A few months ago we were invited to the offices of Freddy Hirsch in Maitland, where its vast array of spices are packaged for use in large scale food preparation, including making boerewors, biltong, and droëwors.   The visit was to teach us how to make Droëwors, in preparation of the annual Stellenbosch Hills Freddy Hirsch competition, this year dedicated to finding the best Droëwors Maker of the Year, the competition alternating between the dry sausage and biltong  annually.

More than 30 entries were received for the competition, in its second year, and the judges had a tough time to select the top three winners.   PG Slabbert, Stellenbosch Hills winemaker and manager, said that the wine estate was the first to pair dried meats and wines, which they have called ‘Biltong & Wine Adventure‘, and which can be enjoyed at their cellar.  Its pay-off line is ‘Distinction through Diversity‘.  He said that making biltong and droëwors, using the right blend of spices, is as specialised an art as winemaking.   Getaway magazine was the media sponsor, the competition dried meat  products being ‘quintessential padkos for South Africans’, its editor Cameron Ewart-Smith said.

In the competition, a different Stellenbosch Hills wine is chosen every year, and the competition meat product pairing with the wine is evaluated.  The 2013 competition choice was the 1707 Reserve 2010.   The meat selection was the contestants’ choice.  The panel of judges who tried and tasted the 30 entries were PG, Stellenbosch Hills director Philip Kriel, media braai celebrity Jan Braai, MasterChef SA Season 1 Finalist Ilse Fourie, Silwood trained cordon bleu chef Sue von Hirschberg, and journalist Samarie Smith.

Hugo Human from Durbanville came second and Leonard Lotter from Kraaifontein came third, each winning a cash prize and Stellenbosch Hills and Freddy Hirsch products.  It was Loxton garlic and sheep farmer Martin Scholtz’s unique meat mix of kudu, springbok and Afrikaner sheep, all reared on his farm, and a unique spice blend that the judges chose as the winning entry, winning him R15000 in cash and  an equivalent value in Stellenbosch Hills wines and Freddy Hirsch spices, received on his behalf by his wife Marianne and daughter Mattie Scholtz.

The function was held at 96 Winery Road, and the starter of pan-fried prawns and apple, wood bacon, enoki mushrooms, and fennel purée was colourful and tasty. The highlight was the perfectly prepared brandy flambéed Hollandse fillet served with a black peppercorn sauce, soft and tender when cut with the serious steak knife, and served with crispy chips and vegetables.  Dessert was a collection of creme brûlée,  peanut butter ice cream, and chocolate, chocolate, chocolate from their menu.

It was the start to a busy Friday and weekend, and the writers that attended thoroughly enjoyed themselves, catching up on the latest industry news and guessing who would make 2014 Platter’s 5 stars later that afternoon and Eat Out Top 10 Restaurants on Sunday.

Disclosure:  We received a pack of Freddy Hirsch Droëwoes spices as well as a bottle each of Stellenbosch Hills 1707 white Reserve 2012, 1707 red Reserve 2010, and Muscat de Hambourg 2012 with our media pack.

Stellenbosch Hills:  Vlottenburg Road, Stellenbosch.  Tel (021) 881-3828 www.stellenbosch_hills.co.za  Twitter: @STBHills

Freddy Hirsch:   Voortrekker Road, Maitland, Cape Town.  Tel (021) 507-4500  www.stellenbosch_hills.co.za   Twitter: @FreddyHirsch

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com  Twitter: @WhaleCottage