Franschhoek Tatler - November 2022

Rugby Community Unites to Safeguard Local Talent

junior talent.

The poaching of young South African rugby talent is rife. While the player drain to European club leagues makes headlines, there is a domestic market and fierce competition for players at school level as well. With nearly 40% of the current Springbok squad born in the Western Cape, top rugby schools in the big cities maintain a permanent scouting network in the province.

The impact on club rugby has been devastating. It’s easier to lure promising players from smaller towns and schools than from the Cape’s rugby powerhouses, and these athletes can often be found starring for their local clubs. Each year a few more players are scouted away, and some clubs have struggled to field junior teams. No one begrudges a player their shot at a quality education and potential career in the sport, but these young talents are also often ill-prepared for a move away from home.

The shared vision of the clubs is to create opportunities for young players to compete and develop their skills closer to home – playing at a higher standard against stronger opposition more often, and building their club’s status as a meaningful

development environment at the same time. By pooling their resources to drive the quality of junior club rugby, they aim to keep future Springboks in the valley until they’re ready for a bigger stage.

Former Springbok assistant coach Dick Muir spent October in Franschhoek – brought in to work with the players and coaches at Franschhoek RFC by True State Management, as part of its programme partnership with Train Camp Franschhoek. Muir has been very impressed by the quality of talent in the valley, and stressed the need to develop players from a young age. “There are a lot of naturally talented kids here in the Cape, and it’s important to channel and nurture that talent in the right way as early as possible,” he said. “Only when their skills, rugby intelligence and game awareness are second nature can one start thinking about a rugby career.”

The clubs face an enormous challenge, but they are determined. By working together they aim to score a win for Franschhoek Rugby, and for the whole community.

Text & Image: Editorial Desk

FLTR: Donovan Sampson, Darryn Marshall, George Collins, Reginald Pheiffer, Nick Ochse, William Jefthas, Clive Engel, Archie Johnson, Lorenzo Meiring, Johan Davids, Jakobus Daniels, John Pedro, Denver Adonis, Dean Booysen, Dick Muir.

Stewardship Award for Franschhoek Conservancy

The Franschhoek Conservancy received a special award at the Cape Nature Stewardship Awards that took place on 29 September.

The Franschhoek Conservancy encompasses the same area as the Franschhoek wine ward and includes many areas with threatened indigenous flora and fauna.

With Franschhoek recently listed as one of Time Magazine’s Top 50 Greatest Places in the world, the accolade for the Conservancy again highlights the environmental beauty of the Franschhoek Valley, which is enjoyed by residents and tourists alike and at the core of its appeal.

Ashley Bauer, the Franschhoek Conservancy Secretary, received the award on behalf of the Conservancy.

In a very moving and inspiring moment, Erica Armstrong accepted a posthumous award on behalf of her late husband, Rob Armstrong, who was the driving force behind the establishment of the Franschhoek Conservancy.

For further information or to become a conservancy member or supporter, please contact Ashley Bauer at 083 457 4065.

NG Kerk Onderhoud –Meer as Verwag

Historiese geboue verg konstante onderhoud en hou soms verrassings in – goeies en slegtes. Dit is wat die plaaslike NG gemeente weer ervaar het sedert hulle in September begin het met uitvoerige herstelwerk aan hulle historiese kerkgebou – die oudste gebou in die dorp.

Ds Peet Bester sê die onderhoudswerk wat tans aan die gebou gedoen word is moontlik gemaak deur ‘n R1,3 miljoen skenking deur die Rupert Historiese Huise Stigting waarvoor die gemeente baie dankbaar is. Die kerk se dak is gedurende Covid teen R670 000 herstel. Hierdie koste moes deur die kerk gedra word op ‘n tyd wat ander aansprake op fondse besonder groot was.

Die huidige rondte werk sluit in die herstel van barste, waterdigting, verfwerk en die afskuur en herseël van vensters. Al die badkamers in beide die kerk en kerksaal is ook herstel en/of gemoderniseer – insluitende die inrigting van ‘n rolstoelvriendelike toilet in die kerk. Die kerkbanke is ook afgeskuur en herseël en die kerkkantoor ondergaan ‘n vernuwing.

Die werk word deur Deon Roux se Franschhoek Meesterbouers onderneem. Roux se pa, Jan Roux, het in 1968 die restourasie van die kerkgebou onderneem. Volgens Roux het die gebou reeds ‘n paar verrassings opgelewer. “Wat oppervlakkig na ‘n klein barsie lyk, lei soms daartoe dat groot stukke pleister afgekap moet word. Dis maar soos dit is.”

Daar is reeds verdere probleme geïdentifiseer wat hopenlik volgende jaar in ‘n verdere werksrondte aangespreek sal kan word, mits daar fondse beskikbaar is.

Nog ‘n projek wat vir die kerkgronde beplan word en waarby die hele gemeenskap kan baat vind is ‘n muur van herinnering. Volgens Ds Bester sal enige donasies hiervoor uit die gemeenskap baie

waardeer word aangesien enigiemand hiervan gebruik sal kan maak, nie net NGK lede nie.

Cultural Affairs Award for Huguenot Museum

The Huguenot Memorial Museum was one of the winners at the Western Cape Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport’s Cultural Affairs Awards which were presented on 12 October during a ceremony at Artscape in Cape Town. It was the first awards ceremony since 2019, following a break in the awards due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The awards celebrate individuals and organisations that have made a significant contribution in the sectors of arts, culture, language, libraries, archives, heritage and museums. Stakeholders and nominees joined Minister Anroux Marais for the awards evening, which also showcased some theatre performances.

Head of Dept, Guy Redman, emphasised the important role that those in the arts and culture sector play: “Artists are courageous people because they seek the truth and they speak the truth. Artists bring imagination to us and we cannot hope without imagination. Today we honour people who have shown a great deal of resistance during a very dark time in our country.”

Minister Marais said: “As our economy continues to recover, we must also emphasise the significant role that

arts and culture play in our local economy – especially in bringing jobs to many people. People come from all over the world to attend shows at our theatres, visit our museums and learn about the unique heritage and culture that we have in our beautiful province. Please keep doing what you are doing as you are helping us to bring hope and joy to so many people in the province.”

The Huguenot Memorial Museum won in the category for Best Innovative Project in the Field of Museums, Heritage and Geographical Names. The other nominees in the category were: Lwandle Migrant Labour Museum, Sidwell Mrawusi, Togryers Museum and Zeitz MOCAA.

Vir meer inligting skakel gerus die kerkkantoor by 021 876 2431.

Teks & Foto: Redaksie

Broodnodige herstelwerk word tans aan die historiese NG Kerkgebou gedoen.

Text:

Ashley Bauer and Erica Armstrong with the awards they received on behalf of the Franschhoek Conservancy and Rob Armstrong (posthumously) at the Cape Nature Stewardship Awards.

120km in Under 14hrs!

The heat was no match for Douglas Pickard, at the 120km 2022 K-Way MaxiRace Cape Winelands presented by Banhoek Chilli Oil in association with On Running and Yenn Health, seeing him set a strong lead from the start and finishing in a blistering time of 13hrs 57min 31sec. The fight for second place saw Anele Bans and leading lady, Lodelia Odendaal rallying each other for a while with Anele taking the lead and finishing 2nd in a time of 15hrs 38min 46sec, and Lodelia taking 3rd overall and the 1st lady over the line in a time of 15hrs 59min 07sec.

The 120km, 75km and 45km races started at the Dutch Reformed Church in Huguenot Street and ended at Stellenbosch High School. The 120km race also included the Mont Rochelle Nature Reserve above the valley.

“Wow what a tough race, that has to be one of the most testing runs I have done this year,” says race winner, Douglas Pickard. “The heat on course was hectic, but the route and the experience was incredible, I thoroughly enjoyed that!”

Lodelia Odendaal proved once again that the other ladies are no match in the ultra-distances. Second place went to Caro Jordaan in a time of

17hrs 36min 10sec and 3rd place to Danelle Joubert in a time of 27hrs 03min 31sec.

“This is my first time running in this area and what a treat! Going up Mont Rochelle and getting to see the sunrise was a highlight,” says Lodelia. “I completely underestimated this race though, but it was such an amazing experience!”

In the 75km route, Grobler Basson took podium position in a time of 8hrs 01min 35sec, with Roelof Mostert taking 2nd place in 8hrs 23min 59sec and Brendan Lombard in 3rd in 8hrs 52min 27sec.

“What a flipping lekker race!” says Basson. “The climbs early on in the morning were really cool and

I felt incredibly strong. Roelof Mostert pushed me hard on the downhills, but I was able to pull away strong for the second part of the race.”

Taking first place in the ladies 75km category was Jana Van Houwelingen in a time of 10hrs 25min 23sec, taking almost one hour off her winning time from last year. Nicky Booyens took 2nd place in a time of 11hrs 19min 31sec, with Many Banks in 3rd in a time of 12hrs 06min 55sec.

“What an amazing day out in the mountains,” says van Houwelingen. “It was super-hot, so each of the river crossings were an absolute blessing. I really enjoy this race, the route is spectacular and the aid stations are the best!”

Jacques du Plessis took podium position for the 45km route in a time of 3hrs 33min 29sec, with Zibele Bala in 2nd place in 3hrs 50min 15sec and Cornel Smuts in 3rd in 3hrs 50min 27sec. Christelle Hattingh was the first lady over the line in a time of 4hrs 40min 03sec, with Natalie van Reenen in 2nd place in 4hrs 50min 54sec and Sveta Becker in 3rd place in 4hrs 54min 25sec.

Hitting All the Right Notes

The Franschhoek Theatre put on its first live musical performance on Friday, 30 September, with acclaimed South African artists James Stewart and John Ellis. Concert films have been a staple at the venue since it opened in November 2018 and they’re happy to report that their first live show was a sellout hit.

John Ellis is best known as a vocalist, guitar player and songwriter for the acclaimed band Tree63 which has enjoyed numerous radio hits such as ‘Surprise Surprise’ and ‘A Million Lights’. Emmynominated, multi-SAMA Award-winning James Stewart has had solo and group success. He’s arguably best known for the hit ‘The Shape That I’m In’ that he wrote for his band The Usual.

