New Blog for Dornier Wines

Please follow us on our new blog:

http://www.dornierwineblog.com/

There is a great new online recipe book from WOSA that has South African braai (South African grilled food) available here

Online ebook BRAAI from Wines of South Africa:

http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/c958813d#/c958813d/1

Dornier 2006 Donatus receives a 90 for Blended Red Wines in this June's Wine Enthusiast Buying Guide!

Described as "This alluring Cabernet Franc-Cabernet Sauvignon blend starts with aromas of black cherry, violets and black currant, leading into waves of black fruit and spice. Structured but smooth, it has a classic, ageable quality. Good minerality gives it an upright character. Delicious now, but definitely can be held."

USA Importer: www.worthwhilewine.com
Other countries contact www.dornier.co.za

Food24 eats at... Dornier Bodega Restaurant

The Wine

Hey – it’s a wine farm, of course the wine list is going to be good! Fair prices for their own wines (R30 mark-up per bottle from cellar-door prices and all of them available by the glass) and a good list of their neighbours as well at very reasonable prices. I always enjoy their second label wines, especially the Cocoa Hill Rosé which is a great food partner. We were also there to taste the new vintages of the flagship wines – Donatus Red and Donatus White. For my money, the white is the better of the two – a Chenin/Semillon blend utilising old bushvine grapes from Swartland as well as their own. It’s all barrel-fermented and is an extremely well-balanced, food-friendly wine.

For the full review go to:

http://www.food24.com/News-and-Guides/Features/Food24-eats-at-Bodega-Restaurant-20100505

Dornier Bodega Restaurant unveils winter specials

http://www.dornierwineblog.com/
For all news from Dornier Wines and Dornier Bodega Restaurant

150 Days until the next Asparagus Festival at Dornier Bodgea Restaurant

I can't wait.

Celebrate South Africa 2010 – Wine Tasting – Los Angeles (May 3rd) & San Francisco (May 6th)

The Celebrate South Africa 2010 Wine Events are coming to Los Angeles and San Francisco May 3rd and May 6th. Featuring wines from over 50 producers focusing on the quality and value South Africa is bringing to the wine world.
Dornier Wines will be represented by Worthwhile Wines.
More

Dornier officially opens After Care Center for Farm Children

With the support of Anna Foundation and in association with Waterford Estate, Dornier has officially opened its aftercare center in the renovated community hall. Just under 30 children will be benefiting from the 3R concept promoted by Anna Foundation: Reading, Running, and Right-ing (right lifestyle).In the presence of farm management, children, parents and members of Anna Foundation, Leana Claassen, one of two teachers, cut the ribbon and the children performed dances, songs and gave testimonies of their experiences with the after care.
The introduction of after care is already improving literacy amongst the children. It also helps them to make the right decisions to lead a drug-free life and to avoid unwanted pregnancies and diseases.
















Pictures:
The Children in Front of the New After Care Center at Dornier
Part-time teacher Leana Wiese cutting the ribbon
Children performing in the Center, starring Danielle

More about Anna Foundation

Dornier presents first label of the Do-X edition

Dornier Introduces the first of the Dornier Do-X special labels. It shows one of the 12 propellers of this first Jumbo Jet that held many records.
The wine is a limited release of 1200 bottles of Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot 2008 and will only be available through the following channels:
>Select Wines (Germany)
>Dornier Museum (Germany)
>Dornier Wines
>Dornier Wine Club (Register online)
Limited to 12 bottles per person

Dornier presents its redesigned label of the Cocoa Hill range

Five years after the introduction of the Cocoa Hill range we have decided to sell the wines under the Dornier brand, yet we will retain the logo with the bandanna over the eye and the sub-brand The Pirate of Cocoa Hill on the label. Both the original label and the new label have been developed by Hauman & Small based on a painting by our late founder artist Christoph Dornier.

The range has been very successful in several countries and has received several awards. We see it as a true Dornier product that we are proud of.

The Cocoa Hill range consist of four wines. The Cocoa Hill Red, a Shiraz-based bland, the Chenin blanc, the Sauvignon blanc and the Rose (Merlot/Cabernet Franc)

Interview with our new Chef de Cuisine - Neil Norman

Neil Norman - Dornier Chef de Cuisine

•What's a typical day in your life like?
I am usually in the kitchen by 07:00, then I start baking fresh breads for the day, when the dough is proving, I will start going through the fridges and look at the quality of all the for the day, and start planning my menu.

