Oenological is the study of all aspects that involve wine and wine making, for those of you who don’t know (wiki). So, what happens when you bundle up the science and study into a mobile application? Well, you get an incredible application that turns us all into connoisseurs.
Hello Vino is an awesome iPhone and Android application that assists you in pairing your wine with the meal at hand. So, if you’re cooking some fish for dinner and you want to know what wine would go best with it, this application would assist you in figuring it out.
The application also comes bundled with all sorts of other cool features, one feature will assist you with the pronunciation of wine names!
Here’s a video of the application:
There are all sorts of goodies on their website, so if you want the application or perhaps a widget, click here and take a look for yourself.
Recently I took part in yuppiechef’s Enkosi Cookathon, described as “a celebration of South Africanness”. There were seven South African recipes to be cooked (or baked) and each participant who sent in a photo of their completed dish would receive something from yuppiechef.
The recipes included:
Lamb curry
Bobotie
Phuthu and relish
Spicy chicken livers
Malva pudding
Milk Tart
Koeksisters
yuppiechef was gracious enough to allow me to make a vegetarian version of all the meals and substitute the spicy chicken livers with another of their recipes.
Here are a few of my entries:
I didn’t win the cookathon, but a short while after the event a Berco man knocked at my door and delivered this!
I was gobsmacked.
Thank you to yuppiechef for
Providing their followers with fun, positive-about-SA competitions.
Including the minority (in this case people like vegetarians).
It’s that time of the year again, FNB are throwing their Whiskey festival at the Cape Town International Convention Center (CTICC) from November 2nd to November 4th and as always, it promises to be a lot of fun.
Whiskey workshops will allow visitors to taste a wide range of whiskeys and purchase if you so wish. The event will showcase over 180 types of whiskeys!
This year presents a brand new Compass Box Blending Zone, but if you’re into the regulars, you’ll be pleased to know that the Volvo Connoisseur’s Tour will still be taking place. Food will be offered by Pick ‘n Pay and hospitality packages will be available in the Volvo Whiskey Lifestyle Lounge.
Tickets go for R190, and this is short notice, so I’m not even sure if there are tickets left! If you want to look, best you head on over to Webtickets to check.
Contact Person: Karen Chaloner (karen@ncconnect.co.za) on +27 21 880 0180.
I really do love me some hot food from time to time, but not always! I know a great deal of people who aren’t into hot food and there’s some good news for them today, Nando’s is dropping it like it’s not-hot by introducing a brand spanking new flavour – Tangy Tomato!
Is it a fruit or is it a veggie? Either way, we’re talking sun-ripened tomatoes plus a touch of aromatic basil and a splash of balsamic vinegar – WINNING! All nom, and no burn.
Tangy Tomato is the choice for chicken lovers who prefer a less intense Peri-Peri experience. So, if you can’t stand the heat, get into a Nando’s kitchen.
Why tomatoes? That’s easy; they’re only the most badass fruit on the planet. The Spanish even have a dedicated festival to the heavenly redness. Check out the La Tomatina video.
Tomatoes FTW!
There you have it. Nine out of nine people love the new Tangy Tomato flavour and I’m sure you will too. Give it a try. Let me know what you think in the comments section below.
A few months ago I posted about the cleverly orchestrated Mr Delivery ‘Fire the Chef’ PR campaign. The campaign boldly stated ‘bigger, better and faster’ service for their customers and went as far as to fire their long standing Mr D Chef logo, yes that’s right, they fired their logo!
Earlier this month M&C Saatchi Abel won the first gold Loerie for their Mr Delivery ‘Fire the Chef’ PR Communications Campaign. The team consists of some of the leading creative minds in the industry such as Executive Creative Director, Gordon Ray and PR Managing Partner, Alison van den Heever.
Ray said, “We see ourselves as a Strategic Marketing & Communications consultancy – that just happens to make ads. The way we work is different and the way we approach problems is different. Being a smaller agency we focus on the needs of the client by drawing on all the resources at our disposal, including the immense creative talent within the agency.”
For those of you who missed the ‘Fire the Chef’ Campaign it included an attention grabbing public protest with new owners of Mr Delivery South Africa David Chait and Alon Rom in the Cape Town business district as seen in my original post titled ‘New Mr Delivery campaigns for better service delivery’
Mr D Chef didn’t go down without a fight he backlashed at Mr Delivery by sneakily sending out a newsletter to all subscribers. The transcript was truly hilarious in his strange ‘Borat-esque’ accent although there were many people labeling it spam. What do you think?
Original transcript
“Deer Kustomer I write to you from home becoz Chef is now fire from Mr. Delivery.
Chef hear you say food is some of times late. but what you expect when Chef is hungover? Chef hear you say food is cold. Soooo maybe Chef play some games poker in big refrigarator before make deliveries, so what. After 18 year Chef has been face of Mr. Delivery! is me in logo, On book on evry ones refrigerator!! And you no what Chef hear?
IT IS YOU WHO GET CHEF FIRE!!
I hear you talk bad about Chef!!!You say food was half of time cold!! You say I am too slow!! Then they fire me!!
They say I am fat! That I am lazy!!! They say they are moving forward without Chef! They can’t fire me!! If Chef is so slow than how is he fast enouf to not get kaught send mails to kustomers huh!! This is not last you have seen of Chef!!”
Mr D Chef didn’t stop there, he decided to prank call and ask well-known satire illustrator Zapiro to illustrate him in a more attractive fashion, or as he put it ‘make look thiiin for Chef’
Have a listen and laugh here.