The performance at Franschhoek Theatre was the duo’s third show together, who - according to Stewart - had only met recently. Their set list featured a selection of songs that defined their careers as musicians along with covers of artists who inspired their music such as Johnny Clegg and The Beatles.

“The more we dug around we found we enjoyed similar influences, so we chose songs which have impacted us and then put our spin on them,” says

Stewart. He adds, “We’ve just enjoyed our fourth show together and there was a flexibility which we both enjoy – and audiences have really engaged with that.”

The duo closed their show to enthusiastic applause after a lengthy encore and numerous pleas from the audience for one more song. Stewart and Ellis have plans to record songs together soon but the best way to enjoy their music right now is at their shows. Fans can also grab a copy of Ellis’s new solo album ‘Native’ which he finished recording earlier this year.

To be informed of what is on at the Franschhoek Theatre sign up for their newsletter at franschhoektheatre.co.za or send a WhatsApp to 067 314 4059 to be added to their broadcast list.

Text & Image: Pieter Naudé

The audience couldn’t get enough of ‘James & John’.

Text: Editorial Desk | Image: Supplied

Lodelia Odendaal on her way to victory in the 120km ladies race. Franschhoek Mountains in the background.

Best of Wine Tourism Awards

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the eleven greatest wine

of the world, the Great Wine Capitals Best

Wine Tourism Awards (BOWTA) are

the wineries in each of the Great Wine

Global Network’s member cities for their

in seven different categories, including Accommodation, Wine Tourism Restaurant, Sustainable Wine Tourism Practice, Architecture & Landscape, Art & Culture, Innovative Wine Tourism Experiences as well as Wine Tourism Services. Now in their 24th year, the 2023 Great Wine Capitals Best of Wine Tourism Awards and the local Ambassador Awards saw a combined total of 119 entries.

The judging process entailed an in-depth reviewing process. The judges reviewed the applications received and scored them based on standard criteria. Seven expert judges and

three Wine Tourism Ambassador Award judges conducted “ghost visits” to the wineries within each of their assigned categories. The judges then attended a final adjudication review, where each expert judge presented their findings, and a winner was selected for each category.

Babylonstoren won the award for Best Accommodation.

To celebrate ongoing transformation in the wine tourism industry, South Africa’s unique history demands that there should be additional awards - The Wine Tourism Diversity Award, the WWF Pioneer Award and the Authentic South African Experience Award - all celebrate culture and heritage, as well as those leaders making innovative efforts to ensure sustainability and conservation in the field. The WWF Conservation Award is sponsored by WWF South Africa with funding provided by Pamela and Neville Isdell.

The Authentic South African Experience Award was won by Klein Goederust.

Western Cape Minister of Finance and Economic Opportunities, Mireille Wenger, said: “On behalf of the Western Cape Government, I extend my congratulations to all the winners of the Great Wine Capital Best Of Wine Tourism Awards for 2023.

During my tourism month tour, I was fortunate enough to have visited some of these winners, and I can attest to their excellent service, quality products and warm hospitality. Wine tourism is a cornerstone of the Western Cape’s remarkable offer to visitors from across South Africa and the world, and I am so proud that these businesses are once again helping put our province on the map.”

“Our Great Wine Capital’s membership speaks to our province being ranked as one of the leading wine regions in the world. I wish to extend my heartfelt congratulations to all the winners of the Great Wine Capital Best Of Wine Tourism Awards

for 2023. During my tourism month tour, I was fortunate enough to have visited some of these winners, and I can attest to their excellent service, quality products and warm hospitality. Wine tourism is a cornerstone of the Western Cape’s remarkable offer to visitors from across South Africa and the world, and I am so proud that these businesses are once again helping put our province on the map.”

Text: Editorial Desk | Image: Klein Goederust

FRANSCHHOEK SUPPORTS

a Franschhoek non-prot

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here with the

“CHILDREN”.

Klein Goederust invites visitors to linger.

Cellar

Mark

The other day I was reading an article by a UK wine scribe that caught my attention. The good man was writing about the never-ending possibilities of wine and food pairings. We all know that a skilfully chosen wine can make all the difference to a meal. We also know that, like science, the more you know about it, the more there is to know. However, this kindly soul came up with an unusual suggestion. What if there was a wine with sufficient character and broad appeal to be compatible with a number of different foods?

A sort of one-wine-fits-all. Well, not all of course but it might solve problems and save time. He went further, as he now had to, and proposed that he had in fact identified such a wine. He felt that Austria’s flagship wine, Gruener Veltliner, had a fair chance.

Our only two growers of this grape are Diemersdal and Niel Joubert. I was first introduced to Gruener Veltliner courtesy of Austrian Airlines and was instantly attracted to it.

I liked its rather dry style with citrus overtones and a spiciness that reminded me of the slightly off-dry Viognier.

As we know, the power of suggestion reigns supreme and I instantly fell in line with the scribe.

Gruener Veltliner is indigenous to Austria.

Originally called Gruener Muscateller of Wiessgipfler, it grows in all the Austrian wine regions except Styria in the southeast. It is by far the most widely planted variety covering 36% of Austrian vineyards.

So, what about matching this wine with food? It would seem that it had sufficient backbone to take on some interesting and quite varied victuals. How about sea bass at one end of the scale and Thai Curry at the other, as well as sushi and pork with mustard, crab meat and Indian Vindaloo? Odd combinations perhaps, but for some, the Austrian favourite made them memorable. I am going to hunt around for a local equivalent and hope to get back to you in due course. Meanwhile, any suggestions?

It is virtually impossible to even think of our Vignerons de Franschhoek

without Michael Trull’s name popping up and probably more than once. He was the motivator for establishing our wine route and not for just placing a sign on the roadside inviting folks to taste and buy. Michael wanted to add a form of certification as well as provide a platform for monthly meetings where members could discuss market trends and the like. His certification would guarantee that the correct clone of the correct grape variety was planted in the correct soil thereby setting new standards.

Things of course changed and Michael was headhunted by a UK operation to join two others in establishing what was to become England’s largest vineyard, Denbies, in Surrey, just south of Greater London. Denbies covers over 100 hectares and was planted with Dornfelder, Muller Thurgau and other ‘cold country’ vines. Denbies cellar complex is just that, a complex. A huge building houses fermentation and maturation cellars, a restaurant, an education centre and a shop. Today Denbies is the most visited vineyard in the UK and makes award-winning wines.

Shortly after Denbies were in production I attended the London Wine Trade Fair where I came across a new stall. Rather hastily put together it had a large banner proclaiming ‘Wines of England’ and all the best-known producers were there, Chilford Hall, Chapel Down, Nyetimber and others including Denbies, and guess who was fussing around like a mother hen ensuring that all present were getting their fair exposure to trade and media? Answers on a postcard, please.

FRANSCHHOEK’S SPECIALIST PAINT SHOP

We stock a full range of Midas, environmentally friendly paints (water and oil based) and Earthcote specialised, textured trowel-on and brush-on products for wall and floor surfaces (300 colours to choose from).

We also stock Thales Decontamination Solution for treating fungus and anti-fungal additives to add to all paints.

We also stock waterproofing products, Weatherprufe and Eco Rubber, Rolls of torch-on (3mm & 4mm) and various sizes of waterproofing membrane. Plascon water and oil-based paints. Hamilton’s and Academy paint brushes, rollers, trays and tray-sets, crack fillers, sand-paper, masking and buff tapes, turpentine, lacquer thinners, putty and a full range of drop sheets and rolls of plastic to cover floors and furniture. For DIY enthusiasts, we stock ladders, overalls and drop sheets.

We also stock a full range of Woodoc ‘food for wood’ in various colours and a full range of Duram products, including Duram Roof paints in various colours and Duram Showfloor Polyurethane floor paint, also in assorted colours.

We can also supply twin pack epoxy paints for specialised applications. All textures and colours are on show in our showroom. Pop in and have a coffee with us, whilst leisurely selecting your paints and colours.

For FREE technical advice, paint specifications and quotations contact Paul 082 567 6162

hamilton’s ENVIROLITE

Denbies Vineyards

Blue Zones – The Secret to Living Longer

past 90-100 years old. Studying the lifestyles of these people provides fascinating insights for those interested in healthy living.

Dan Buettner wrote a book called “The Blues Zones Solution”, which investigated what people living in these areas are eating and drinking as well as general lifestyle habits such as physical activity, social activity, sleep, etc. He focused on five areas: Okinawa in Japan, Ogliastra Region in Sardinia, Icaria in Greece, Loma Linda in California, and the Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica.

The main dietary factor all these places had in common was that they were 95% vegetarian –they only eat meat approximately five times a month. Their diets are rich in vegetables (and fruit) and they consume lots of legumes (beans, lentils, chickpeas, etc.), nuts and whole grains. In Icaria and Sardinia, they also often consume fish. Sweet potato and soya also feature frequently in some of these areas, while sourdough bread is frequently eaten in Sardinia. It’s important to note that it is

not one food that will cause longevity rather it’s a combination of foods that has been shown to cause this effect. The good news for carb lovers is that it seems to be carbohydrate-based foods that have the main longevity effect (whole grains, starchy vegetables and legumes).

More good news, for wine lovers this time, is that a moderate intake of alcohol also seems to be associated with longevity. The alcohol that seems to be best is red wine, but the key factor is ‘moderate intake’. This equates to 1 - 2 glasses per day maximum (150ml is one glass).

Unfortunately for women though, research shows that 1 glass per day may be the key rather than two; anything more than this will have the opposite effect and reduce longevity. Drinking lots of water and maybe herbal and green tea can also increase your lifespan and health.

Another interesting aspect of their diet that may influence their health and lifespan is that fasting for religious reasons is a common trait. Also, many of these people have been shown to eat slowly and mindfully and therefore do not overeat. This means that their bodies register fullness before they get too full.

Recent research has shown that it’s not just the quality of your diet that is important for health, but also the quantity of food that is consumed. When one eats on the run or in front of a screen one tends to overeat. This strains the body as it needs to digest larger quantities of food than is needed.

Other important

belonging.

