Where did we get the name from then? Years ago, before uniWines Vineyards were formed, our former winemaker had to do a wine tasting with a wine club who traveled quite a few kilometers to get to us. He decided to give them a special experience because they travelled so far.

They arrived early on a Monday morning, and awaiting at the cellar was their vehicle for the day – a tractor with a wagon. After they were all loaded up, the driver raced of with the speed of light (it`s a tractor but it went pretty fast). He almost lost his load of passengers and after everyone got into their seats again, they continued the journey to the house in the vineyards. When they arrived there, a huge puff adder (‘pofadder’) sailed past the front door. They removed the snake and got the members of the wine club safely inside. When the winemaker welcomed them to the food and wine pairing, one clever old gentleman said, “no, it`s more like welcome to the fear factor tasting”. We kept the name and through the years we changed the food and the whole experience. Since beginning of 2012 we decided to put the (safe) ‘fear’ back in FEAR FACTOR. We already had 4 groups since the 14th of January.The biggest group had 45 members!

We soon realised that this experience is a great type of team building and also fun for the whole family. We can easily accommodate those who chooses not to taste wine. I must however warn you; those with claustrophobia, very bad back problems or other serious injuries of illnesses, might not be able to do the fear factor wine tasting. Just to make it clear, we ditched the tractor and the snakes, but we got a whole range of new, exciting and scary experiences.

If you want to join in the fun, phone Maritsa or Cheran and make a booking. The phone number is (+27) 023 3491110. The cost involved is only R15 per person. If you want to have a little bit more to eat afterwards (team building groups prefers this), we can arrange some catering at an extra cost per person.

Go on, be brave and just go for it! We`re waiting for you! Check out some of the recent FEAR FACTOR wine tastings on our facebook site: https://www.facebook.com/pages/UniWines/202576206480968

SEE YOU SOON!!

But every now and then you stumble upon a jewel, the one that jumps out and surprises you! That was the case with Burma… or Myanmar. Call it what you like, the fact is that it was amazing in so many ways. We decided to spend a week in Myanmar. The fact that there were not a lot of people around to ask information about Myanmar as well as the lengthy visa process, should have been a sign of things to come… fascinating, unexpected! What would you expect from a country that deviates half hours from normal time zones (6:30 GMT – one of 7 countries that uses half hours)?

So we were told to bring $$$ as banking is problematic. Not uncommon advice for travels to 3^rd world, developing countries. Big difference is – there are NO, zero, nada ATMs in the country! The banking system is non-existent. It is impossible to imagine, I know.

Burma or Myanmar for dummies

It is the 2^nd largest country in South East Asia and the least developed as well. It is rich in culture and has some of the oldest civilizations in South East Asia. The government recognizes 135 ethnic groups, so it is a hugely diverse country. It received its independence in 1948, but from1962 – 2011 it saw military rule, which had a devastating effect on the economy with wide spread human rights concerns. Aung San Suu Kyi (Noble peace prize winner) won the 1989 elections, but was not endorsed by the military junta and she has been in house arrest 15 years out of the last 21 years. Myanmar has seen drastic changes in the last year with democratic rule (still to be tested). There seems to be positive signs for the Burmese people on the horizon, so let’s holds thumbs.

Exploring

So we arrived at Yangon International Airport not knowing what to expect. It has been a while since I’ve travelled so unprepared for what lay ahead, but that’s what makes the journey so much more interesting. Steve Jobs said, “travel often, getting lost will help you find yourself”. It is especially true for a country like Myanmar.

We only had half a day to explore, almost old colonial city feel Yangon, as we were keen to experience the annual Taunggyi hot air balloon festival which is in a different province up country. Yangon’s energy is due to the markets and mix of Asians, Indians and everyone in between. We were fortunate to be in town for the most special day on the Buddhist calendar, November full moon, and thousands of people visited the most sacred temple the Shwedagon Pagoda. An awesome sight and just the sheer size of it is overwhelming.

From Yangon we travelled by propeller plane (mini & a little scary) to Heho in the Shan Province. We spent our next 3 days just outside the town of Taunggyi on a wine farm(1^st and one of two in the whole country). The area is famous for Inle Lake, Shan culture, and the various sustainable villages and people that make a living on and from the lake. It was fascinating to experience the floating islands where tomatoes, beans and various other vegetables are cultivated; one-leg rowing fisherman pass you by; villagers living in small communities in stilted houses, travelling by longboat to daily rotating markets to sell goods; and a monastery where the monks have trained the cats to jump through hoops.

