Hotel Blog

Q&A with Dragons Keeper Gin Maker

dragonqa-1

From October until December 2023, Gin School at Indaba Hotel has had the award-winning Dragon's Keeper Handcrafted Gin in the sensorium for interesting tastings and fun pairings. We love the story behind this gin as well as its elegant notes and smooth finish. Additionally, we had some burning questions for the Dragon's Keeper Team. We sat down wit...

Continue reading
  309 Hits

Another local Gin School collaboration: meet Dragon's Keeper

dragons-keeper

We're thrilled to welcome another distinguished collaboration at the Gin School. Since its inception in 2018, the Gin School has partnered with skilled local distillers to bring the best craft gins to the connoisseurs of Joburg. From October to December 2023, we'll have the majestic, Dragon's Keeper Handcrafted Gin in our sensorium for tantalising ...

Continue reading
  441 Hits

Another local Gin School collaboration: meet Cape Saint Blaize

capestblaize-1

We're thrilled to welcome another distinguished collaboration at the Gin School. Since its inception in 2018, the Gin School has partnered with skilled local distillers to bring the best craft gins to the connoisseurs of Johannesburg. From July to September 2023, we'll have the amazing Cape Saint Blaize Artisanal Distillery in the sensorium for tan...

Continue reading
  634 Hits

Q&A with Cape Saint Blaize: Jason Moorcroft

capestblaizeqa-1

From July until September 2023, Gin School at Indaba Hotel have the beautiful Cape Saint Blaize Artisanal Distillery in the sensorium for tantalising tastings and fun foodie pairings. We love the story behind this gin as well as the full-bodied, rich and refreshing notes of their range of gins, so we had some burning questions for Jason from Cape S...

Continue reading
  502 Hits

Q&A with Old Packhouse: Mark Dando

57674233_643135142789580_4852756077416022016_n

From April until June 2023, Gin School at Indaba Hotel have the amazing Old Packhouse Distillery in the sensorium for tantalising tastings and fun foodie pairings. We love the story behind this gin as well as the smoothness, purity and refreshing nature of their range of gins, so we had some burning questions for Old Packhouse Distillery's founder,...

Continue reading
  941 Hits

Another local Gin School collaboration: meet Old Packhouse Gin

OPH-8760

We're thrilled to welcome another distinguished collaboration at the Gin School. Since its inception in 2018, the Gin School has partnered with skilled local distillers to bring the best craft gins to the connoisseurs of Johannesburg. From April until June 2023, we'll have the amazing Old Packhouse Distillery Gin in the sensorium for tantalising ta...

Continue reading
  732 Hits

5 Easy Ways to Celebrate Mom in Johannesburg this Mothers Day

Mothers Day Picnic Joburg

Forgotten about your dear old mum? No fear! The Indaba Hotel is here to save Mothers Day. From picnics to bottomless bubbly to buffets to gin and chocolate pairings and spa spoils, there are plenty of affordable ways to show mom you truly cherish her.

1. Book a Bottomless Bubbly and Oyster Brunch

Kick back and relax with a glass or two of bubbly and make more memories with mom. Our Mother’s Day Jazz Brunch at the Indaba Hotel’s luxury Epsom Restaurant takes place on Sunday 9 May 2021 and she'll feel thoroughly spoil by our soothing live entertainment, bottomless bubbly, oysters, smoked salmon, scrumptious lamb, charcuterie platters, cheeseboards and lots more – definitely not your average breakfast1 Plus, we will even include a gorgeous gift for Mom absolutely free.

Cost: Only R235 per person.

Book: Call Didi now on 0118406600 to book.

T&Cs: Our Mother’s Day Brunch buffet will be open until 13H00 so lots of time to relax and enjoy precious moments with family and friends. Bottomless bubbly will be served from 10H00 to 13H00 only (strictly over 18’s only). Kids under 5 years eat free and kids 6-12 years only pay half price!

Continue reading
  2422 Hits

Q&A with Milorho: Lukhanyo Ceza

milorho-1

From January until March 2023, Gin School at Indaba Hotel have the marvellous Milorho Craft Gin in the sensorium for tantalising tastings and fun foodie pairings. We are just loving the complexity and easy-drinking nature of this stunning Craft Gin so we had some burning questions for Milorho's founder, Lukhanyo Ceza. We sat down with Lukhanyo rece...

