – Tradition, Trends and Tourism
Being part of a family-owned wine estate that treasures history and heritage, our visit earlier this week to one of Italy’s oldest, bigges...Read More
Gold Replaces Alcohol in Wine – Only in Dubai!
This week we joined Argentina and Chile at the Wines of the Beautiful South Trade Tasting in London and I’ll shortly share some of my insi...Read More
Tourism – South Africa’s “New Gold”
On Wednesday, newly appointed Tourism Minister, Derek Hanekom addressed Parliament saying that bold new initiatives are needed to further gr...Read More
Tourism Supports Foreign Investment in The Winelands
This week’s Landbouweekblad (an Afrikaans agricultural magazine), reports that since October 2013, 42 farms to the value of approximately ...Read More
SA Tourism After 20 Years of Democracy
Much has changed in the 20 years since South Africa’s first democratic election. One sector that tells a very positive story, is Tourism. ...Read More
The Passions of New Zealand – Pinot Noir and High-End Tourism
Our visit to Australia’s Barossa Valley and Mclarenvale was difficult to top, but visiting New Zealand was no let-down! Thank you very muc...Read More
Franschhoek and Barossa Working Together
Last night we stayed at the spectacular The Louise Luxury Vineyard Retreat – one of the luxury lodges of Australia. We were treated to ...Read More
Another Day in the Barossa Valley
Day two of our tour of the Barossa Valley and I am impressed. This morning we visited the charming Rockford Wines . What an interesting c...Read More
A Day in the Barossa Valley
What a wonderful day in Australia’s famous Barossa wine valley! I understand why it is the most active wine route in Australia. Not onl...Read More
Types of Tourism
Yesterday, we were visited by an Italian film crew producing a documentary on tourism in South Africa for one of their local television stat...Read More
#Thingstodo In the Winelands This Summer
Wine Tourism in South Africa is a multi-sensory experience that will not only deepen your appreciation of fine wines but will also enhance y...Read More
Tourism Supporting the Wine Industry
“The glamour that people perceive is just that — perception,” says Earl Sullivan, founder of Telaya Wine in Idaho in reaction to what ...Read More
Chinese Holidays
The Chinese mid-Autumn festival or Moon Festival followed by a National Golden Week of Holiday celebrating the Country’s independence just...Read More
Chinese Tourists
Earlier this year, President Jacob Zuma was quoted when the annual tourism statistics were released indicating that the number of tourists v...Read More
Celebrating the Joie De Vivre of Our French Heritage
This weekend the Franschhoek Valley celebrates its 20th Bastille Festival and tonight we will start the festivities with a French-inspired d...Read More
A Celebration of Wine Tourism
Yesterday saw the Great Wine Capitals of The World’s 2013 Best of Wine Tourism awards for South Africa being presented to the various winn...Read More
The importance of wine tourism
On 9 May this year, the Great Wine Capitals of the World will be hosting a Best of Wine Tourism event at La Motte Wine Estate in the Fransch...Read More
Travel and Nature in South Africa
Earlier this week we looked at South Africa’s infrastructure and how it adds to what makes South Africa a special country....Read More
South Africa
We just returned from our Easter holiday along South Africa’s Garden Route and once again I was reminded of what a special country we live...Read More
Wine Tourism – making it work!
“We have enormous potential in this country and while we always knew about the contribution of tourism, we suddenly realised the immense p...Read More
Cape Winelands Cuisine and the Flavours of France
On our travels we have fell in love with the concept of regional food. And when we started conceptualising a restaurant on La Motte Wine Est...Read More
Wine tourism – working together works
Earlier this year South Africa’s wine tourism industry has been rated the best-developed in the world by International Wine Review, one of...Read More
Having Fun at La Motte
Featured is a a home movie that was produced by one of the families enjoying a day at la Motte. It is very rewarding to see families having ...Read More
At Paul Bocuse Institute
I spent the last two days at the Paul Bocuse Institute in Lyon with my wife Hanneli and her daughter Berdine. We had a tour of the world’s...Read More
Visiting Institute Paul Bocuse
My travels in France have also taken me to the Institute Paul Bocuse in Lyon. The institute, which offers courses in culinary arts and hotel...Read More
Meeting and Tasting on Our Rhone Trip
I am currently in the Rhone region of France discussing ways to strengthen ties between the region and the Franschhoek region of South Afric...Read More