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How Wine Shapes Every Dish at La Vierge
At La Vierge, every dish begins with the wine.
Executive Chef Rachel van Zyl shares how seasonal ingredients and careful adjustments shape each plate around it.
As winter inches closer in the Hemel-en-Aaarde Valley, the work in the La Vierge kitchen begins to shift.
Executive Chef Rachel van Zyl is already deep in the process of shaping the winter menu, refining dishes, testing combinations and making small adjustments that bring each plate into alignment with the wines. The new menu will launch on 1 June.
Building from the wine
The process doesn’t begin in a single place.
Sometimes it starts with an ingredient, sometimes with an idea and sometimes with a specific wine. What remains consistent is where it leads.
Each dish is shaped to sit alongside the wine, allowing both to come through clearly without one overpowering the other.
In a region known for it’s cool-climate Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, the wines already carry a sense of precision and balance.
The role of the kitchen is to work with that, not against it.
Winter Steak Tartare and Pinot Noir
For Rachel, this dish brings that thinking into focus.
The steak tartare with beetroot vinaigrette, chives and crispy beetroot is built around La Vierge Pinot Noir, featured in both the Estate Range and the Story Teller Collection.
Known for it’s lighter structure and earthy depth, the wine calls for restraint on the plate. Rather than leaning into heavier, richer elements, Rachel worked with ingredients that echo and support these qualities.
The sweetness of the beetroot and the acidity of the vinaigrette are carefully balanced to complement both the wine and the richness of the beef. It’s the smaller adjustments that make the dfifference on the plate.
“I decreased the amount of vinaigrette we pour tableside,” Rachel explains. “It stays exactly the same, we just use less of it. It could easily overpower the wine and the core flavours to come through clearly. “When everything works, the qualities in both the wine and the dish are enhanced. None of the flavours are fighting each other.”
Winter Burrata and Chardonnay
If the tartare reflects a dish built by the wine, the winter burrata takes a different approach. The burrata with roasted pears, beaurre noisette, thyme, honey and shaved almonds is built around La Vierge Chardonnay, featured in both the Estate Range and the Story Teller Collection.
Rachel’s initial instinct was to follow the wine’s brighter notes. Citrus and stone fruit had worked well on the summer menu. This time, it didn’t. “That approach didn’t work at all,” she says. “I had to move away from trying to replicate the wine.”
Instead, Rachel shifted direction.
Pears replaced citrus. Butter and almonds were introduced to draw out the wine’s nutty richness. On the palate, honey brings forward it’s floral character, while thyme supports it’s minerality.
Each adjustment bought the dish closer to the wine to working with its structure, is where the dish settles.
La Vierge’s Estate Chardonnay, recently awarded a Gold Medal and 95 points by the IWSC, reflects this same balance of structure and precision.
In a region known for Chardonnay, that precision allows the dish to sit alongside the wine without dulling its character.
Working with the season
Seasonality plays a direct role in how each dish is developed.
Rachel works closely with ingredients that are available locally, allowing the season to guide what comes into the kitchen.
In the warmer months, ingredients tend to lift the lighter qualities in the wines.
As winter approaches, the kitchen turns to beetroot, pears, pumpkin and citrus, bringing deeper, more layered flavours onto the plate.
This shift begins with what is available, and carries through to how the wines are experienced at the table.
“We definitely lean more towards the red wines in winter,” Rachel explains.
At the same time, white wines like Chardonnay require a more deliberate approach on the plate to maintain their balance and expression.
The details that matter
Often, it’s the smallest elements on the plate that shape how the wine is experienced.
Even something as simple as a garnish can shift that balance, so for Rachel, it is never an afterthought.
“Every garnish is selected intentionally,” she says. “If it doesn’t support the dish or the wine, it doesn’t belong on the plate.”
It’s a detail most guests may not notice, but one that directly shapes how the wine comes through with each bite.
A table shaped by wine
At La Vierge, the result is not just a dish, but a table.
Open bottles, filled glasses and plates that move naturally among guests create a space for connection, conversation and discovery.
“A perfect La Vierge table definitely has a few bottles of wine on it and filled wine glasses to start with,” Rachel says.
As winter settles into the valley, that experience begins to take on a different character.
The new menu, launching on 1 June, reflects that shift. Guests can expect dishes shaped by the season, each one developed to sit naturally alongside the wines.
To experience the winter menu, explore the La Vierge Restaurant & Tasting Room or discover the wines behind the dishes in the Estate Range and the Story Teller Collection.
