Muratie Estate and Du
Toitskloof Wines, two
of South Africa’s well-known wineries hailing from opposite sides of the Boland
mountains, who
are also famous for their culinary skills, recently met up for the fourth time
to contest the annual championship title.
This
year the two teams, once again joining forces with Karoo
Meat of Origin, met
at Muratie Estate in Stellenbosch to present their respective
interpretations of a ‘boerekos’- style sosatie and sheep-ribbetjie using certified Karoo lamb prepared on the
braai. The
Karoo Meat of Origin is South Africa’s first meat certification system
guaranteeing that the lamb is genuinely from the demarcated Karoo region, thus
displaying a distinct flavour as a result of the indigenous bushes and grass it
grazes on.
The
fires were lit early, with the two culinary teams hard at work, while the
guests - who would later be judging the best dish of the day - kept an eye on
the respective braais, soaking up the tantalising aromas and looking forward to
the feast. After brief introductions by Rijk Melck of Muratie and Bernard Kotze
of Du Toitskloof, Professor Johann Kirsten, Head of Agricultural Economics, Extension and
Rural Development at the University
of Pretoria, spoke about the meaning and importance of Karoo Lamb and the
latest national and international developments in origin-based food. He also
thanked Ryan of Ryan Boon Speciality Meats, who had supplied the Karoo lamb for
the competition and attended the event, for his passionate commitment to sourcing responsibly-farmed,
pasture-reared lamb directly traceable to its origin in the Karoo.
The
Du Toitskloof team, headed up by winemaker Shawn Thomson, his wife Elrine and
father-in-law Muller Coetzee, was the first to be put to the test, presenting
their dish complemented by the Du Toitskloof Pinotage 2013. The Muratie team,
Kim Melck and winemaker Hattingh de Villiers, were next up to showcase their
creations paired with the estate’s flagship white blend, the Laurens Campher
2014. After a feast of note, the votes
were cast and counted, and it was celebrity chef Pete Goffe-Wood who had the
pleasure of announcing the 2015 champion and presenting the trophy – hand-made
by Hattingh de Villiers. For the first time in the history of the Cook-Off, the
votes were equal and the competition was a draw. A tongue-in-cheek suggestion
from Pete that the competition proceed to a sudden death cook-off was met with
great applause from the guests, but time had run out, and in fact everyone was
delighted with the result. For an event conceived to celebrate the ‘Boland
leefstyl’, which is all about good food, good wine and ‘samesyn’
(togetherness), a tie was the perfect end to a very happy day.
The inaugural Cook-Off in
2012 saw Du Toitskloof taking the championship title, followed by back-to-back
victories for Muratie in 2013 and 2014. It is now back to the drawing-board for the two
teams and the pressure is on for the 2016 Cook-Off which will be hosted at Du
Toitskloof Wine Cellar on the Breedekloof Wine Route.