The annual hot air balloon festival in Taunggyi can only be described as mad and chaotic! On this occasion people enjoy fun and merriment through firework-launching competitions, eating, drinking (lots), gambling (even the monks), etc. There are also hot air balloon competitions during the day and night. Day balloons are usually in the form of Pagodas (temples), and animals such as elephants, dragons or ducks. The night balloons are either candle balloons (huge elongated paper balls with small lighted multicoloured paper lanterns hung around their sides) or fireworks balloons (looks like traditional hot air balloons, but instead of a basket at the bottom there is a container that holds all the fireworks). This event will definitely not pass any health and safety inspection in SA!!!! Thousands of people scatter when fireworks go astray or a balloon struggles for lift-off and the fireworks have already been set alight. For outsiders like us, it was awesome and definitely a highlight to experience something so cultural and not knowing whether it will be around for much longer.

Our next stop was Bagan, the capital of Buddhist temples and Pagodas. There are 2 200+ temples scattered across a beautiful plain within a 40km² area. An earthquake in 1975 destroyed a lot of the temples which once had more than 5,000 temples during the political height. Most of them date back to 11^th - 13^th century. We wondered through the valley on bicycles and the majority of temples and places we had to ourselves. We felt a bit like Indiana Jones at times. Upon arrival in Bagan our taxi driver told us that we were fortunately as our accommodation was opposite a temple, which has festivities on for the month. We didn’t have the same take as the taxi driver on being fortunate… How we hated it as the monks praying over a megaphone, howled all through the night… all good fun and memories to take with you.

Asia has all the colours, flavours, personalities that you can dream of. It is certainly not a drive-by destination and the more time you spend the more there is to learn. It reminds me of my travels through the African continent – simple people with big hearts and lots of stories and experiences to tell.

Like someone once said. You (the West) created the watch, we have time……

A – The A-Team with BA, Murdock and the rest came to mind first, but if one look around to the people sitting next to you, your colleagues and yourself, this is the uniWines A-Team now.

B – represents “Bottles and Branding”.  With almost 1300 tons of bottles (glass), uniWines packed his wine and send it all over the globe.

C – stands for “Class”, because when uniWines do something, they do it with “class”, just look at all the new labels and trophies.

F – stands for Family, during 2011 two of our colleagues became parents for the first time.  The latest one was born, Monday 5 December. The “family” of uniWines is growing!!

I – stands for Innovation. Imagine a “valley just a little left of centre” with a brand called: ankerman, with a tug of war team on the label – this is innovation and this is one of uniWines newest brands.

J – stands for Jobs (meaning Steve Jobs).  He was a man with vision, someone that uniWines learned a lot from this year.  He said: Life is to short, so don’t waste it; while living someone else’s life!!!

M – stands for Moscato, if you haven’t tried it yet, you are for sure poorer.

O – meaning  One.  One is to small a number to achieve greatness.  uniWines are a team and there are no ‘i’ in team.

Q – meaning Quit (never).  This word is not part of our vocabulary, if the going gets tuff the tuff “DOES NOT” get going.

U – stands for uniWines. In this year our corporate branding under went a change in look and feel.  We were proud to incorporate the crest of Sir William Rawson (founder of Rawsonville) into our new look.

W – meaning Winners.  Our winemaking team made us proud this year with all the trophies they brought back home from the Young wine competition.

X – meaning X-factor. Earlier this year Emmanuel Kelly took part in X Factor – Australia. Emmanuel told his story were he and his brother were found as babies in a shoebox by a nurse, today his mom, during the war in Iraq. After listing to his story you start feeling sorry for the guy, then he sang Imagine and the tears just ran.  Just another reason why we can never give up, does not matter our situation.

 Z – stands for Zzzzzzz – the sleeping giant. When Ferdinand thinks of uniWines he sees an iceberg in the sea.  You are only privilege to see a small bit, but the biggest part is still hidden.  The uniWines known today is only the beginning; watch this space because the BEST is still to come……..”You ain’t see nothing yet!!”

SUMMER IS HERE – ENJOY IT!!

http://winetimes.co.za/2011/11/02/taking-the-fairer-route-with-uniwines-vineyards-and-fairtrade/

The Institute for the Blind presents Sarah Theron on 07 October 2011. This will be a fundraising event for the Institute. Definitely something worth while to support.

Saturday, upon entering (remember to buy the festival pass for R40pp – available at entrance) you`ll be greeted with a huge tent and live entertainment. The artists performing will be Hugo and Annique (don`t know them, use your Internet savvy and search on YouTube). We launched a new wine this year called MOSCATO. It`s a low alcohol, fun loving, sweet and fizzy wine. Perfect for the hot summer weather! Bubbly and oysters will be available to the brave and daring visitors. Bring the kids along to the play park (as always there`ll be adult supervision for the kids). The teens (and parents) can challenge each other on the SUMO wrestling ranks -complete with over sized suits.

