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Today, I have a craving for Hanepoort grapes. I could eat a ton of them. But I’m so tired of going to Tescos or any other supermarket in UK and buying grapes that have previously been frozen. Give me a fresh bunch of Hanepoort grapes anyday.

A search on Google for Hanepoot grapes brings up an interesting website in #1 slot. It is a website for a wine estate in the Cape called Slanghoek Wines.

Here is a bit of the introduction to Slanghoek:

“Slanghoek Cellar lies in the picturesque Slanghoek Valley, 880m above sea level, surrounded by the majestic Slanghoek Mountains from which the cellar derives its name. The cellar is a mere 4km from the Goudini Spa holiday resort, 20km from Worcester and 90km from Cape Town.”

Did you know that wine was first made in the Cape on 2nd February 1659?

Jan van Riebeeck, (governer of the colony), was very happy with the way grapes he planted flourished so well in the lee of Table Mountain. Van Riebeeck himself developed the hanepoot grape, which has a very distinctive sweet flavour.

The expertise of both Simon van der Stel, who came as governor in 1679, and the French Huguenots in 1688, did much to improve the quality of wine. Visitors to the Cape praised the Constantia wines. One reads of their popularity in England in the novels of Jane Austen, and Napoleon is said to have enjoyed Constantia wine during his exile on St Helena.

So, back to the Slanghoek Cellars. The estate was started back in 1951. It is interesting to see that the cellar in its current form was only established in 1987 and have racked up many, many awards of excellence since.

Recent awards include:

SA Champion with highest points for 5 best wines – 1997 to 2001, 2003 & 2004 - SA Record

SA Champion Noble Late Harvest - 1999, 2000, 2001 & 2002

Maybe we can organise a few iScatterling dinners, (like Hugh Macleod’s Geek dinners he organised with Stormhoek) with some free Slanghoek to lubricate the proceedings to see if the awards were merited??!!

Anyway, you can go read more about Slanghoek here

10 unusual accidents
(BBC)

Figures published by the Department of Health have revealed a huge range of unusual accidents which put people in hospital in England in 2004. Here is just a small sample.

1. Two people were admitted after being in contact with venomous spiders. Both stayed in hospital for five days.

2. 22 people suffered from exposure to ignition or melting of nightwear, most of them men.

3. 1,481 people, most of them children, were injured by hot drinks, and most needing an overnight stay in hospital.

4. Two people needed five days’ treatment after contact with centipedes or venomous millipedes.

5. 15 people were admitted after contact with a marine animal, needing an average of two days in hospital.

6. Four people had an average of two days’ treatment after exposure to vibrations.

7. 1,839 people - 78% of them children - fell out of trees.

8. 4,533 people fell when using ice-skates, skis, roller-skates or skateboards. 57% of them were under 15.

9. One girl needed an overnight stay after being “bitten or struck” by an alligator. (By comparison, 3,508 people were bitten or struck by dogs.)

10. One child was admitted to hospital after “prolonged stay in a weightless environment”. He or she did not stay overnight. There are no further details about who this person was or how they had come to need treatment.