•Do you spend a lot of the day eating?
I used to, I’m trying to eat more healthy and stay in shape, I do more tasting now!

•What is your comfort food?
I believe that any hearty meal enjoyed with friends and family is comfort food, but If you want to be technical, its slow cooking some lamb shoulder, or maybe some duck cassoulet, and always a big glass of red wine while you’re busy!

•Who was your greatest cooking influence and why?
For inspiration in the kitchen, I would say Thomas Keller from the French laundry in the Napa valley. For cutting edge flavours, definitely Neil Perry of Australia.

•What was the worst meal you've made and for whom?
We were in Hermanus, and just wanted some fresh fish, so we stopped at the lemon butter, how disappointing. We walked out.

What's your favourite music to cook by?
I enjoy some supper club, hotel costes and café Paris. I like chilled lounge music.

•What would you want your last meal to be?
I would want the Chicago cut with chips and red wine sauce from Belthazar in the waterfront.

•What's your favourite ethnic cuisine and why?
I like Indian, I am a sucker for good curry.

•What is your favourite ingredient to cook with?
At the moment I am quite fond of lime, garlic & chilli. I find it’s a very refreshing combination on fish and in rubs or marinates.

•In a world of instant, pre-cooked and fast-food, what do you think home chefs should take time to make? Should it be bread? Stock? What's the key thing we should spend our time on?
Well moving into winter, I would say that a slow roast on a Sunday, or a beautiful chicken casserole in the week, is a great way to spend time with your family. Speak to your local butcher, he will be able to guide you in the right direction, and they have really good ideas.

•What's your favourite wine?
I love Chenin Blanc for white, but a good Cabernet Sauvignon or Bordeaux blend can’t be beaten.

•What dish would you pair it with and why?
for white, I would like to do something lighter like grilled duck breast or line fish, for the red, I like either roast beef or even grilled veal loin. At home I like to keep it fuss free, so no heavy sauces, keeping to kosher salt and cracked black pepper. My wife enjoys the natural flavours.

•When you're at home, do you spend time in the kitchen or order out?
We used to always be eating out with friends, trying out new places, but for the last week or so we have been cooking healthy foods, and inviting everyone over.

•Where do you get your inspiration for your more complex dishes?
I used to try not think about it too much, and pair flavours when I am cooking in the kitchen with my team, but being at Dornier, we try and focus on having a smaller menu, which myself and the sommelier pair on a day to day basis, so I have more time to source the best produce and design the plate appropriately. We work on a 3-4 flavour rule, so to not over power our wines.

Dornier a big hit at WSWA conference in Las Vegas

The 67th annual Wine and Spirits Wholesalers Association conference, the biggest gathering of wholesalers in America, was held in Las Vegas from 6-8 April 2010.

Every year the wholesalers have a big wine competition in conjunction with the experts at Tasting Panel Magazine.

Dornier was awarded a silver medal by the panel for its Donatus.

Source: Wine.co.za

Background on Sustainable Wine in South Africa

Sustainable Wine South Africa (SWSA) is the alliance between the Wine and Spirit Board (WSB), the Integrated Production of Wine (IPW) scheme, the Biodiversity & Wine Initiative (BWI) and Wines of South Africa (WOSA).

The South Africa wine industry has launched the world's first sustainability seal as a guarantee of eco-friendly production. Issued by the Wine and Spirit Board, the seal, intended for bottled wines only, is backed by a sophisticated tracking system in which bottle contents can be traced back to source at every stage of the supply chain to confirm the integrity of their production.

Every seal carries a unique number, through which the wine's provenance can be tracked from vine to bottle.

Effective from 2010, the voluntary system is available to those wineries to have passed the accreditation of the Integrated Production of Wine (IPW) set of sustainable principles, at farm, winery and bottling levels. IPW covers a range of issues such as integrated pest management, the health of workers, the conservation of biodiversity and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

#HANNUWA

The /Xam San, known in colonial times as the Bushmen, were the painters of the rock art we find in the Cape Fold mountains. They were the original environmentalists, regulating their behaviour in harmony with plant and animal cycles, astral movements and climatic phenomena. They saw land as a source of life – a gift to mankind that nourishes, supports and teaches.