We also discovered (at Soetes and Soup) that our winemakers are excellent cocktail makers. Their skills and Nectarliscious cocktails will once again be on display during the festival. Should you love the cocktails so much that you need to take some home; don`t fear when the cocktail starter packs are near. Yes, you can buy your own Nectarliscious Starter Packs and continue the party at home. Once you had some WINE ON TAP, oysters and great food at KOBUS SE GAT, round it all off with an ice cream from THE ICE CREAM NINJAS. A Boere-breakfast @ Kobus se Gat will be available on Sunday, as well as some wine tasting. Sounds like fun? Everybody prepared to have a blast, a laugh and great wine – come and join us at Daschbosch Cellar on 07 – 09 October 2011.

ACCOMMODATION AVAILABLE: Any questions, contact us on 023 3491110, info@uniwines.co.za and to download the full festival programme: http://www.breedekloof.com/events.html

See you soon!

We are very proud of our newest addition, called Ankerman. Wonder where we got the name? Those of you, who had the privilege of visiting our beautiful area, will know that in the little town of Rawsonville, everything is a little left of center. Not only is the church facing the wrong way but then we have the legend of Malkopklip! Sounds intriguing doesn`t it?

The name Ankerman is derived from a tug of war term. When buying a bottle of Ankerman, the name and the quirkiness of Rawsonville will become apparent! If you`re as nosy as I am, get to the cellar and grab a bottle! We`ll tell you all the secrets behind the name.

Meander and Palesa might also be well known brands to some. We`ve decided to give these two established brands a well-deserved facelift. Once again, there`s more to the name itself. You`ll have to see the new labels to understand the brand. Palesa -a single bracelet does not jingle and Meander – the best things in life are free are a must buy.

When you`re in the area, take a detour and visit our cellar. You might just get a famous nectarlicious cocktail with your next visit.

Tallin( Estonia)

I never realized how close everything was in and around Scandinavia. 5 days and four countries later and what a cultural and information overdose. Flew into Helsinki which for some reason I have only seen at night time bar one day last year. Caught the early bird ferry 7:30am(7 each day from this specific ferry line) to Tallin(capital of Estonia) which is a two hour trip south across the Gulf of Finland. I was sure that I was one of only a few that was crossing the cold waters on a Monday for business as I later on my return confirmed. Die ferries thrive on duty free trade and the one I took can take up to 2,000 passengers and 450 cars. I was astounded to see all the alcohol being bought by people on the way back. It all makes sense as Finland is a monopoly alcohol state and heavily taxed so absolutely normal for Fins to make the two hour ferry trip and stock up on unlimited amounts for own consumption. Finland has a population of 5.5mil and Estonia 1.5mil and it is said that roughly 7mil passengers use the ferries each year so can well imagine how many people do it just for the sake of alcohol.

So Tallin(UNESCO world heritage site) surprised me immensely as I was expecting unimaginative, socialistic Russian influence in the architecture etc. Was taken for a drive by excursion of the Old Town which is medieval and beautiful with a city wall surrounding it and what used to have 66 protective towers. Stunning limestone buildings and tiled roofs perched on a hill and overlooking the modern day city and port. Well worth exploring more next time!

Estonia has gone through many hands from Danish, Swedish, German, Russian(twice), etc and eventually got independence in 1991 and joined the EU in 2004. It forms part of the Baltic states(Latvia and Lithuania) and a pretty amazing style influence it seems from Southern Europe. The language shares its origin with Finnish and Hungarian I was told so very weird.

Till next time as this seriously intrigued me even only for half a day…

St Petersburg( Russia)

Another double wow awaited me in St Petersburg(the freezing cold was one!). When arriving there the phrase “it sounds Greek to me” sprang to mind as I was hit by a language which I could not place, understand or read. It must have been the Russian spy movies as I am intrigued by the place and to experience it was definitely not a disappointment. This city breathes art and culture in capital letters! It has over 200 museum and 50 odd theatres. It is referred to as the Venice of the north as it is built on the River Neva and made up of about 50 islands with bridges linking the various islands. St Petersburg was founded by Peter the Great in 1703 and use to be the capital city of the Russian Empire for over 200 years. He seems to have been an exceptional leader and visionary emperor and built up the city to its glory from scratch.

