A special memory is treating the two young men, who’d never been to sea, to a boat trip during a weekend at his holiday house at Franskraal, a small fishing hamlet on Walker Bay past Hermanus.
'We went out with Oom Koos, who does "rescue trips" out of Gansbaai for all these people who get seasick on the shark cage-diving boat charters run out of Kleinbaai Harbour. Just behind Dyer Island with its massive Cape fur seal population is a deep gully where all the great white sharks hang out. I asked Oom Koos as a special favour to kind of hover there for a bit. Next minute, a great white leaps out of the water with a seal in its jaws! It was like heaven; a miracle; as though nature chose to lay on a show just for these guys!'
He's a keen boat fisherman and also goes snorkelling to collect alikreukel [giant periwinkle]. 'I’m not crazy about kreef [crayfish], unless it's slathered in mayonnaise. I’d rather eat minced alikreukel or perlemoen [abalone], which sadly is being poached close to extinction so recreational fishermen and divers are not allowed to take it out any more.'
Says wife Annaline: 'He's particularly good at preparing fish. His late dad was an avid fisherman and he grew up seeing how all the women prepared various fish dishes. He cooks instinctively.'
Their Franskraal retreat is a special place 'because it's our own', They were living in a rented home near the Graham Beck Franschhoek winery and decided to start building a small house in Franskraal. Then Charles Hopkins joined De Grendel. But instead of moving onto the farm they opted to settle in Paarl, where son Henry and daughter Marciel were at school.
'We partly finished our Franskraal plekkie on a wing and a prayer.' Hence the name on a handmade steel plaque: Aftrekorder No. 14. No twee moniker, it's a bit of fun mixed with a wry reminder of the monthly debit order on bank repayments!
'I know I'm on holiday when I wake up at Franskraal, read the newspaper in bed and then doze for another hour or so. '
An open-plan kitchen and living area is dominated by a generously proportioned, well-used indoor hearth and big verandah overlooking the sea. The family spends every Christmas at their seaside retreat for three weeks uninterrupted.
A couple of carefully chosen portraits of Marilyn Monroe feature on the walls. They reflect her husband's soft heart, says Annaline: 'Charles has always had a thing about her. It's her story that gets to him, the bad luck she had, her vulnerability. He felt the same way about Princess Diana.'
The many people this gentle giant takes under his wing often respond in kind. Among his treasured items is something given to him by the mother of a young woman who did an internship with him: a handmade patchwork quilt, dotted with photographs of Charles Hopkins in vineyards and winery: his Arcadian state.
Alikreukel (giant periwinkles) risotto with Bulgarian yoghurt recipe by Charles Hopkins....
Barbecued curried pork neck recipe by Charles Hopkins served with a crouton salad and paired with De Grendel Merlot....