October 2021
Wine Picnic at Jordan Wine Estate – Stellenbosch, South Africa
Our first day in Stellenbosch!
Since we skipped breakfast, I made sure to have something extra special awaiting us when we arrived at our first vineyard but I was not quite prepared for just how epic it would be. One of the “things to do ” in the world of Stellenbosch wine tasting is book a picnic lunch. Wineries that offer this put a unique flare on their picnics so make sure to research what is included before making a selection. I decided to book at Jordan Wine Estate for their traditional picnic basket which included lakeside viewing and a bottle of wine.
We arrived early and Kevin enjoyed a much needed cup of coffee before our picnic was ready. We already could not get over the views from the tasting room – the property is gorgeous!
We were notified our basket was ready so we were called into the tasting room to pick our wine bottle. After hearing the descriptions and what Jordan is known for, we opted for the Camelion Chenin Blanc as our bottle of wine with our picnic. With that, we were escorted with a giant basket and wine ice bucket away from the tasting room and down to the lake where a secluded shaded section with a blanket and pillows set up for our picnic. We could not believe how amazing this was – and we had not even opened the baskets yet.
After taking in this set up and view, it was time to open the basket. Pure joy was packed into the basket! The “winter basket” included the following items:
- Selection of charcuterie – locally sourced charcuterie including Ryan Boon biltong
- Selection of locally produced hard and soft cheese – Camembert, Brie, Stanford, Boerenkaass
- Homemade preserves and spreads – thai chicken pate, apply chutney, smoked snoek pate, savory whipped butter
- Selection of artisanal breads – vegetable focaccia, mini brioche, Cape see loaf
- Quiche Lorraine with bacon and leeks
- Patisserie of the day
We popped the wine and started opening all the packages then just relaxed – this really was perfection. Everything was so delicious and the scenery was just unreal. Kevin enjoyed bird watching and testing out the new camera – we could not believe how active the birds were. Nothing was going to top this – it was that good and exactly what we needed. We could have sat here all day – I believe we had this picnic area until 4PM but we did have other wineries we wanted to try.
If you visit Stellenbosch, 100% do one of these picnic lunches at your vineyard of choice but I can highly recommend Jordan’s based on this incredible experience!
