We arrived just after 11am to a warm reception from the organising committee and did a slow lap around the floor, making sure we got a taste of just about everything. The wine stalls were paid especially close attention and visited more frequently than others. An excellent selection was made available for tasting from Shiraz to Merlot, from Sauvignon to Chenin Blanc, organic to Jewish and even a selection of dessert wine - all delectably delightful on the tastebuds.
Each stall had a special array of goodies, with an assortment of cheeses, biltong, salami, specially crafted jewelry, aromatherapy and body potions, Persian-like jewelry and clothing, wine goblets and accessories, African ornaments etc. The food stalls catered for everyone; we decided on trying out the spit burgers which turned out to be delicious (spit-burger = meat cooked on a spit + bun + lettuce). After lunch, my very brave companions decided to venture into olive tasting. Some found it not as pleasant or appetising as others; while I suntanned on a patch of grass browsing through my complimentary copy of Fynproe.
Entertainment at the festival ranged from face-painting, riding the mechanical Persian bull, live music by Los Gitanos (which sounded more Greek than Persian to my Swiss associate - I tend to agree with him on that point), a food demo, belly dancing, salami tasting etc.
It was all-in-all a good day out into the winelands of Paarl and an annual trip to jot down onto your calendar.