Continue reading
  657 Hits

Another local Gin School collaboration: meet Milorho

milorho-1

We're thrilled to kickstart the new year with another distinguished collaboration at the Gin School. Since its inception in 2018, the Gin School has partnered with skilled local distillers to bring the best craft gins to the connoisseurs of Johannesburg. From January until March 2023, we'll have the marvellous Milorho Craft Gin in the sensorium for...

Continue reading
  368 Hits

Where to spend New Year's Eve in Johannesburg

1

Introduction For many, New Year's Eve is a time of partying the night away with fireworks dancing across the sky and a DJ spinning the ultimate song of the year. For others it might be a quiet time of reflection and perhaps taking the opportunity to think about resolutions and goals that lie ahead. However you decide to spend New Year's Eve, end 20...

Continue reading
  1778 Hits

Colab with The Noble Experiment

Noble-Experiment--1

The Gin School has been hugely successful in collaborating with well-known distilleries since its inception in 2018 and have introduced the idea of forming colabs with local masters in their craft. During November and December, we welcome The Noble Experiment onto our shelves and into our sensorium for tastings and fun foodie pairings.

[spacer]

The Story

You could say our story started in 1920. When the United States implemented a nationwide constitutional ban on the production, importation, transportation, and sale of alcohol. President Herbert Hoover described it as “a great social and economic experiment, noble in motive and far-reaching in purpose.” We’re pretty sure others described it as a crime against humanity.

[spacer]

The Name

Unsurprisingly, the experiment was a dismal failure with homebrews, bootlegging and speakeasies at an all-time high. Widespread disregard for the law was obvious as even women (gasp!) began to frequent these ‘unlawful’ drinking clubs. They say that through disobedience, however, progress is made. And it was this era’s rebellion that inspired the establishment of our Craft Distillery in 2018 aptly named, The Noble Experiment. Our name is also a fitting testament to our founder’s experimentation within the alcohol industry, which, unlike Prohibition, was at least legal and has yielded more promising results.

[spacer]

The Founder

The Noble Experiment is an artisanal distillery founded by Riana Macdougall who prides herself on crafting spirits from grain to glass. Riana pushes the boundaries of flavour innovation and traditional distilling to deliver products that are true to her South African roots.

[spacer]

The Spirits

There is a passion that goes into craft distilling that is every bit as crucial as the botanicals themselves. While craft distilling is an artistic pursuit, it’s also a celebration of innovation and ingenuity. The Noble Experiment is the first distillery in South Africa to craft and produce a Rhubarb-infused gin and the first to ferment rice to produce a premium small-batch Vodka.

Continue reading
  1429 Hits

Colab with Incendo Distillery

Incendo-2

The Gin School has been hugely successful in collaborating with well-known distilleries since its inception in 2018 and are collaborating with local masters in their craft. During January and February 2022, we welcome Incendo Distillery onto our shelves and into our sensorium for tastings and fun foodie pairings.

[spacer]

The Story

Incendo Distillery was founded in 2018 by Francois Joubert and Vonmari Joubert. Francois's fascination with distilling started with the only job he was ever “fired” from. He was 14 years old, and picking peaches on a farm of a friend. Unfortunately his colour blindness meant lots of green peaches, and not many ripe ones… The following day he was recruited to help distil Mampoer in an age old copper kettle – in an effort to protect the orchards from his picking ‘skills’. The fascination took hold again at varsity, with attempts to distil Apple Jack in his residence room.

In 2010 Francois bought my first 25Liter alembic still, with a 100L fractionating collumn still following in 2013. And since then he's perfected many recipes for gins, rums, brandy and whisky.

Vonmari’s maiden name is Stoker – hailing from her great grandfather Hendrik Stoker who was a ‘jenever stoker’ (Gin distiller) in Assen, Netherlands at the turn of the 18th century. She is eagerly working on a ‘heritage’ product range in remembrance of her family lineage. Vonmari is also responsible for all the branding and marketing materials of Incendo Distillery.

[spacer]

The Name

Incendo is a Latin verb meaning ‘light up’, ‘set on fire’, ‘enhance’ and ‘intensify’. These terms all describe what we do – taking ordinary ingredients, enhancing them by using fire. And intensifying them by using oak and time.

Continue reading
  1028 Hits

Colab with Melodramatic Gin

Melodramatic-3

The Gin School has been hugely successful in collaborating with well-known distilleries since its inception in 2018 and are collaborating with local masters in their craft. During March and April 2022, we welcome Melodramatic Gin onto our shelves and into our sensorium for tastings and fun foodie pairings.