 The importer arranged for a tour guide and took me to the Hermitage art museum(biggest in the world apparently). The museum is made up of 4 buildings of which one was the tsar’s winter palace. You can’t begin to describe the enormity of the museum and has over 3mil art pieces and artifacts. It is said that it will take up to 7 years to walk through the museum if you spend 1 min at each piece. It makes you wonder how beautiful and opulent the lifestyle was back then when you witness art pieces from Da Vinci, Monnet, Van Gogh, Picasso, Michelangelo, Rembrandt, Matisse, and many more. The winter palace alone has 1,025 rooms, 117 staircases and people at some point used to live there!

The evening after dinner we went to the opening night of the Laurencia ballet production. An absolutely surreal experience to see it in the Michailovsky theatre. You don’t even need to understand the language or a keen ballet enthusiast to love the experience. Very old school and during the break theatre goers enjoy caviar and champagne and can easily understand the wealth people talk about in Russia.

Palace square where the February and October revolution took place in 1917 and meant the end of the Russian Empire and the beginning of Lenin’s rule.

The wine tasting with 20 odd sales staff members were very interesting as it all had to be translated so delayed response. There is a buzz all over Russia it seems and not so sleepy anymore. The economy has strengthened and doors are opening up for those who are brave to face the cold and the Russian bear. The country is alive with opportunities and wine is only but one of the opportunities although a Vodka drinking culture.

Russia with love……

“My name is Sven Stadler, a German winemaker from the Rheinland-Pfalz in Germany. I am 24 years old and part of a family business where we grow both red and white cultivars on 30 hectares, which is small in South African terms but quite big in Germany.

The land has been in the Stadler family for many years and currently, as the youngest of three brothers, I am the only one who is actively involved on the estate with my father Heinz, mother Ulrike – and my grandmother Gertrud is also still involved. Please visit www.weingut-stadler.de for more information. We live only 10 km from the French (Elsass) border in a village called Dierbach near Bad Bergzabern. My father is the mayor and I am the chairperson of the fire brigade association. In Germany civilians are actively involved in community activities; e g, the fire brigade organizes festivals to generate income for specific projects and to purchase new equipment. This also brings the community socially together and is a reason to celebrate, which we can do properly.

My studies took six years, and currently I am actively involved in all aspects of viticulture, winemaking, marketing, administration, gastronomy and events staged on the estate. In order to make a good living on a smallish estate, we in Germany concentrate on quality wines that we normally all sell on the estate. Therefore public relations and good marketing are very important. A lot of effort goes into wine festivals. In our case in Dierbach we have a village festival as well as our estate festival. Furthermore we have a well equipped hall were we can stage events like wedding receptions and musical performances. That is in addition to the daily wine-tastings and gastronomic events like tour buses coming for lunch, birthday parties or other celebrations.

When I completed my studies in 2009, I decided that some foreign experience would be a good idea in order to broaden my perspective and experience, and also to get exposure to other cultures and to improve my English.
 Groot Eiland Cellar, part of Uniwines, was kind enough to offer me the opportunity to work with them for two months during the harvesting season. It has been a very interesting and enriching experience for me. Only now I understand the vast differences between the German and South African wine industries. The terroir, cultivation and irrigation systems, and the harvesting methods are totally different from what we know in Germany.

 Also in the cellar completely different methods are used as regards various aspects of making wine. This is due to the totally different climates and chemical composition of the juice.


In Germany we grow Chenin Blanc and Shiraz on a very limited scale. Pinotage, Malbec, Cinsaut and Muscat d’Alexandrie are unknown in Germany. In red we have for instance Dornfelder, Portugieser, Dunkelfelder, Cabernet Mitos and Acolon. In white we concentrate on Riesling (in SA known as White or Rhine Riesling). Germany is the biggest and best Riesling producer in the world, and that is the proud flagship wine of our region. We also grow Müller-Thurgau, Grauburgunder, Weißburgunder, Cabernet Blanc, Kerner and Chardonnay.


We simply do not deal with such quantities of grapes coming into the cellar as is the case at Groot Eiland. This necessitates the cellar being run as a “factory”, with issues such as labour and safety practices coming into the picture, more so than in our case. As a developed country, we work with a much more skilled labour force.


Everybody in the cellar was kind and friendly to me and very helpful, and I felt at home right from the start.


Obviously the weather was totally different to what we know in Germany this time of the year. I left Germany at minus 10° C and with 15 centimeters of snow! I landed in South Africa at 32° C – and the temperatures sometimes even soared up to 40° plus!.