Heidi

Heidi is

lifestyle

Dear Franschhoek Business Owners and Residents

We can all be proud of the inclusion of our little village in TIME Magazine’s “Top 50 Destinations in the World” for 2022. While we are blessed by the beauty of our valley and its vineyards, this prestigious and precious accolade has also been earned by the effort, commitment, and high standards of all who are involved in tourism and those who strive to maintain the character and amenities of our village. It is a hard-earned global reputation that is to be preserved and protected by all who live, work and own businesses here but its value can be so quickly and easily lost by a single safety and security incident involving a visitor or a resident. It is a sad fact that South Africa has a poor reputation for safety and security in our target markets. Any such incident in Franschhoek will receive global media coverage and deter uncertain would-be visitors. The cost of lost visitors can never be known.

It is another sad fact that neither SAPS nor Municipal Law Enforcement has the capacity to stop illegal car guards and children who should be in school from harassing visitors, ATM scams, car jamming, etc. There is a security vacuum. Even minor incidents are unpleasant and cause reputational damage. Without effective and sustained intervention, it is only a matter of time before there is a major incident which will have global coverage.

Bhabhathane Presents USimphiwe

On 19 and 20 October, Bhabhathane, a charity organisation focussing on the transformation and development of learners in the valley, presented the first-ever Franschhoek Valley Schools production: USimphiwe. The show was hosted at the Bridge House School theatre and made possible by their sponsor, Die Rupert-Onderwysstigting.

The production tells the story of a young boy, Simphiwe (played by Manqoba Vilakazi and Unamandla Vilakazi), from an impoverished rural village, whose talent for dancing to rap music is ‘discovered’. He receives a bursary to attend a private school and develop his talent further. The harsh realities of moving from his rural roots to an affluent and abundant setting are unpacked in this beautifully-crafted production. The culture shock faced by Simphiwe in his own country, and the alienation from his authentic expression as a Xhosa boy, are poignant and heartbreakingly accurate depictions of the challenges facing youths in similarly transitional circumstances. This cultural discord is well-portrayed in the performance, as Simphiwe is forced to take up ballet. The storyline is supported by excellent production elements: the conjunction of hip-hop, contemporary, gum-boot,

The Franschhoek Wine Valley Private Security Initiative will engage a security company, CSG Security, to provide effective security in Huguenot Street with five security personnel patrolling Huguenot Street from 11.00 am to 11.00 pm. They will be in radio contact with a control room and other security role players for rapid response if there is an incident or the possibility of one.

The initial contract with the security company will be for 6 months. Their effectiveness will then be assessed. The cost will be financed by 200 businesses and residents each paying R450 per month. Initially, it was hoped that 300 contributions of R300 per month would be received, but after the public meeting, a target of 200 @ R450 per month was set.

80 Franschhoek business owners and residents have already committed to doing so. Another 120 commitments are needed to launch on the target date of 15th November. Whether you are a business owner or resident, please join us in making this commitment for your safety and security, that of those who work here, and that of our visitors who are the lifeblood of our economy by instructing your bank to pay R2700 soon as possible by not later than on 31st October to:

Bank: Nedbank Account Nam: Franschhoek Wine Valley

Account Number : 1470000024

Reference: PSI (Your name/company name) FWV is managing all payments and invoicing. Please send POP to accounts@franschhoek.org. za and FWV will invoice.

If you have any queries, you can contact Pat Jacobs @ patjacobs01@gmail.com or 073 535 0007.

Best regards Ruth McCourt

CEO: FRANSCHHOEK WINE VALLEY

Siegfried Schäfer

Dear Readers, What comes to your mind when I say “The Dirty Dozen”?

Film lovers of a certain age will, no doubt, immediately think of the 1967 WW2 movie by that name. If you haven’t seen it – and you should! – the plot goes like this (don’t worry the plot summary is spoiler-free!): “A rebellious U.S. Army Major is assigned a dozen convicted murderers to train and lead them in a nearsuicide mission to assassinate Nazi officers. If they survive the mission they will be pardoned for their crimes.”

It’s hard to think of a movie with a more macho cast. Also, unlike dozens of b-grade action flicks, this cast could act! Imagine Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, John Cassavetes, George Kennedy, Trini López, Telly Savalas and Donald Sutherland all in one film!

Be that as it may, the film is not the dirty dozen I have in mind.

A bit closer to what I’m thinking of is the US Environmental Working Group’s Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce™ (aka Dirty Dozen and Clean 15). This list is updated annually based on tests by the US Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration. The Dirty Dozen are the foods with the most pesticides; the Clean 15 are those with the least. The idea is that shoppers can use the lists to guide them on when to buy organic and when it’s okay to buy conventional. While these are US lists, the globalised nature of food supply chains probably means that they have more than passing relevance here too.

The 2022 lists look as follows. Dirty Dozen: Strawberries; Spinach; Kale, Collard & Mustard Greens; Nectarines; Apples; Grapes; Bell & Hot Peppers; Cherries; Peaches; Pears; Celery and Tomatoes.

Clean 15: Avocados, Sweet Corn, Pineapples, Onions, Papayas, Peas (Frozen), Asparagus, Honeydew Melons, Kiwi Fruit, Cabbage, Mushrooms, Cantaloupe, Mangoes, Watermelon and Sweet Potatoes.

Dirty Dozen™ are the 12 most common items found on our beaches and rocky shores. They largely reflect our consumer habits, in terms of packaging for on-the-go food and beverages and were chosen as indicators of the most significant sources of plastic litter from ocean vessels, land-based sources and beach users.”

This dirty dozen consists of cool drink bottles, water bottles, cool drink bottle lids, plastic bags, chip packets, sweet wrappers, plastic straws, earbuds, lollypop sticks, cigarette lighters, fishing lines and glow sticks.

Now, why am I interested in this particular dirty dozen? You see, I’m one of those strange people who, while walking their dog, pick up litter and pop it in the nearest rubbish bin, which is usually not particularly far away… The result is that I’ve become a bit of a wizard on my neighbourhood’s waste.

As far as plastic litter goes my experience generally bears out the official Dirty Dozen, bar the fishing line and glow sticks. The other items I frequently come across are cigarette packets, cool drink cans, glass bottles, takeaway coffee cups and takeaway food containers.

If picking up other people’s litter has changed me in any way, it is that it has made me even more conscious of what I buy and more appalled at what retailers sell. For example, there is no valid reason why a retailer should sell earbuds or lollipops with plastic sticks when alternatives are freely available. Individually wrapped sweets fall in the same category. Is anybody’s quality of life going to be diminished in any meaningful way if they can no longer buy individually wrapped sweets? No! So why would a retailer sell them if they know / ought to know what happens to the packaging?

I recently bought some sliced salami from a local retailer. When I opened the packet I was horrified to see that between the slices were clear bits of plastic film – invisible from the outside. Guess who won’t be buying Elim sliced salami again? It boggles my mind that a producer can still think it’s okay to package a product like that and for a retailer to think it’s okay to sell it.

and ballet dancing; the use of IsiXhosa, English, and Afrikaans in the dialogue; and the excellent acting, and expert screenwriting.

It is fitting then, and poetic even, that the rehearsing and performing of USimphiwe brought together youths from culturally and socio-economically diverse walks of life, to produce such an evocative and culturally-relevant performance. The performance involved learners and supporting staff from Wemmershoek Primary School, Dalubuhle Primary School, WesEind Primary School, Groendal Primary School, Groendal High School, The Kusasa Project, Franschhoek High School and Bridge House High School. Finally, as project manager, Trifena Jefthas was responsible for bringing all of the elements together.

This production is a shining example of the healing power of communication through the arts. The remarkable potential of the youth, when supported and nurtured to express their ideas, continues to transport us along new and improved avenues into the future!

As I said, this is still not the dirty dozen I have in mind. The dirty dozen I have in mind is a methodology used to study plastic pollution, particularly but not only in our oceans. “The

When I was a child, there was an antilitter campaign that encouraged you to “Zap it in a Zibi can.” (See: www.youtube.com/ watch?v=90aeEmiLync) I don’t see such campaigns anymore and yet litter pollution seems worse than ever. Isn’t it time to bring Zibi back?

Until next month!

Hope Blossoms

An increasing number of medical studies show that people who spend more hours in greenery enjoy improved mental and physical health and live longer. Indeed, human beings share a primordial bond with nature which is why national Garden Day is enjoying more and more favour in SA.

To see the benefits of gardening in practice, look no further than the ladies of Hermitage Street in Groendal, who gathered once again for a festive party in their street garden on Sunday, 9 October. It was the third Garden Day celebration where these neighbours enjoyed their little green haven together with tea and treats galore.

All residents living close to the street garden contribute towards sourcing and maintaining the plants, but longtime resident Lena Hoffman has personally taken this project under her wing. “Up until 2017, this corner was basically a rubbish heap. When the municipality put down a bench, we decided to go further and turn this corner into a beautiful community garden,” says Hoffman.

Five years later, Hermitage Street’s dedication to its little green haven is evident in the lush, green plants flourishing around the garden which the whole street can enjoy. It is also a personal point of pride that other residents have taken a leaf out of Hermitage Street’s book and started their own gardens.

Hoffman adds, “We are so proud of this project and it has turned out more beautiful than I could ever have imagined. Some of the volunteers and I have lost loved ones over the years and we have dedicated some of the plants and accessories to them. This makes the garden extra special to us and I feel really happy when I look at it in the morning.”

Text: Pieter Naudé | Image: Carla Williams

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Tea for not just two! The ladies enjoy their garden with Lena Hoffman sitting far right.

Text & Image: Leila Shirley

The USimphiwe cast takes a bow.

TONY FROST

What do we do about this messy world we live in?

Our world is really messy at the moment. We can look far afield to places like Ukraine where there is an unethical and despicable war being waged for what appears to be selfish and uncertain ends other than exercise of power; the UK which has a government in complete disarray, a confused leadership, and a directionless economy. Then there is China and Taiwan; North Korea and most of South-East Asia; the middle East which is always in turmoil; Ethiopia; South Sudan; Yemen and many other places. But we do not need to go that far afield to find disfunction, we can look closer to home. We can look at Zimbabwe, Eswatini and Lesotho. And… of course we can do some good introspection about our own

situation which South Africans are expert at anyway!

Clearly, there is much that is wrong in the world today. It feels like we are at a watershed and that the world is undergoing some deep change.

