Navel, Clementine, Blood, Seville, Tangerine, Mandarin… These are just a few fruits belonging to the orange family. Did you know that an orange can technically be defined as a berry? The most common oranges to us here in South Africa are the navel and valencia varieties, with the latter being produced and exported in volumes more than double that of navel oranges.Navel oranges are seedless and derive its name from the second tiny fruit growing at the orange’s base which looks like a human belly button. Valencia oranges on the other hand has a thinner skin and are a little sweeter than navel oranges. All oranges are non-climacteric, meaning that they have to ripen and develop their colour and flavour...
Did you know that alcohol contains 7 calories per gram which is almost the same as a gram of pure fat? This means that spirits, a high alcoholic liquid, are high in calories too. But does this mean that you should cut out alcohol to maintain a healthy, low-calorie diet? Not necessarily.Alcohol is produced by the fermentation and/or distillation process of natural starch and sugar. And the alcohol content of your drink depends on what type of drink it is. A shot (25ml) of spirits typically contains 50-60 calories. Especially clear spirits like gin and vodka. While it seems low in calories, we shouldn’t forget the mixers we usually add to our drinks. In this case it would most likely...
The gin spirit that is. So while you sit back and sip on your "dutch courage", have you ever wondered why it's even called that? In fact, have you ever wondered about what you don't know about this "lekker" liquor?Well so have we. Other than already knowing how to perfect the production of gin and the wonderful taste of it (which you are more than welcome to come taste at the distillery), we've dug up some fun gin knowledge and trivia.As you most likely already know, gin is mostly associated with British culture. But did you know it's also catching notoriety in Spain and other parts of the world? South Africans has a very healthy thirst for this spirit, even...
On numerous occasions we have guests who come in to a tasting and when I say the words; 'I would like to encourage you to taste it neat', the look on their faces scares me too. Look, it's not like you go to a bar and ask for a shot of neat gin. It's usually tequila, Jager, or vodka. Now she's asking me to taste it neat?! There is method to my madness. I had a gentleman in the distillery who told me he had never tasted brandy neat, yet is a brandy drinker. How does he drink his brandy then? Of course a few blocks of ice and Cola, or diet Cola. So when I asked him what he...