Today in South Africa, our wine industry is in a unique position to benefit from this rich heritage, to regain that understanding of our environment, and to relearn this sense of belonging to a natural place. The /Xam San had a word for this, which neatly embodies the new philosophy of the South African wine industry.

The word is #hannuwa. This ancient San word means the gathering of good fortune through living in sustainable harmony with our natural environment.

Wines of South Africa (WOSA) has driven a huge awareness campaign inwards to all our producers because we know that the #hannuwa philosophy must take root where it all starts, at farm level. In total, we have over 4 000 primary producers, many of them mixed farmers.

In December 2005, WOSA mailed them a commitment to sign and a diversity survey to complete, and over 570 producers, representing more than 40% of land planted to vine, signed the following pledge:

I HEREBY COMMIT MYSELF:
To farm sustainably.
To be a custodian of the land and preserve it for our future generations.
To nurture a culture of respect among the people who work with us on our farms and in our cellars.
To promote an environment of dignity, equality and upliftment for all.
To protect the unique and valuable biodiversity of our winelands.
To safeguard the rich heritage of South Africa’s winelands.

#hannuwa is an African wisdom that is now more than 70 000 years old. We are embracing it with enthusiasm and it is the inspiration for Sustainable Wine South Africa (SWSA).

Dornier is part of the initiative and will use the new seal from its 2010 vintage.





Source: SWSA Website

For background information on the new seal, visit: http://www.businessday.co.za/Articles/Content.aspx?id=105987
Wosa

Winemakers Dinner at Dornier Bodega Restaurant

A late night in March at the Dornier Bodega Restaurant (Pictures Juerg Wittwer)

Harvest initiation at Dornier - 6 March 2010

On a magnificent day we met at the Dornier Bodega Restaurant for muffins and coffee and took of for the vineyards on a tractor trailer. Winemaker JC Steyn, took us to merlot block 8 where 40 harvesters had been working since the early morning hours. The labour broker had brought an extra team with the result that there where no scissors left for the visitors. Instead of grapes most of us went after nice photo motives and there where plenty. After this, we drove back to the cellar for a cellar tour.





JC explained the process of winecmaking. We could experience de-stemming, crushing, pump-overs, fermenting wine in open tanks, addition of yeast, pressing. We tried unfermented and semi-fermented wines; Chein Blanc, Rose from Cabernet Franc as well as red wine. We did some grape stomping in front of the cellar, which was a great experience for the kids and some of the grown ups.
Lunch with more wines at Bodega was fabulous and we lingered until 4 in the afternoon.




The company was great. People came from Stellenbosch, Somerset West, England, Germany, and Russia. We hope to stay in touch.

Two empty bottles turned into a piece of art, and a tribute to two pioneers

The special label on the Dornier Donatus Red bottles was a tribute to the Swiss aviation pioneer Walter Mittelholzer, the holder of many flight records in the twenties and thirties of the last century and one of the founders of Swissair and to Claude Dornier, the German aircraft builder. In 1926/27 Mittelholzer was the first to fly across Africa on a seaplane, a Dornier Merkur.
His daughter in law, the Swiss artist Mascha Mioni, who is a regular visitor to Stellenbosch got inspired and re-designed the two bottles in bright (Swiss) red colours and secret messages. The bottles can be viewed at the Estate.

Harvest 2010 at Dornier Wines

Sorting Table

Sorting Table

Pinotage in the basket press

Viticulturist Theunis Bell

Winemaker JC Steyn after work

Thisteldown horses at Dornier

Dornier Harvest 2010 - Fermenting Pinotage in Open Oak Barrels

Fermenting wine on wood, especially new, (we have 20% new wood) integrates the wood much better and also changes some of the wood components as they are metabolised by the yeast during fermentation.

JC Steyn, Winemaker at Dornier)

Dornier Pinotage

Wine & Dine in Style at Vanilla Restaurant in Cape Town

Vanilla is Cape Town's own piece of Manhattan. It's show business style dining at it's finest and most glamorous, with evocative global cuisine to match.