One of the key reasons for our dilemma is the wishy-washy and oftentimes invisible leadership that has ‘led’ us here. The absence of strong leadership with clear direction has encouraged the return of right-wing politics and politicians and the emergence of the strongman political leaders. Evidence Bolsonaro, Zuma, Trump, and Putin. All of these have been focused on their own indulgent needs and have shown little regard for the people they are supposed to nurture and protect. The results of their behaviour is there for all to see. This is not the kind of leadership that we need, and certainly not the kind of leadership we should support. The other equally dangerous leadership that works poorly for most of the populace is the populist leader who says what he thinks people want to hear and changes his tune depending on who is listening to him. These leaders are dangerous because they seldom have a clear long-term vision or plan that is good for all. It is

generally only a plan to seize power for selfish ends. Perhaps we put our political leaders too much on a pedestal. And we expect far too much from central government which in any event is distant from the average person in the street.

Leadership cannot only be at the pinnacle of society. Leadership is essential at all levels. Maybe this is where we have been going wrong. We should be paying much more attention to leadership at the local level than what goes on at the top. Service delivery happens locally, after all. Policy and direction are supposed to happen at the top. By all accounts in South Africa we have a top-class constitution, pretty good legislation and policies. What we do not seem to get right is the implementation of these and that is because we look in the wrong direction and do not hold the local leadership much more strictly to account.

This is where all of us have a crucial role to play. It is natural and intuitive to look up for leadership. It is built into our psyche from our earliest hours of life that leadership comes from the top. This is a serious fallacy and one we all can play a role in correcting. No revolution in the history of the world started at

the top. Leadership for the revolution must come from much lower down in the organisation.

Leadership can and must operate at all levels in all organisations. Otherwise, we create space, by omission, for the tough guys to take over. We create fallow ground for dictators to emerge and rule and ride rough-shod over us ordinary people.

It is high time that we begin to realise that each of us has a role to play in making change happen. Making change happen is the primary work of leadership; it is the raison d’être of leadership. It is what we expect from our leaders. But we must stop only looking upwards for visionary direction and guidance and start looking around and finding likeminded leaders, keen to make a positive difference, who seek collective energy and begin collaborating for a new more organised, less messy future. We need leaders who stand up for what they believe in, who do not just whisper in the passages but call on those in power to serve those they have undertaken to serve, or to step aside for others who will do just that. This is something all of us can do.

tony@siroccostrategy.com

Is Your Pricing Model Killing Your Business?

It may seem a simple concept but getting your pricing right is an integral part of any business’s true sustainable success and can be a critical part of its failure too. Bad pricing leads to missed deals if you are too expensive, and lost profits if it you are too cheap. It also leads to painful brand damage as high prices can make your business seem aloof and out of touch, while low prices can make good products seem to be of poorer quality than they really are.

Harvard Business Review says that “For a company with average economics, improving unit volume by 1% yields a 3.3% increase in operating profit, assuming no decrease in price.

One study by OpenView of over 400 business pricing strategies revealed that 84% of respondents reported at least a 10% increase in annual recurring revenue (ARR) after a pricing change and even more dramatically, 25% reported an increase of at least 50%.

How do you know if your pricing model is wrong? It is clear to see that pricing strategies can have a huge impact on your business but how do you know if your products have been priced badly? Here are a few of the critical signs to look out for if you don’t want to become a victim of your models. You aren’t covering costs

The most obvious sign you have not priced your product correctly is a simple one. You are struggling to make costs. If you have a significant sales book and are still struggling to make ends meet the chances are your pricing model is wrong. Pricing needs to take into account all expenses and then add a profit on top of that. Making sure you include all your costs in this expense calculation is critical to being able to build a thriving business. While most people will remember to include staff costs, advertising, property costs and the cost of raw goods, there are numerous other costs that must not be forgotten such as licensing costs, shrinkage, employee discounts and seasonal fluctuations in raw product costs. If you are struggling to realise your true financial situation approaching your accountant will be absolutely key to your efforts going forward.

Pricing by competitor

When it comes time to price your product you should be aware of what your competitor is charging, but do

not let it be the be-all and end-all. What happens if you are copying them, and they are pricing themselves out of the market? Work out what your costs are, what a fair profit is and stick to that. Remember, if there is a price difference it may come down to you adding extra value, having a better-quality product or going to places they can’t service. You need to be true to your own unique situation if you want to be sure your prices aren’t going to land you in hot water.

You don’t know the value of your product

Value and price are two different things. You may know every inch of your product and understand why it’s better than the competitors, but that’s useless if you don’t know what your product is worth in cold hard cash to your customers. If you build an amazing product that’s best in its class but it can only save the customer R100 a month, you are going to struggle to sell that product for R10 000. Likewise, if your product saves a customer R25 000 a month, why are you selling it to them at R1 000? Under-pricing on that scale can lead to the customer mistakenly believing that your product won’t do what you say it will or thinking it’s likely poor quality. Understanding the value your product brings to the consumers goes a long way to knowing exactly what you can charge for it.

What do you want from sales?

Immediate profit may be only one of the reasons why you price a product low. Initially, your aim may be to claim market share and as such you price your product competitively to ensure you can grab a stake in a tough industry, before moving the pricing to better reflect your costs and profits. Perhaps you need a certain amount of market share to reach economies of scale in which case your current low price may be justified? Or perhaps you benefit from a network effect in which the value of your product increases with the more people that use it? The point here is that you need to understand your motivation for pricing before you can price accurately. If you don’t, then your pricing is probably inaccurate. Can you predict the future?

The best business leaders can sometimes seem like clairvoyants who can see into the future. If you understand where your industry is headed and what challenges it may face in the future you will be better able to position your product. Depending on your industry these factors can include changing energy needs, climate considerations, weather patterns or general lifestyle changes. Understanding these challenges will help you foresee which of your products may be likely to lose money in the future and which may grow in demand allowing you to adjust the prices to match. The more intelligence you have on the factors that affect your industry the more

you will be capable of weathering any challenges and selling your products.

You rely on cost-plus pricing

If your business relies on cost-plus pricing, in which the selling price is determined simply by adding a specific fixed percentage to the product’s unit cost, then chances are you are leaving cash on the table. Even a simple corner store owner can make more money from milk if he is the only one in the suburb that sells it. Being aware of your market and your customer’s needs and demands will ensure you take advantage of your strengths to maximise profit. According to Bain & Company there are three main behaviours in pricing that pinpoint the top achieving businesses. Those companies that make the most profit do so by:

• Aggressively “employing tailored pricing at an individual customer and product level,”

• “Aligning incentives for frontline sales staff with the pricing strategy” and

• “Investing in ongoing development of sales and pricing teams through the use of training and tools.”

What is clear is that in this space there is no call for cost-plus pricing.

The savvy business owner does not leave their pricing to chance. The rands and cents that you let leak away through missed deals or profits not taken could one day be the difference between a booming organisation and bankruptcy.

New Appointments, New Chapter for Haute Cabrière

Haute Cabrière Estate is doing well. Local sales have increased, exports are up and they’ve expanded their premium Reserve Range of wines. This comes on the back of the passion, hard work and dedication of their entire team.

Keeping up with the management requirements of taking the estate to even greater heights has necessitated some changes. The estate is therefore pleased to announce two changes to the wine team. Takuan von Arnim takes up the role of Director of Wine. Takuan will continue to creatively guide Haute Cabrière’s wine philosophy and style in his new capacity as Director of Wine. This new role will also focus on the growth of local and export markets, as well as strategic decisions within the wine business. Tim Hoek takes up the role of Cellar Master after eight harvests with Haute Cabrière. Tim will now lead the viticulture and cellar teams in pursuit of creating exceptional wines.

“Takuan and Tim’s combined passion, creativity and

Haute Cabrière’s new Director of Wine, Takuan von Arnim, and new Cellar Master, Tim Hoek.

skill will ensure the wines we produce continue to evolve, push the boundaries and develop the quality of our signature varietals of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir in ever new and exciting ways,” says the estate.

www.cabriere.co.za

Text: Editorial Desk | Image: Supplied

Another Term for District MM

The Cape Winelands District Municipality’s Council recently unanimously voted for the reappointment of Henry Prins as Municipal Manager, announced Ald (Dr) Elna von Schlicht, Executive Mayor of the Cape Winelands District Municipality (CWDM).

“With almost 30 years of municipal management experience, Henry Prins, is a committed and seasoned local government practitioner. He has been a Municipal Manager since 2009 during which time he has achieved eleven consecutive clean audits (unqualified audit opinion with no material findings) at two municipalities,” said the municipality in a statement.

“This experience serves as evidence of his expertise across diverse disciplines, which assist in the provision of strategic leadership in complex environments. Along with being committed to ethical leadership values, the MM’s focus is

on sustainable results, financial excellence and institutional growth while developing human capital. These focus areas served the organisation well during his previous five-years at the CWDM,” the statement continued

Prins holds undergraduate qualifications in Human Resources Management and a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Stellenbosch. He is also registered as a Professional Municipal Manager with the Institute of Local Government Management (LGM).

The Chamber’s Choice

Haneley Daniels: Owner of W. H. Food Truck

There is a saying that to help oneself, one must first help others. Haneley Daniels is the epitome of this adage. Whether saving animals at the SPCA, helping small business owners as secretary general to the Chamber of Commerce or arranging fun days for underprivileged children, she understands the importance of giving back to the community.

When Haneley’s son, therefore, needed funding for his studies as a paramedic in 2016, she knew the Groendal community would support her if she could offer something delicious in return. Putting thought into action, she converted her caravan into a food truck from which she and her family sold fish, chips, hamburgers, chips on a stick and gatsbys. Her community did not disappoint. Haneley’s son could not only commence his studies as a paramedic, W. H. Food Truck still operates today as a well-beloved takeaway food destination in Groendal. Nowadays, Haneley even sets up an additional pop-up stall whenever fêtes or festivals

take place in the area.

While W. H. Food Truck has been operating longer than Haneley anticipated, she has always offered the best in quality and quantity. She is also particularly proud of the hard work her family has invested in the business and how they have grown closer through the experience.

Haneley Daniels can be reached at 076 370 9018 for all queries.

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Call Graeme, email or visit our website.