Since then Mr Delivery launched their new logo, which cut the chef completely. Chait and Rom have stated that they were in the process of venturing and expanding their business model to include an inter-city courier service and just this week I received word that TAKEALOT.com headed by Kim Reid has acquired a 40% stake in their Mr Delivery subsidiary, Mr Delivery Express. Smart move on both parts.
TAKEALOT went under a massive rebranding campaign a few months ago; you may remember them as Take2. The online retailer has been making splashes in the online e-commerce sphere ever since. Not only have they gone under rebranding with a new website they have now taken South African online shopping to the next level by providing the fastest delivery service around in my opinion.
The strategic partnership between Mr Delivery Express and TAKEALOT now offer busy consumers the opportunity to receive their orders on the very same day! Now I don’t know about you, when I buy something online I want it NOW! Ok maybe that’s overly optimistic but I want it as soon as possible.
This does have some limitations of course but that’s acceptable, you have to order in stock items before 13:00 and it will be at your doorstep before 19:00 that same day, not a bad deal at all. This same day delivery service is only available to Capetonians and outer lying areas for now but sources tell me Johannesburg will follow shortly. This is going to make Christmas shopping a breeze this year!
M&C Saatchi Abel headed both rebranding campaigns and in fact was the key to the TAKEALOT and Mr Delivery Express partnership. CEO of TAKEALOT, Kim Reid says, “Mike Abel saw an opportunity to introduce TAKEALOT and Mr Delivery Express which we believe will grow not only our businesses but the South African e-commerce and service industry. We were able to forge a great synergy by combining each of our company’s strengths to further develop services in South Africa at large. We believe that this partnership has the potential to re-energize and re-engineer South African online consumer behaviour.
Cooking Meals to Share with your Dog is going international It shall be recorded and aired on Supreme Master TV. The show is broadcast on 14 satellite platforms and on over 75 cable and IPTV networks, in more than 60 languages and over 40 language subtitles. This show is also available through your DSTV decoder should you wish to watch the show live
I shall be sharing my cooking skills and associated insights into Dog Psychology I look forward to sharing with you an arrangement of healthy meals that you can enjoy for yourself, family, friends and most importantly, share with your best friend Your Dog
Copies of the recordings of the show shall be posted on my blog, so ensure that you enter your email address and subscribe in order to catch the latest actions and insights
Recipe:
Ingredients:
A bunch of large fresh green asparagus
5 courgettes
A cup of frozen (or fresh) peas
One tin of butter beans, drained and rinsed
Sliced ciabatta
Olive oil
Rocket
Raw cashew Nuts
Lemon Juice
Seasoning
Method:
Chop the courgettes and place in a pan on the stove with some olive oil, sauté until they are soft and starting to brown a little.
Steam the asparagus for 5 – 8 minutes (until al dente) and steam the peas for 3 – 4 minutes. Add the asparagus, peas and butter beans to the courgettes in the pan and sauté for 4 minutes.
To make the pesto combine 3 large handfuls of rocket, 2 large handfuls of cashew nuts, a squeeze of lemon juice, seasoning and generous amount of olive oil in a blender and pulse until it is almost smooth.
Stir the pesto into the vegetables.
Toast the slices of ciabatta in a pan with a little olive oil and serve with the warm salad piled on top.
Added description for the Interview part of the article:
Watch the insightful interview with James Lech, South Africa’s Famous Dog Whisperer. In it he shares his personal insights into his natural animal communication abilities, why he promotes a vegan diet for dogs, what are the physical, psychological and most interestingly the compelling environmental benefits for dogs being placed onto a Vegan diet.
Later in the year we shall be hearing about James’s new Doggies Weight loss and Physical Rehabilitation Clinic that is opening in Cape Town.
Today, the lovely ladies at WhiteRoom PR, popped past the office to drop off a bottle of Red Stag and some shot glasses – Thank you so much ladies!
Red Stag is defined as, “a hint of black cherry for a bourbon that’s anything but subtle. It is further described as being distinctively fruity, without disguising the familiar, rich nose of Jim Beam Bourbon. The bourbon has a corn sweetness and mellow oak accented taste to it, which includes a burst of black cherry for smoothness and balance. Satiny and judiciously sweet, with a true bourbon warmth is the taste that will be left in your mouth.
I immediately opened the bottle and poured myself and a colleague a shot – I have to tell you, it’s absolutely delicious! I’m a tequila fan and tequila is probably the only shooter I can stand, but Red Stag is on the list now, it’s got that bourbon kick, but the black cherry taste is just a treat!
Jim Beam have a website full of downloads, recipes and other goodies that go along with Red Stag, so if you’re interested, head on over and have a read – some of the recipes sound delicious!
Did you know that Rooibos is good for you? Unlike ordinary tea, coffee and other hot beverages, drinking 6 cups of Rooibos a day is a health benefit-not a health hazard! Continue reading →
With all the wine reviews and cooking posts, I felt it would be cool to share a cool kitchen set that I found whilst surfing Mantality – The Click and Cool Kitchen Set.
The way it works is quite simple, you get a stand which holds the different utensils and then a handle, which they clip onto. So, instead of having 5 or 6 big utensils, you have a really neat set. The set comes with a classic flat spatula, a long flexible slotted spatula, an extra-wide slotted spatula, and flexible mixer and a slotted spoon.
Here’s what the set looks like:
The set sells for R500 and delivers in just 24 hours, so if you want to get a set or buy a set for someone, you can do so by clicking here.
The set sells for R500 and delivers in just 24 hours, so if you want to get a set or buy a set for someone, you can do so by 
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