Vanilla Restaurant/
Dornier Pinotage

Harvest 2010 at Dornier

1930 - Dornier Do X takes off for World Tour 80 years ago

It was Claude Dornier's most ambitious project, the first Jumbo aircraft and a record holder for many years.

In commemoration of the World Flight of the Do-X 80 years ago, Dornier Wines announces a limited release of a special label Dornier Donatus 2006.

The wines will only be available from Dornier Wines in Stellenbosch, to members of the Dornier Club, from Select Wines in Berlin and from the Dornier Museum in Friedrichshafen. The release is scheduled for March/April 2010.

Design

The Do X had an all-duralumin hull, with wings composed of a steel-reinforced duralumin framework covered in heavy linen fabric, covered with aluminum paint.

It was initially powered by 12 391 kW (524 hp) Siemens-built Bristol Jupiter radial engines (six tractor propellers and six pushers), mounted in six tower nacelles on the wing. The air-cooled Jupiter engines were prone to overheating and proved to only be able to lift the Do X to an altitude of 425 m (1,400 ft). The engines were supervised by an engineer, who also controlled the throttle. The pilot would ask the engineer to adjust the power, in a manner similar to that used on maritime vessels. After completing 103 flights in 1930, the Do X was refitted with 455 kW (610 hp) Curtiss Conqueror water-cooled 12-cylinder inline engines. Only then was it able to reach the altitude of 500 m (1,650 ft) necessary to cross the Atlantic. Dr. Dornier designed the flying boat to carry 66 passengers long distance or 100 on shorter flights.

The luxurious passenger accommodations approached the standards of transatlantic liners. On the main deck was a smoking room with its own wet bar, a dining salon, and seating for the 66 passengers which could also be converted to sleeping berths for night flights. Aft of the passenger spaces was an all-electric galley, lavatories, and cargo hold. The cockpit, navigational office, engine control and radio rooms were on the upper deck. The lower deck held fuel tanks and nine watertight compartments, only seven of which were needed to provide full flotation.





Operation

The Flugschiff (flying ship), as it was called, was launched for its first test flight on July 12, 1929, with a crew of 14. In order to satisfy skeptics, on its 70th test flight on October 21st there were 169 souls on board; 150 passengers (mostly production workers and their families, and a few journalists), 10 aircrew and 9 "stowaways", who did not hold tickets. The flight broke the then world record for the number of persons carried on a single flight, a record that was not broken for another 20 years. After a takeoff run of 50 seconds the Do X slowly climbed to an altitude of only 200 m (650 ft). As a result of the ship's size, passengers were asked to crowd together on one side or the other to help make turns. It flew for 40 minutes (Flug Revue claims it was the 42nd flight and lasted 53 minutes) at a maximum speed of 170 km/h (105 mph) before finally landing on Lake Constance.

To introduce the massive airliner to the potential United States market the Do X took off from Friedrichshafen, Germany on November 3, 1930, under the command of Friedrich Christiansen for a transatlantic test flight to New York. The route took the Do X to the Netherlands, England, France, Spain, and Portugal. The journey was interrupted at Lisbon on November 29th, however, when a tarpaulin made contact with a hot exhaust pipe and started a fire that consumed most of the portside wing. After sitting in Lisbon harbor for six weeks while new parts were fabricated and the damage repaired, the flying boat continued (with several further mishaps and delays) along the Western coast of Africa and by 5 June 1931 had reached the Capverdian Islands, South America[3] where the crew were greeted as heroes by the local German émigré communities.
Cover carried from Rio de Janeiro to New York on the DO-X, August 5-27, 1931

The flight continued north to the United States, finally reaching New York on August 27, 1931, almost nine months after departing Friedrichshafen. The Do X and crew spent the next nine months there as its engines were overhauled, and thousands of sightseers made the trip to Glenn Curtiss Airport (now LaGuardia Airport) to tour the leviathan of the air. The economic effects of the Great Depression dashed Dornier's marketing plans for the Do X, however, and it departed from New York on May 21,1932 via Newfoundland and the Azores to Müggelsee, Berlin where it arrived on May 24 and was met by a cheering crowd of 200,000. (Source: Wikipedia)



Do-X on youTube

Do-X 80 years ago

For inquiries please contact Dornier Wines:
info@dornier.co.za
Tel: +27 21 8800557