We recently created the concept of a “Franschhoek Restaurant Route” in a blog post, to highlight the restaurant gems in Franschhoek, a village that has worn the Gourmet Capital crown to date.   Given that Stellenbosch has not actioned the “Stellenbosch Restaurant Route”,  a concept we created in a blog post too, Franschhoek is taking the high ground, and is combining its two major attractions, to form the Franschhoek Wine Valley Food and Wine Route from next year.

Franschhoek is not only incorporating food and wine in the Route, but is also planning to include cultural, art,  shopping, outdoor and scenic experiences into the Franschhoek Food and Wine Route.  An ‘e-commerce’ website is being built, allowing visitors to Franschhoek to book their “experiences” on-line.   Members of the Franschhoek Wine Valley Tourism Association do not pay to be included in the Food and Wine Route, but pay 10 % commission for bookings received via the site.

The following categories will be included in the Franschhoek Wine Valley Food and Wine Route (a mouthful at the moment, hopefully the ‘Wine Valley” will be dropped from the name over time):

*   Food:  signature dishes, award-winning restaurants, traditional cuisine, cooking classes, picnics, private dinners, including restaurants such as The Restaurant at Grand Provence, Pierneef Ã  La Motte, Reuben’s, Solms-Delta’s Fyndraai Restaurant, Allée Bleue, Le Franschhoek’s Verger, and many more.

*   Wine: red wine, white wine and MCC tastings; vertical, varietal and component tastings; barrel tastings; personalised cellar tours, at wine estates such as Graham Beck, Allée Bleue, Boekenhoutskloof, Colmant, Cabriere, La Motte, Grand Provence, Boschendal, Lynx, Solms Delta, Stony Brook, Chamonix and Vrede & Lust.

*   Food and wine pairings: including Vrede & Lust, Plaisir de Merle, Solms-Delta, Maison, Grande Provence, Mont Rochelle, Cabriere, Manz Holden, and Graham Beck

*   Local produce: olives, olive oil, cheese, bread, beer, schnapps, and salmon, sold at the Salmon Bar, Rupert & Rothschild, Vrede & Lust, Allée Bleue, Allora’s The Olive Shack, and Le Bourgogne

*   Deli’s and farm shops:La Cotte Inn, Allée Bleue, Franschhoek Cellars, Boschendal, L’ermitage, The Jam Jar, La Motte

*   Retail shopping: Cooksensuals

*   Art galleries, such as Grande Provence, David Walters’ ceramics’ studio, and the art collection at Ebony

*   Outdoor and scenic experiences

*   Accommodation

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