I would like to thank Uniwines, and especially Messrs Aling Stofberg (Chairperson of the Board of Directors), Christo Smit (Manager of Groot Eiland) and Charl Myburgh (Assistant-winemaker) for the opportunity to get this wonderful experience. I will be back, since South Africa and its friendly people take a very special place in my heart.


Please come and taste our wines in the Pfalz when you are in Germany!
Keep up the good work, and best regards

Sven Stadler”

Thanks for visiting us Sven, you`re welcome back anytime!

Drive-by Seoul(South Korea)

The standard Korean greeting – Anyeong hasseyo? – doesn’t mean ‘How are you?’ The literal translation is ‘Are you peaceful?’

24 hours travel time, 3 flights and 7 time zones later and I eventually arrive in Seoul. I’m immediately confronted with the Asian culture and lifestyle as soon as I get off the plane and into the airport and the city. Best described as organized chaos but what do you expect otherwise of a city where 12mil people makes their living each day. Organized because of the infrastructure and efficiency of the people and general ethics they live by. Chaos because there are so many people in a relatively small space so wherever you go, there are people and shops maximizing the space available. Seoul is almost one big shopping mall/flea market with shops above ground and below ground and various open air markets where you can pretty much buy anything…..seriously anything! You know the sweet, sour and oil smell you get in any Asian restaurant?! Well, that is the smell I get wherever I go in Seoul!

South Korea for dummies

It is 12 times smaller than South Africa but with the same population of 50mil. 21% of the population has the surname Kim so a good guess if you forget somebody’s name! It has a rich and long historical culture dating back to the Joseon dynasty 3000 BC. Colonized (North and South Korea as a whole) in 1910 by the Japanese and split in 1945 (post world war 2) in North Korea (Soviet/Chinese influence) and South Korea(American influence). Almost a west and east Germany like story and amazing how one culture/society can so brutally be split and then grow to be so different. Only recently the south and north have reconciled and have families been reunited that were separated by the conflict 50 years ago.

Exploring

So the bit of time I had to explore was mainly spent walking the streets at night and trying not to get lost. I pride myself in having a good built-in GPS but in Seoul it is challenging as there are so many alleys and high rises and difficult to use land marks. It is crazy in a good way and bright neon lights at night time with thousands of street vendors selling whatever you want. Ordering food here is a lottery as I don’t understand the language or writing so aim for menus with photos! Breakfast, lunch and dinner is pretty much the same and could be anything from soup to rice based dishes. Kimchi is the national side dish which is basically preserved vegetables. Bosintang (dog-meat soup) is said to make men more virile and is eaten on the hottest days of the year! Would hate to revert to such tactics.

Business ethics is Korea

So you think you jump on a plane and sell your service or product like you would normally do! Think again, as this is a culture of subtle rules of establishing relationships. Personal relationships are important and it may take many trips to establish business relationships. Respect is integral to success and business is done on the basis of what is good for the whole.

Meeting and greeting – When doing business in South Korea men greet each other with a slight bow sometimes accompanied with a handshake. When handshaking, the right forearm is often propped up by the left hand. Maintaining eye contact is good etiquette.

Business cards – When presenting or receiving a card, use both hands. After receiving a card, read it and comment on it before putting it into a card case or pocket. Do not shove it into a pocket as this will be viewed as disrespectful.

Seniority – Hierarchy is very noticeable in Korean culture. When entering a meeting room, the most senior member of your delegation should enter the room first and should sit at the middle of the table. The relevance of your delegation could also be judged on who is included.

Gifts – A part of doing business in South Korea is the exchanging of gifts. It is done to secure favors and build relationships rather than be seen as bribery.

Drinking habits

The Koreans are sometimes referred to as the Irish of the East for they drink copious amount of alcohol. I tried the soju and there is a ritual to that as well; if poured by a senior then you accept with both hands and when you pour it is the same. They drink 34L of soju(local spirit distilled from sweet potato) 48L of beer per capita and only 0.8L of wine. So wine is still a very small market here but showing substantial growth as more people are getting use to western culture and habits. Wine is also seen as a more healthy option. Anything but French is seen as cheaper and inferior but the perception is changing with countries like Chile and Oz aggressively exploring the market. Red wine makes up 80% of the market and it is a trend for most of the Asian countries it seems.

All in all an amazing place with amazing people. There seem to be a culture of respect, hard working and progressiveness that are needed for a country to go forward. It is quite dream like what they have achieved in such a short period of time and count as the 11th strongest economy today . Just think of Samsung, LG, Huyndai, Daewoo, Kia, etc!

Useless info – Young female Koreans are very trendy and leg warmers with mini-skirts, short trousers or by itself seem to be the fashion statement now!