What happened to spring this year? We went straight from a cold but drier winter into a scorching summer. There was little snow this year and almost no spring rain. A recent hike into the mountains painted an interesting picture: we are blessed with a full Berg River Dam, but most of the streams feeding the dam are drying up. It is the first time I have seen this in October, and we might be in for a drier cycle again. The threat of Day Zero a few years ago did make a difference in how we consume water, and we are now more water secure. The public is willing to pay considerably more for the availability of municipal water, and off-grid and greywater solutions have become a big industry.

The government response to COVID-19 brought a renewed interest in home gardening. The public suddenly sought self-sufficient, natural solutions and home growing of food and medicine became a reality for many as we were confined to our homes. Water availability made the expansion of community vegetable gardens possible, and home growers linked through technology to turn their hobbies into home industries. I have seen the internet explode with enthusiasts coming to market with the most amazing plants, often from exotic and tropical locations. Garden centres are filled to the brim with indoor and exotic plants, many of these imported from the East. The home gardener is spoiled like never before with information, equipment and plants just a click or short drive away. Not having to worry about water for a few years has maybe made us a little more comfortable than we should be.

I am not going to take chances and plan to dust off all the water-wise gardening skills that years of gardening in this often-semi-desert of a Boland have taught me. The first lesson I learnt is that bare soil must be avoided at all costs. A carpet of mulch, living or not, is how nature protects herself. A winter job creation project has left me with large heaps of cut-down alien and old fruit trees. These saw the better end of a chipper this past week and I now have much smaller heaps of shredded wood. This

year, we will cover all our research, market, and food garden beds with a thick layer of this carbon-rich material. The proximity of a dairy and poultry farm will provide the necessary nitrogen-rich manure to slowly break down the wood into available carbon in the soil. In other years we were not so lucky, and we had to look elsewhere to increase the carbon and waterholding capacity of the soil. I have learned about the amazing effects of humic acid in the soil, fulvic acid on the leaves and the resilience that regular applications of silica can bring.

A conservative feeding approach prevents delicate new growth. Water retaining aids help and mixing one of the polymers available in the garden centres into your transplant blend will keep the moisture and fertiliser in the root zone. We try not to let the soil dry out, ever, and a balance between deep weekly watering and more regular shorter cycles to keep the soil surface cool and moist under the mulch layer ensures this.

My vegetable garden is not where I want it to be yet, and the past few weeks of scorching winds have not helped. I will probably rethink the number of annual row crops I plant this year and will revert to the permaculture principles of food forestry and more permanent agriculture.

We will practice an adapted form of hügelkultur, and vegetable seedlings will be planted in layered mixed beds. In the orchard, it is time to jump onto our pest and disease control programme. Fruit flies, codling moths and a range of fungal and bacterial diseases abound, and natural and organic products are not as accessible and user-friendly as conventional heavy chemistry. Prevention through good garden hygiene and healthy soil practices is our best defence. Sticky and funnel traps baited with food, or the correct pheromones interrupt mating and keep populations down. Regular spraying with a natural insecticide is necessary for the fruiting season to prevent fruit from getting stung.

The kitchen is heating up and getting busier. The first of the summer greens are coming in. The last of the beetroot has just been cleared from the beds, there are still plenty of peas and the first green beans are ready to be picked. A sneaky dig into the potato bed will soon bring up the sweetest new potatoes. It seems like our soil-to-fork dream is once again becoming a reality.

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Local Wins Jazz Awards

Franschhoek resident, Melorie Jane, won two categories at the Mzantsi Jazz Awards in August 2022.

Melorie Jane describes herself as a contemporary South African jazz pianist-vocalist. Her quintet debut album, ‘More or Less’, features her eclectic style of jazz, characterized by her use of cross-genre influences, odd-time signatures, grooving bass lines and fast-paced rhythms.

‘More or Less’ was nominated in five categories and took home the titles for the Best Female Jazz Artist and Best Jazz Album Public Vote.

The album, which was written during the national lockdown in South Africa in 2020, deals with themes of isolation and community, and the joys and value of human connection. It has gained significant interest on radio and television, including the Expresso Morning

Show (SABC 3), All Jazz Radio, Metro FM, Kfm and more, and has topped the Vuka Online Radio’s South African Jazz Album Charts for eight months and counting.

Melorie Jane’s music has also been featured on international radio station, Sirius XM Real Jazz by Seton Hawkins as part of a segment on Contemporary South African jazz composers.

‘More or Less’ features nine original tracks. The music stems from South African jazz, although it contains elements of genres such as neo-soul, funk and R&B, placing it rather in the contemporary branch of creative output than traditional, although traces of influences of South African jazz artists such as Bheki Mseleku, Carlo Mombelli, Kyle Shepherd and others are present.

Instagram: @melorie_jane | Facebook: @melorie.jane

Text: Editorial Desk | Image: Supplied

Symphony of Spheres

A monumental work by artist Brendon Edwards was unveiled during a garden party at the Art@Africa Sculpture Garden in Huguenot Street on Heritage Day.

The sculpture, called “Symphony of Spheres”, evokes Beethoven’s 5th symphony. Rodney Trudgeon once said of this work that it is “like Michelangelo’s David, a monument to art and humanity” but that over time its impact had become “blunted”. Edwards believes that for these iconic works to recapture their wondrousness they must be “reinterpreted in new creative ways.”

Edwards, who studied Philosophy, Logic and The Philosophy of Aesthetics, presents his work as a way to allude to an idea Plato labelled as ‘Music of Spheres’… an ancient philosophical concept which demonstrates that the spatial relationship of the Sun, Moon and planets form a musical scale.” It also references Pythagoras who stated that “the distances of the planets from the Sun and the distances between these bodies, are represented by musical intervals of tones and half-tones.”

The moment of the unveiling.

He states “The spherical form is the language of our universe, the most inclusive language from the beginning to the end of time. From the tiniest atom to the infinite space of galaxies, all creation is spherical.”

The unveiling also featured a performance of part of Beethoven’s 5th symphony by the Copper Ensemble of Stellenbosch University led by Belgian Conductor Rik Ghesquire.

Text & Image: Editorial Desk

Congratulations on recently being named as the Tim Atkin Viticulturist of 2022. What does this award mean to you?

Thank you! I am honoured and grateful to receive this award, but it still feels like the reality of winning viticulturist of the year hasn’t sunk in yet. When it comes to my work I settle for nothing but my best effort and while I sincerely appreciate Tim Atkin’s recognition, this award mostly represents a personal reassurance that my team and I are doing our job. I owe a great deal of this award to the people I work with.

How would you personally define a top viticulturist?

Book Review

CHARLOTTE VAN ZYL

This Is Not a Pity Memoir. By Abi Morgan. Publ. John Murray. 288 pages

The cover of this novel gives nothing away. No shouts or blurbs, except a few words of praise from Meryl Streep. No biographical information about the author. The title itself seems hastily scribbled by a magic marker running out of ink.

When I Googled the author, Abi Morgan, I discovered that she is a television playwright and screenwriter of note, winning an Emmy and being nominated for multiple Oscars and BAFTA’s. Presumably, because most of her work has been for the BBC, she is relatively unknown locally.

The book has been called “a memoir,” and also “a love story.” It is both. It is a memoir because it details a terrifying episode in Abi Morgan’s life with an immediacy evoked by the author’s television writing experience. But it also has the lyrical qualities of great poetry and of great love-songs.

The first couple of pages feel like the opening sequence of any well-observed domestic television drama. It is early morning in a middle-class London home. A harried woman hassles her two teenage children to school from the breakfast table so that she can get to work. Her husband Jacob suffers from chronic headaches and has had another bad night. She promises to bring home some aspirin. We follow her through her hectic London schedule, gradually understanding that she is a busy screenwriter with several commitments nearing their deadlines.

On the way home she gets the aspirin and then stops to buy some sushi. This pause gives her time to reflect on the quality of her life as she tries to balance her professional career with the demands of her domestic life.

When she returns home she finds Jacob lying on the bathroom floor unconscious. And her life changes completely. She calls emergency services and Jacob is rushed to the nearby London Medical Hospital for Neurobiology and Neurosurgery in Queens Square.

This is the beginning of a three-year nightmare for Abi. Jacob is diagnosed as suffering from Anti NDMA receptor encephalitis, the rare result of a drug administered to slow down his incipient MS. Immediately Jacob is put into an induced coma, in which he will stay for the following seven months. As in a good television documentary we are there observing, with Abi, the dehumanising procedures of intubation, monitoring of heartbeat and other

For me being skilled in the science and techniques of growing grapes lies in attention to detail. My mentor, Rosa Kruger, repeatedly emphasised obsessing over the smallest things and her most valuable lessons to me came from the principle of paying very close attention to the vines. A love and passion for this craft is also crucial given that viticulture can be demanding work.

How does a good viticulturist contribute to crafting an excellent bottle of wine?

When you ensure that your vines grow properly, are kept free from disease and pruned at the right time of the year the cellars receive a product that provides a high quality basis for their wines. I believe that treasured bottle of wine came as a result of all the role players working together, which means I have to do my part. It is nearly impossible to make good wine from poor grapes.

Where do you find passion for your work?

I love how the world of viticulture keeps you on your toes. Human beings have been growing

grapes for thousands of years and yet I learn new techniques and tricks almost every day. If anything, the day I decide to leave this line of work is when I feel like I am getting bored. Also, grape vines are like your children. To see good grapes growing from years of hard work and award-winning wines being made from them is extremely gratifying.

You initially studied farm management before specialising in viticulture. What prompted you to make the switch?

I grew up on a fruit farm just outside Franschhoek with a really nice farm manager who always had time to teach me a few things. I therefore decided to study the same line of work at Elsenburg College before being employed at La Motte. Eventually I moved to Rupert & Rothschild where I met Rosa and her love for viticulture instantly hooked me.

How was Rosa Kruger a mentor for you?

Rosa was one of the first people to point out that I have a talent for working with vines and she immediately set to work in helping me to hone my skills. It wasn’t long before she drew my attention to the fact that viticulture is a vocation with no short cuts or compromise. I received many proverbial raps across my knuckles from her whenever I became lazy or imprecise in my work. She showed me how a passionate and invested viticulturist can be an invaluable asset to a farm.

Could you tell us more about your own business?

My business is called Silver Crest and we have been doing contractual work with clients in and around Franschhoek for more than twenty years. I have a truly incredible team that work with me and they never cease to astonish me with their skill, commitment and dedication. I also work with Rosa at the Old Vine Project where we offer courses that specialise in preserving and cultivating vineyards that are very old.