[spacer]

The Story

Having studied theatre for five years and running her own drama school, Ansie de Beer had the vision to create a unique range of locally distilled gins. Ansie spent many sleepless nights working on ideas to introduce her dramatic flair into the presentation and recipes of these gins and was determined to create a gin range that resonated her passion for drama and theatre. If you look at the reverse-side of the label, you will see a display of legendary theatrical characters.

Distilled in small batches, hand labelled and personally signed, this makes each bottle a showpiece for any occasion.

[spacer]

The Spirits

The Phantom: A delightful gin with a refreshingly spicy finish. Generously distilled with cardamom, and export quality rooibos. It lends the perfect amount of bitterness and spice, while also giving it a touch of the dramatic flair.

The Harlequin: A well balanced premium gin distilled in small batches. Using a blend of quality botanicals and fresh juniper aromas. The Harlequin is spiked with spices, fresh citrus and floral scents that has a lingering aftertaste of tangerine. A delicate balance between naughty & nice. The Harlequin is also available as a special edition ‘shimmer’ gin.

Continue reading
  903 Hits

Colab with AXI Lwanda

271273157_932203690936293_8892992257912031628_n

The Gin School has been hugely successful in collaborating with well-known distilleries since its inception in 2018 and are collaborating with local masters in their craft. During October, November and December 2022, we welcome AXI Lwanda onto our shelves and into our sensorium for tastings and fun foodie pairings.  A trio of contemp...

Continue reading
  891 Hits

Gin and Chocolate Pairings

gin-chocolate-pairing-4

This season the Gin School managed to get into a new swing of things. With our beautiful Sensorium now having spent several months in its new home, we thought it would be fun to add some new activities to the pot (pot still that is!).

We hosted a hugely successful African Craft Market in March at the Indaba Hotel that played host to a variety of different stores and goodies to buy. It was here that we welcomed our very first Gin and Chocolate Pairing. Taking inspiration from the incredible Inverroche range, we selected some of the best chocolate truffles we could find and carefully paired them with the Classic Collection that we have come to know and love from Inverroche.  We love paying tribute to our African heritage here at the Indaba Hotel and decided that we would create a unique feel and atmosphere with our tastings and pairings. Authentic African plants, botanicals and fabrics were delicately laid out on our tasting table to welcome our guests and highlight some of our favourite aspects of the Inverroche brand. Our tastings give our guests the chance to actually engage with the botanicals and ingredients that are found in the Gin’s selected adding a unique feel and creating a genuine experience. From beginning to end our tastings are set up to spark your creativity and awaken your taste buds.

You’ll learn about some of our favourite aspects of Inverroche including their story, heritage and journey to creating one of South Africa’s finest Gins. But it isn’t all about the drinking; we have very carefully designed a pairing that will engage all your senses. Our chocolates have been selected from one of South Africa’s oldest and finest Belgium Chocolatiers. Much like the Inverroche range of Gins, these magical little chocolate truffles contain no preservatives or artificial colouring and are all made by hand. But of course you will learn more about all these closely kept secrets when you join us next.

We have even taken our tastings one step further and created a Gin and Chocolate Pairing Package inclusive of a Chief’s Boma Dinner. If you’ve never been to our Boma for dinner this is your chance! Chief’s Boma is a three course African inspired buffet style restaurant that pays homage to all our favourite African dishes and cuisines. Continue your African inspired tasting through to dinner as your dine with good friends and family listening to live music while sitting around a warm fire.

To make a booking please call the Indaba Hotel on 011 840 6658 or find us on our website www.indabahotel.co.za

  1175 Hits

Subscribe to Newsletter

Please type your name.
Enter a valid email
Please verify you are human
Just north of the fast paced business world of Sandton, Johannesburg lies the Indaba Hotel, Spa & Conference Centre nestled beneath the vista of the magnificent Magaliesberg Mountains.
It is a compelling blend of business-like convenience and efficiency, along with a relaxed and warm country hospitality atmosphere.

Phone: +27 (0) 11 840 6600
Email: indaba@indabahotel.co.za

William Nicol Drive & Pieter Wenning Road Fourways

TripAdvisor
Review Indaba Hotel and Conference Centre

Reward Program
Click to read more

AGODA Awards - Indaba Sandton