By Anlé Britz
Situated in the foot hills of Paarl mountain, the Spice Route is a farm with 13 artisans all producing what they love to bring you a destination of dreams. I heard a rumor that you can get a Spice Route Passport and had to see it for myself. Seeing that this is not yet my time to get my actual passport stamped, the excitement for a local travel experience tugged on all my interests. So here is how I spent my Saturday…
So, stop one was at the information office based at the center to the estate. Here I got the access to all the inside information I needed to be a true Spice Route traveler. Low and behold, the rumors were true – the passport is alive. The passport gives you access to enjoy various tastings offered on the estate and is valid for a year. Check out this roadmap to happiness – you can scan a QR code to get your copy of the map for your exploration reference.
Stop two was a pause at the Barley & Biltong Emporium for breakfast. The decision was not a difficult one as the best of all worlds were available on one plate – bacon, brie (from Fairview), french toast, cream and berrrrries dripping with syrup. What a brilliant way to start a chilly day – setting the tone for adventure!
Meeting up with eight of my friends, we settled in to a large table set for the Spice Route wine tasting. In for a penny – in for a pound, so we opted in for the wine and charcuterie option pairing cold meats from Jewells Restaurant. The pairing is well curated and you can be sure sure that the wine is complimenting the meat as much as the meat is complimenting the wine. What a treat, the service was amazing, friendly and super engaging. The wine was beautifully paired with amazingly cured meats and the view was everchanging as the rain clouds rolled over the hills of Paarl and Franschhoek. My personal favourite wine find was the Spice Route Mourverdre 2019 infused with black cherries, nutmeg and cardamon. She is making waves with her expressively limited availability and intensity.
Last stop was De Villiers Chocolate. Now for the little fat-kid in me, this tasting falls right in my alley. The passport makes life so easy – as the tasting is pre-designed, so no trouble to make the decisions yourself. For the rest, you have an option to select your top 5 choices and the chocolate samples are arranged from sweet to sweeter. Oh my soul, the inner me was in heaven. Each chocolate is perfected in taste, texture and in some cases crunch. No favourites shall be shared here – the journey is your own.
Let me say this, the passport has now 3 stamps, you can be sure to get a follow up on the remainder tastings soon as I shall return for the beer tasting, ice cream tasting and gin tasting soon. Maye I’ll throw in a visit to La Grapperia too.
Check out the world of possibilities here: https://www.spiceroute.co.za/