Is there any cultivar that you particularly enjoy working with?

physical functions that are needed to keep him alive. She helps where she can; she keeps talking to him, hoping that her words will penetrate the shield of medical technology.

When they at last bring him out of the coma, he begins to recover and in a moment of pure television drama, Jacob does not recognise her. Even worse, he believes she is an imposter, pretending to be his wife. This is a rare condition known as Ganzer’s Syndrome, which is also known as The Malingerers’ Syndrome, since it’s difficult to assess whether the patient truly believes this, or is simply pretending. Her love–story falters in the face of this emotional setback.

But worse is to follow. In 2019, possibly as a result of all this emotional trauma Abi is diagnosed with breast cancer and has to undergo a mastectomy. However, her slow and but steady recovery is matched by Jacob’s painfully slow rehabilitation.

The 2019 Covid pandemic separates them physically, until she can move him back into their home.

This is a totally fascinating and absorbing book. Although the subject matter might seem morbid, it is not. Abi Morgan has taken all the details of these gruelling three years and turned them into a compelling, at times funny, propulsive story in which her life is the subject.

Morgan says somewhere in an interview that after writing the book, she felt a bit embarrassed like someone who had told their life story to a bartender late at night, and the next morning wondered whether she had been indiscreet. The answer is that at times the intimacy of her story borders on the indiscreet, but the honesty results in the immediate truth of a great television documentary.

A viticulturist would often jest that their favourite cultivar is the one that presents the lowest number of problems! Jokes aside, I would have to say it is Syrah and perhaps I am biased because I really enjoy drinking it. More than that Syrah is a grape that really responds to the effort, work and care that you put into cultivating it.

Do you have any notable predictions for the

Poetic Licence

HARRY OWEN

There can be only one topic for a poetry column this month: the superb Poetry in McGregor festival which celebrates its tenth anniversary during the weekend of November 18-20. The core of this year’s festival is ‘Touching the Wild – Die Wildernis In’.

Based, as in the past, at the exquisite Temenos Retreat in the centre of the village and including the delightful Tebaldi’s Restaurant, recently beautifully reimagined and redesigned, this is the perfect home for such a theme.

What I love about McGregor is its inclusivity –its warmth and genuine welcome to all. Writers and poetry lovers from the broadest range of backgrounds, histories and languages mix as colleagues and friends.

There will, as always, be some big names from the world of South African poetry in attendance – Antjie Krog, Kobus Moolman, Finuala Dowling, Diana Ferrus, Bryan Walter, Phelelani Makhanya, Lara Kirsten, Ian McCallum, Dorian Haarhoff, Douglas Reid Skinner – and many other wonderful poets, writers, musicians and performers from South Africa and beyond, all of whom contribute to making this the most exciting and fulfilling of poetic occasions.

Full details of participants, events and tickets are available at https://poetryinmcgregor.co.za

And, of course, I’ll be there too.

By way of a taster, here is a poem written by one of the participants at this month’s Poetry in McGregor – acclaimed writer, journalist and environmentalist Don Pinnock. It captures perfectly for me the celebration of natural wildness at the heart of the festival:

Rain

Let me say this

Before rain becomes a utility We can regulate and sell: I celebrate its meaninglessness.

The rain I am in is not like the rain in the city. It fills the forest with huge and confused sound. It hammers the corrugated-iron roof With insistent and controlled rhythms.

I listen,

Because it reminds me again that the whole

upcoming grape harvest?

Franschhoek has always had an incredible team of viticulturists who work on the vineyards and as usual everything looks hunky dory for the upcoming season. I am very excited to see what will grow on the vines later in this year, but the weather seems to suggest that summer will include a few bouts of rain. We will have to be more alert than usual for disease and plan our spraying schedules very carefully.

universe

Runs by rhythms I have not yet learned to recognize; Rhythms not of clock or engineer.

I came in from the city late this afternoon Sloshing up the track, Then cooked pasta and tomato sauce.

The night is now inky dark. The rain envelops the hut In its enormous, virginal myth, A whole world of meaning, Of secrecy, of sudden silences, of rumour.

All that rainspeech pouring down, Selling nothing, judging nobody, Drenching the thick mulch of dead leaves, Soaking trees, filling streams and koppies, Washing out places where the hillside was stripped.

What a thing it is To sit absolutely alone, in a forest, at night, Cherished by this wonderful, unintelligible, Perfectly innocent speech, The most comforting speech in the world:

The talk that rain makes all by itself against the leaves, The talk of watercourses everywhere in the hollows, The shuddering expletives of thunder.

Nobody started it, nobody is going to stop it. It will talk as long as it wants, this rain.

And I am going to listen as long as I am able. Eventually I will sleep, Because here in this wilderness I have learned how to sleep again.

Here I am not alien. The trees I know, The night I know, The rain I know.

I close my eyes and sink into the rainy world Of which I am a part.

And the world goes on without me.

Don Pinnock

I very much look forward to seeing you at the McGregor festival. I know you will love it.

with viticulturist Sheldon Van Wyk

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Busting That 4X4 Myth With a Legend

Toyota’s top 4x2 manual Hilux Legend reaffirms why RWD bakkies are best

There’s this myth around town that a 4x4 bakkie is better than a 4x2. Sure, in the most extreme conditions, that certainly is the case. But 99 percent of people will never drive their bakkie like that. Or ever need to. So really, what’s the point of a 4x4?

That much was hammered home yet again a week or so back, when we had a Toyota Hilux Legend 4x2 to drive. Even better, it was a manual. See, a 4x2 version of the same bakkie will always be cheaper than a 4x4. There’s less expensive mechanical stuff to build into it, so you don’t pay for all that.

Which means it’s lighter, too. So it is uses less fuel, even more so considering it need not turn redundant front axle drive shafts and the diff while driving down the road with all those gubbins disengaged. Never mind, less mass means better handling, better dynamics. And the rest. So we revelled in this Legend’s surprisingly sorted chassis

Not that this Legend lacks for anything else. It’s all there. All those tweaks that arrived as the Legend a year or two back are also applicable to this Legend 4x2 manual. It gets the rugged grille and scowl — even more handsome with those twinkling daylight running LEDs. Chunky black door mouldings add a surprising extra dollop of Legend class too.

This one has a fair bit of cow hide inside. The seats are typically Hilux satisfactory, while the bluethemed infotainment system, a reverse camera, automatic climate control, cruise control, seven airbags, stability and traction control and Trailer Sway Control come among many other trinkets.

The touchscreen infotainment has kept up with trends well enough. It’s no MBUX or iDrive, but it has all its main functions in little buttons symmetrically poking through the screen down each side.

Once you know what each button does, it’s just a quick prod to carry out what you need to. No more trying to achieve the impossible on a flat touchscreen even on the N1. Woe betide on a dirt

road. Happily we can now tick that one off our snag list. See, Toyota listens to what everyone has to say...

The good old 2.8GD-6 Global Diesel still does its business, albeit now at a stout 150 kW and 500 Nm. It still has that comforting, friendly big brother burble. This one’s on the double cab diesel 4x2 pace.

We achieved mid-nine second 0-100km/h acceleration and impressive tractability in our tests. That’s just a couple of tenths off the best turbodiesel 4-pot double cabs we have ever run. With decent economy too. Almost a claimed litre per hundred more economical. Work that out at today’s fuel price!

The Legend 4x2 manual is smooth and quiet on the road. It has less troubled road holding and finer handling qualities than its loaded 4x4 kin. Steering feel is positive, quick and responsive. Off-road credentials, while limited by it just being a 4x2, are pretty well impeccable, anyway. That diff lock should be enough to get you pretty well anywhere.

And that’s the whole point. If you really need a 4x4, if you have to claw over slippery, muddy shale river crossings or navigate mud or thick sand three times a week, then sure. But if you never need much more than traverse the dirt strip to the trout retreat, racetrack or stables, than what’s the actual point of a 4x4?

The only area where the 4x2 is inferior is in towing

capacity. It lugs 750 kg less than the Legend 4x4. Which at 2.750 kg, is hardly a bother unless you’re moving granite blocks. Oh, by the way, that 40 kg weight saving also adds that amount to the load capacity versus the 4x4.

So, this 4x2 is nimbler, happier when pushed without all that cumbersome 4x4 kit adding mass, stealing power and dumbing down the whole dynamic affair. We also loved this one’s supple and silent ride. So whatever the bakkie, the 4x2 is a far better all-round. Never mind R150K cheaper, too, in this particular case!

And then this superbly kitted Hilux simply ticks all those Toyota boxes too. Go figure!

ROAD TESTED: Toyota Hilux 2.8GD-6 DC Legend 4x2

Engine: 150 kW 500 Nm 2.8-litre turbodiesel I4  Drive: 6-speed manual 4x2

Payload: 840kg

Max Towing: 2750kg

ROAD TESTED:  0-60km/h: 3.88sec 0-100km/h:  9.43sec 0-120km/h: 13.93sec

400m:  16.9 sec @ 132 km/h 80-120km/h:  6.74sec

CLAIMED:

VMax:  180km/h

Fuel:  7.4l/100km CO2: 193g/km

Warranty/Service 3 year 100K/9 service 90K km

End to Fantastic First Season

Giordano Lupini closed off his 2022 SA national CompCare Polo Cup campaign a fine championship sixth after a crunching season finale at a blistering hot Zwartkops Raceway in Pretoria.

“Zwartkops was tough, but overall, we had a fantastic first season in Polo Cup,” Gio admitted. “I won my first Polo race in my first year, took two pole positions and set three fastest laps.

“Only two other drivers have won in their first season in the past six years, so I’m really chuffed with that, and happy to have beaten all our objectives. “Special thanks to my race engineer Nian du Toit, my dad and all of our backers, fans, and sponsors. We salute our title sponsors over the past two seasons, Bullion IT. “We hugely appreciate the support!”

