Tag: brandy

Budget decisions

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There are always tough decisions to make. [Anecdotal evidence says that] prices are rising far faster than the official inflation figures would like to suggest, and the lack of any recent significant precipitation (dam levels are only at 92.6% vs 103.4% this time last year) has left the magic money tree in the back garden sadly fruit-free.

Some things are easy. I can’t get around without diesel (in my car at least), so we’ll definitely have to have some of that. But I really don’t need a new hob this month. I mean – I do – but it can wait. And so it will.

Other choices are tighter though. Those things which aren’t quite essential, but don’t quite fall into the “nice-to-have” category either.

I ran out of collagen this morning. External collagen, that is. There’s still some in my body. And like it or not, there are studies which show that collagen intake (if it’s the right sort of collagen you are intaking) can help with joint health. And I need all the help I can get with that sort of thing (because of knee and ankle).

But collagen is expensive and although it helps, I can live without it.
Oh, and also falling into my inbox, there was this offer:

Which comes in at around the same price: if you squint a little.

And if your knee or ankle does hurt because of a lack of collagen intake, then some of this will either dull the pain or – at the very least – make you care a whole lot less about it.

So: protein powder or magic liquid? Which will it be?

There are always tough decisions to make.

Stellenblog II

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Return Of The Stellenblog

After last week’s visit to Hartenberg, we headed out that way again, but this time choosing to enjoy the hospitality and the wines of Kleine Zalze and Blaauwklippen.

Both farms were busy without being crowded, and we enjoyed a very leisurely, chilled tasting at Kleine Zalze, the highlights being their NV Brut MCC and all of their Family Reserve range, but especially – and unusually for me – the Cabernet Sauvignon.

And a whole 2 minute drive from there, we had some lunch at Blaauwklippen, with great service from Nono, who then took us through their wines. Some deliciously smooth reds, including their De Blaauwe Klip Bordeaux blend, and some really nice, light summer whites and rosés. It was a lovely lunchtime.

We also had time to visit their IS art gallery – finally working out that IS was the name and not just some poor English on the wall:

Lots of rather cool stuff, literally all of it ridiculously far out of our price range, but really cool to look at. Samuel Allerton‘s stuff really caught our attention.

This one was called Forever Dog.

There are rumours about a couple of bottles of their gorgeous 10 year old Potstill Brandy coming home with us, possibly joined by some of their Before & After apéritif/digestif. I couldn’t possibly comment.

More images on the way, but we had to come home and have a braai and do a blog post, so I haven’t managed to check them all out yet.

Tomorrow looks like being a quieter day, so maybe – maybe – some more words on here.

Day 230 – Sorrow drowning

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It’s been a busy and stressful few days here Chez 6000 with projects that I can’t share on the blog just yet.

Add that to my impromptu hospital visit yesterday evening and you can see why I might fancy a quick drink before retiring to bed last night.

A quick nip of this nutty, biscuity birthday gift with a delicate, lingering apricot aftertaste was the perfect medicine (I went and picked up my course of co-amoxyclav this morning) after a long and tiring day.

10/10 would recommend.

On wine

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I know that some people don’t consider South Africa’s own cultivar –Pinotage – to be “real wine”, but I have to say that I have done some rudimentary research and as far as I’m concerned it ticks enough of the boxes to be real wine, because it is:

an alcoholic drink made from fermented grape juice.

Yeah, there was one box and they got it.

It’s not my favourite red: a decent Bordeaux blend or a nice Shiraz gets top spot there. However, I have been sampling some Uitkyk (basically pronounced “Ate Cake”, for you forrenurs) Pinotage from 2015 and it’s really rather good.

In fact, I was instantly transported to picking wild blackberries up the Scholaby Road in Colby on Isle of Man with my very first mouthful.
Incredibly evocative and ever so specific.

Uitkyk also do a really good brandy, which instantly transports me away from reality from time to time, as and when required.

Unacceptable

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It was all going really well. Far too well, now I look back upon it.

I’d fixed the shelves in the boy’s bedroom (although I did use my swearing quota for the month while doing so), I’d been to the gym and nailed a reasonable cardio workout, I had even gone and done the odd jobs I had promised to do at the mother-in-law’s place.

I deserved brandy and football.

But the brandy is (apparently) alcoholic, and I’m trying to be a good boy as far as alcohol goes this week. It’s one of those things I try to do every now and again that (sadly) does actually make me feel a bit healthier and ever so self-righteous. I’ll miss it, but at least there’s still the football.

And then came the threat of loadshedding. On a football night:

Unacceptable.

As I write, the threat hasn’t materialised, but if it does materialise, the first you’ll know about it is an abrupt

 

 

 

 

 

 

end to this post. My zone is scheduled to go off for the whole of the first half (and some of the second half) of all of the Europa League quarter finals. That would almost certainly mean having to dip into the May swearing allowance.

And probably some brandy for good measure.