CORVETTE REPLICA

Development of the Chevrolet Corvette began in late 1951 under the direction of renowned GM stylist Harley Earl. There was nothing sophisticated about its specification, which entailed packaging off-the-shelf Chevrolet components into a two-seater body, which for expediency was to be made from a new material called glass-reinforced plastic (GRP). The chassis featured box-section side rails and a strong, central cross-member set low enough to allow the drivetrain to fit above it. The EX-122 prototype was called Corvette, apparently at the suggestion of a member of the GM PR department, the name denotes a fast naval escort vessel and submarine hunter. And such was the public reaction to its January 1953 Motorama reveal at the Waldorf-Astoria ballroom, six months later the Corvette (code C1) went into production in Flint, Michigan. Caution was the watchword: only 50 cars per month were scheduled, all finished

VéloSoleX

The VéloSoleX, or as it is commonly referred to as simply Solex, was the creation of the French company Solex... yes, the same name many of you must have seen on carburettors over the years. This was one of the company’s main business lines along with micrometers and radiators. It was just after WWII that Solex branched off into the motorised bicycle industry. It wanted a cheap, uncomplicated and economical way of getting around and the VéloSoleX was born. Introduced in 1946, it had a 45cc single motor-bicycle making only 0,3 kW. Numerous other models have been introduced since, each with improvements, up to the current version that is powered by an electric motor.

in Polar White with Sportsman Red interior, whitewall tyres and a black hood.

In 1958 the quad-lamp era began. The bodywork was given a not particularly wellreceived adornment of chrome appendages and fake air scoops. The grille’s vertical bars were reduced from 13 to nine, and the bumpers were now attached to the chassis instead of the body. However, the dashboard layout was improved with instruments now clustered together and the addition of a passenger-side grab handle and a drop-down centre console. Notwithstanding the criticisms, Chevrolet’s advertising stated that “Wherever the World’s best sports cars gather, Corvette does America proud”.

Quick to respond to public opinion, the 1959 Corvette was less flashy and more comfortable. Improvements included concave instrument lenses to prevent reflections and the addition of a parcel tray under the passenger grab handle. “New sleekness,

FMM has a well used example of a standard VéloSoleX S3800, a model that appeared in 1966 and is the most common and most sold version of the brand over the years. From an original sticker on the rear mudguard it appears he must have bought it from Velox Agencies of 71 Nugget Street , Johannesburg, and from the spec and model type, it must have been purchased in the late-1960s. This S3800 model has the standard front wheel friction drive 49cc motor with a plastic fuel tank, automatic clutch, front and rear brakes and the reduced wheel size. How many of these models made their way to South Africa or for how long they were available isn’t really known. But it offered cheap mobility, a problem we still face today.

elegance and roadability for America’s only sports car” was Chevrolet’s new claim.

FMM’s 1959 Chev Corvette is a fabulous replica of the C1 quad-lamp models, which lasted until 1962. It is a locally-built reproduction using parts imported from the USA including later-model Corvette suspension and drivetrain and a Chev Camaro rear axle. Finished in Snowcrest White with a red vinyl interior, it resembles the colour combination of the first Corvettes. The car’s condition is reflected in having won gold in its class at the 2018 Concours SA, and if anything epitomises

‘having the show to match the go’, then this is it. The ‘go’ in this case is a 5665cc small-block V8 that produces 257 kW at 5 600 r/min and is mated with a six-speed manual gearbox.

It looks and feels big and heavy, a sensation heightened by the deep, rumbling exhaust that gently rocks the car at idle. The gearshift silkily clicks into place, and the pullaway heightens the sense of anticipation. And it sure does deliver…

Looking through the wraparound windscreen over the wide bonnet, the longer the road and the further the horizon seems makes for cruisin’ contentment that heightens with every passing kilometre, all to the tuneful beat of the motor.

Despite the after effects of the recession, sales of the ’59 ’Vette rose to 9 670 units. The C1 Corvettes paved the way for seven more successful generations. The latest C8 has a mid-mounted engine and the ongoing success of Chevrolet’s halo sports car – it was America’s first – looks assured.

FMM’s 1959 Chevrolet Corvette is currently on view in Hall D.

VISITING FMM

FFMM’s opening time are Monday to Friday 10h00 to 17h00 (last admittance 16h00), Saturday and Sunday 10h00 to 16h00 (last admittance 15h00). Visiting the museum is by appointment only and via online booking. Entry fees: R80 adults, R60 pensioners and motor club members (with membership ID), R40 children (ages 3-12). Only electronic payments are accepted. The famed FMM Pitstop Deli is open throughout the visiting hours. For bookings, more information and signing up for our monthly newsletter, go to www.fmm.co.za, phone 021 874 9000 or e-mail fmm@fmm.co.za

Image: Anton Wannenburg

VINE STUMPS: Quantity of vine stumps available on Montagne Farm for collection for free. Contact per e-mail at: grahamh@radionet.co.za

GARDEN CARER services offered. Do you need someone to look after your garden while you’re away – short or long periods. Call Fay Bentley 082 655 5995

DOMESTIC / NANNY: My name is Catherine. I’m a 39-year-old Zimbabwean, legally resident in SA. I am looking for domestic / nanny work. I have sound experience working with kids and have good references. Contact me on 065 384 8772 or my husband on 078 722 2580.

NANNY / DOMESTIC: My name is Yvonne Sakutemba. I’m 31 years old and from Zimbabwe. I’m looking for a job as domestic or nanny. I have an advanced Au Pair and Night Nursing Certificate and Elderly Care. My phone no. is 061 998 6384 or 078 038 2539.

CLEANING / NANNY: I’m Patience Chipfupi and am looking for a full time job as house cleaner or nanny. My numbers are: 062 582 0206 or 069 223 4911. References: Kiara Havenga – 072 111 0258 Junaid Senekal-Senechal –076 488 4388.

HOUSEKEEPING: My name is Memory. I’m looking for a housekeeping job for three days. I have 5 years’ experience. My contact number is 062 652 0394.

BOOKKEEPING SERVICES WINELANDS: We provide affordable accounting, payroll and tax services to individuals, small to medium sized entities and trusts. We also offer cloud accounting and are certified partners with Sage, Xero & QuickBooks for cloud accounting and registered member of SAIT. Call Lee-Ann 076 321 5274

WANTED TO BUY: Crockery-pretty pieces. Cutlery. Tablecloths. Any vintage items. Debbie 082 825 5666. Nicky 072 871 9103 Need BASIC COMPUTER Services?

SECRETARIAL or BOOKKEEPING Services? Contact Ronelle Pinard 0736461687

HANDY MAN painting and renovation business for sale. Call 072 782 7482

RE-THINKING YOUR GARDEN? For Garden Consulting call Susan at 072 932 5393

RE-FIBRE GLASS YOUR POOL in any colour you like. Call RiaPools for a quote: 072 347 5355

WESTERN CAPE HOUSE SITTERS: We have many mature, kind, responsible, animal loving, live-in house sitter members who would love to care for your home and pets. Your furry children may miss you but their environment and routines remain intact which is why we at Western Cape House Sitters will provide a perfect win-win for everyone... Peter Walsingham 082 822 4200 info@westerncapehousesitters.co.za

CHANGING TO A SALT WATER SYSTEM? Let us advise & quote for you! Call RiaPools: 072 347 5355

JANE PARKFELT DESIGNS Ready for a new website? Or a website refresh? My website designs offer simplicity, good taste, affordability and easy navigation for small businesses, services or individuals. janeparkfeltdesigns.co.za | info@janeparkfeltdesigns.co.za | 071 161 7837

POOL PUMP PROBLEMS? Noise? We quote and help you out! Call RiaPools: 072 347 5355

STUFF WANTED: All manner of clothing and household items needed for our ‘First Friday of The Month’ jumble sales. Please help us to help the animals of the valley. Please drop off at the SPCA clinic in La Provence Street, Groendal, or phone for us to collect. 021 876 4808

FRESH, ORGANIC FARM PRODUCE: Delivered weekly to Franschhoek, including vegetables and fruit in season, chicken, eggs, cheese, honey, etc. Lists of available produce received on Monday, orders placed on Tuesday for Wednesday delivery. A number of Franschhoekers are already receiving weekly deliveries. To be added to the list contact Sue Norman on 083 321 3442 or suenorman50@outlook.com.

DO YOU STILL HAVE THAT POOL LEAK? Losing water all the time? Let us quote and take care of the problem! Call RiaPools: 072 347 5355

PROFESSIONAL POOL SERVICE REQUIRED? Keep it local! Get a quote. Call RiaPools: 072 347 5355

Community Events

SPORT

FRANSCHHOEK TENNIS CLUB: Social tennis is played at the club on Fridays, Sundays and Public Holidays from 08h30. For more information contact Ross. 078 278 4843.

PARKRUN: Saturdays at Rickety Bridge Wine Estate. Time: 08h00. Cost: Free. Register at www. parkrun.co.za (May not take place, depending on Covid regulations)

CHURCH SERVICES

METHODIST CHURCH: Sunday service 10h00. Rev Russell Norman. 021 872 3580 or 082 662 4509.

NG KERK: Sondagdienste 09h30. Geen aanddiens. Ds Peet Bester. 021 876 2431. Besoekers welkom.New Apostolic Church: Le Roux Street, Groendal. Sundays 09h00, Wednesdays 19h30. Rector: Charles Leibrandt.

ST GEORGE’S ANGLICAN CHURCH: Groot Drakenstein. Sunday Services: Holy Communion and Sunday School 10h00. Revd Wilfred Meyer 084 407 1280. Office - 021 874 4008. willowdale@cybersmart.co.za

SHOFAR CHRISTIAN CHURCH: Services - 09h00 & 18h00 English services at 7 Lambrechts Street. Pastor Richard Wade. 083 225 8529. All welcome!

TRINITY CHURCH: Worship Sundays at 09h30 at L’Ermitage Chapel, with Holy Communion. Weekday service Thursday at 10h30 at Fleur de Lis. Contact

Gavin – 083 799 0726.

UNITING REFORMED CHURCH: Sunday service 09h30. Dr Shaun Burrows. 021 876 2632. Visitors welcome.

GENERAL

Alcoholics Anonymous: WED evenings 19:00, Groendal Community Centre, Contact David +27 83 305 5159

Useful Numbers

ACCOUNTANTS

Tax Shop 021 876 2676

Bookkeeping Services Winelands 076 321 5274

ATTORNEYS

Susan Charlesworth 021 876 2592/072 402 9469

Snipelisky & Killian 083 250 0943/021 876 2084

BURGLAR ALARMS

Pepler Alarms 021 876 3308

CLUBS & ASSOCIATIONS

Boland Bridge Club 021 876 3031

Franschhoek Tennis Club 078 278 4843

FHK Heritage & Ratepayers Ass. 083 441 8280

Groot Drakenstein Games Club 021 874 1906

- Craig Mc Naught: Captain 080 845 1014

- Lejean Pieterse, Hiring 082 490 0405

Lions 021 876 3775

Stb Masonic Lodge (Chris) 072 211 9991

Franschhoek Rotary Club 082 891 4613

Franschhoek Probus Club 021 876 3179

ELECTRICAL

Franschhoek Electric 074 313 7829/021 876 3640

Rensburg Electrical 021 876 2120/083 309 2923

EXCAVATIONS

Andrew Schmidt 021 876 4431/082 972 5755

Burger Excavations 072 3408518

HEALTH & BEAUTY

Franschhoek Pharmacy 021 876 2261 Franschhoek Health Club 021 876 3310

HOUSE & GARDEN

Clock Repairs 028 840 1716

Lighting & Accessories 021 876 3640

Ria Pools (Franschhoek) 021 876 2612/072 347 5355

Sue’s Gardens 083 321 3442

Valley Garden Service 071 591 0342

INTERNET ACCESS PostNet 021 876 3025

OPTOMETRIST

Marelise Bester 021 872 3530

PHYSIOTHERAPY Claire Horn 021 876 4234/082 582 1029

PLUMBERS

Franschhoek Plumbing 021 876 3759

PSYCHOLOGIST Danielle Smith 082 812 1476

PUBLIC SERVICES Hospice 021 876 3085 Library 021 808 8406 Post Office 021 876 2342 Welfare (ACVV) 021 876 2670

SPCA 083 745 5344

SCHOOLS

Bridge House School 021 874 8100 Franschhoek High School 021 876 2079

Groendal Primary School 021 876 2448

Groendal Secondary School 021 876 2211

Wes-Eind Primary School 021 876 2360

Dalubuhle Primary School 021 876 3957

STORAGE

Franschhoek Storage 021 876 2174

TOURIST INFORMATION & SERVICES

Info Office 021 876 3603

Winelands Experience 021 876 4042

Huguenot Memorial Museum 021 876 2532

VETERINARY

Fhk Animal Clinic (plus surgery) 021 876 2504

Emergencies/Weekends 021 863 3187/082 8089 100

EMERGENCY NUMBERS

Stb Fire Dept. (Buildings) 021 808 8888 District Municipality(Bush & veld) 021 887 4446 021 886 9244

Police 10111/021 876 8061

Eskom 086 003 7566

Omnipage Farm Watch 021 852 3318

Plaaswag 021 876 2346

N1, N2 & R300 Emergency number: 021 946 1646

DENTISTS

Dr Schalk du Plessis 021 876 3070

DOCTORS

Dr Karin Eksteen 021 876 4622

Dr Alexander Heywood 021 876 2474

Dr Hannes Van der Merwe 021 876 2304

Dr Nicolas Els 021 876 2561

Dr Bernard Fisher 021 876 4622

AUDIOLOGIST

Audiologist Tracy-Ann Morris 084 264 0000

EMERGENCY MEDICAL RESPONSE

Medicare EMR 074 363 7744/021 876 4316

MUNICIPALITY

(Ward 1) Clr Pfeiffer (DA) 079 597 2765

(Ward 2) Clr Petersen (DA) 082 404 5055

(Ward 3) Clr Manuel (DA) 074 686 2364

(Ward 4) Clr Adams (DA) 073 446 5411

Municipality (Office Hours) 021 808 8700

Municipality (afternoon only) 021 808 8890

Municipality 24hr Service 021 808 8700

Situated high above the Franschhoek Valley the Mont Rochelle Nature Reserve (established 1983) is part of a UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site - the Cape Floral Region Protected Areas (2004) and linked to the UNESCO-designated Boland Biosphere Reserve.

Ever since 1823 mountain springs in the reserve have provided Franschhoek with high quality drinking water. The reserve is known for its spectacular views of the valley, diverse plant and small animal life and well-maintained network of hiking trails. It is also a popular j u m p i n g o f f p o i n t f o r p a ra g l i d e r s a n d i s b e c o m i n g a f a v o u re d destination for trail runners.

T h e F ra n s c h h o e k m o u n t a i n l a n d c o n s i s t s o f Ta b l e M o u n t a i n sandstone that was raised as a mountain range more than 265 million years ago. The present mountain and valley landscape is the result of erosion over the past 140 million years.

Three large peaks dominate the reserve: Perdekop (1575 m), DuToitskop (1418m) and Middagkrans (1029 m). In summer southeasterly winds can form impressive 'cloudfalls' over Middagkrans.

Both summer and winter weather conditions in the reserve can be challenging to the uninitiated - the former being hot and dry and the later wet and cold with occasional snow on the higher ground.

The reserve's flora consists of montane fynbos established on leached acidic sandy soils. Fynbos (the world's smallest and most diverse plant kingdom) is primarily characterised by four types of plants: Proteas, Ericas, Restios (reed-like plants resembling grass) and geophytes (bulbs).

www.montrochellehiking.co.za

Discover Franschhoek’s Pristine Mountainland

Why You Might Be Struggling To Sell Your Property

The residential property market continues to operate at above average levels with higher demand and number of units sold driven by the low interest rate and high bank lending, arguably the most favourable phase for buyers in many years.

The high buyer demand in turn also makes it an excellent time for sellers, but Samuel Seeff, chairman of the Seeff Property Group, cautions that sellers will need to remain realistic with their asking prices or risk losing out.

He says asking prices remain under pressure. Reasons for this include that while we have demand and high levels of buyer activity on the one side of the property scale, this is balanced by supply with a constant flow of new stock in most areas on the other side of the scale.

We therefore continue seeing a market which is well balanced between buyers and sellers and generally an absence of large scale stock shortages which would usually drive increased buyer competition and higher prices paid.

This, adds Seeff, is further reflected in the low price growth which has prevailed since mid-2020 despite the surge in activity in the market. Where other global property markets experienced significant price growth of around 20% and more, local growth has remained muted.

House price inflation currently averages at around 4% to 6% with the best growth in the lower price bands and decelerated growth above R1.5 million. Above R5 million, growth has been marginal which is one of the reasons for the improved buyer interest in the high-end market.

Nonetheless, Seeff says it is a great time to sell, but it depends on the motivation of the seller. In many areas properties are still selling faster with well-priced properties selling within a week to a month in the active price bands.

So why then might you be struggling to sell your property when there is so much demand

still in the market?

Seeff says you need to start with your asking price. Is it realistic compared to current selling prices in the area? Speak to your agent and get a list of latest sales to compare and price accordingly.

Is the marketing optimal? Good quality photographs and an enticing description are important to ensure it catches buyer’s attention at first glance.

Is the property exposed to as many potential buyers as possible? It should be listed and promoted via the correct channels to ensure it gets to as many eyeballs as possible.

The key features should be highlighted and quickly visible. Aspects such as the finishes or extras for families such as proximity to schools should immediately catch attention.

Too many extras might also be why it is not selling. Too many bedrooms or additional features may be superfluous to the needs of buyers who would not want to pay more for these extras.

If there are too many similar properties on the market, you may be competing with some that are lower priced, or which offer something a little extra for the same price.

Waiting too long for the right offer can also delay the sale. The market is hot for buyers right now, but for how long? Rather negotiate; there may well be a deal to be made.

Perhaps the agent is not giving it their best. If properties are selling in the area, but your home is just not attracting offers, it might be time to change to another agent.

FEATURE PROPERTY

STUNNING 3-4 BEDROOM MASTERPIECE ON THE FRANSCHE HOEK ESTATE

On Joint Mandate.

This immaculate home on 2,600 sq m has the finest of finishes and is intelligently designed to maximise its stunning location on the secure Fransche Hoek Estate.

The spacious open plan dining area & designer kitchen complete with high-end integrated appliances can accommodate grand lunch/dinner parties and leads seamlessly to the large double volume living area with feature fireplace. On the ground floor is a large study or 4th bedroom, a separate bathroom, a second smaller study and a state of the art cinema with surround sound. On the first floor is the magnificent master bedroom suite and two guest bedrooms all with open plan bathrooms.

The outside areas include breath taking views, landscaped garden with lawns and a 16m heated pool with automated cover. The five car garage includes two hydraulic car storage lifts. A 30 KW generator ensures you always have the power to enjoy this stunning home.

Tom Clode 079 955 3114

Terry-Lee

9194

FEATURE PROPERTY

FIVE BEDROOM FAMILY HOME ON 1 HECTARE

On Sole Mandate.

The best of both worlds!

Spacious family living in a countryside setting with breath-taking views, but just a short distance from Franschhoek Village. The heart of this home is the huge open plan double volume light filled kitchen/ breakfast/living room with feature fireplace and patio doors flowing onto a covered stoep.

In addition there are seperate formal dining and living rooms and a large playroom/study/media room, five spacious bedrooms with four bathrooms, large scullery and double garage.

Large swimming pool, lawns, vineyards, outbuildings and two bedroom cottage with separate access, ideal for holiday or longer term lets.

This is a magnificent property and a rare find.

excludes VAT, no transfer duty applies.

DELTA CREST

Well positioned 5 bedroom Cape Dutch style family home on the desirable Delta Crest estate and enjoying lovely mountain views, large, private 600 sqm back garden and lots of space for the kids (and the dogs) to roam freely across the open lawns that are a feature of Deltacrest and integral to its feeling of open spaces and farm-style living.

Tom Clode 079 955 3114

Terry-Lee George 082

9194

MAGNIFICENT 4 BEDROOM HOME ON CABRIERE STREET

This imposing home, built in a Cape Georgian style, has grand proportions throughout.

A truly outstanding and unique home intelligently laid out and in one of Franschhoek’s most prestigious streets. Must be viewed.

Tom Clode 079 955 3114

Terry-Lee George 082

9194

FRANSCHHOEK HUGE POTENTIAL

Very large 8 bedroom, 8 bathroom property on 2,500 sq m plot.

on a tranquil tree-lined residential street this property offers

options. Previously operated as a guest house and more recently

staff accommodation the property would also suit redevelopmen.