Let's Raise our Glass and Toast to South African Wine & Stellenbosch - by Emlyn Lee

Is there anything more perfect than spending an April Friday with blue skies and mild weather in the wine region of South Africa? I guess if you add visiting five vineyards, two great friends, a cheese platter, and Dex designating himself as our driver, yup, that pretty much sums up a day of perfection!

Welcome to Stellenbosch! It is only 45 minutes East of Cape Town, which makes an easy day trip. However, we decided to spend the night in Stellenbosch the night before, not because we were lushes, but to get a different experience and vibe of the area. Stellenbosch is a small and idyllic town, with a Dutch colonial charm. People were friendly, relaxed, and had a very pleasant disposition about them. It almost seemed like a village, with streets lined with cafes, restaurants, banks, shops, and I didn’t notice any buildings taller than three stories. Stellenbosch is nestled in the valley surrounded by rolling hills and mountainous backdrop—absolutely stunning!

This region is also best known as the home of South African’s largest wine and spirit production. It is also the oldest wine route in South Africa, drawing wine lovers and tourists from all around the world. So here I am! There are more than 100 wineries open to the public, all within easy reach of the town center.

We chose five vineyards to visit today. The first one was Beyerskloof, it was a contemporary vineyard with themes of love, peace, and celebration. Walking upstairs there was a beautiful reception area with lavender couches and chaise lounge chairs. It was a small vineyard, with about 8.5 hectares, and about 5000 vines per hectare. We went down to the testing room, which continued it’s modern art deco theme. We tasted ten different types of wines that are produced in Beyerskloof for 20 Rands (~US$3), and given a description of the grapes, production and what foods would best match the wine. This vineyard was known for Pinotage—a grape found uniquely in South Africa area. One bottle that caught my attention was ‘BEE’, which stood for Black Economic Empowerment, in which 70% of the shares are distributed to the black workers.

We then went to Morgenhof, a vineyard consisting about 70 hectares. It was a colonial style vineyard that had a beautiful layout, however, it felt too old fashioned and ‘Gone with the Wind’ for me. We had about 5 different wine tastings, and then moved on to Vrienshof Vineyards. We met the owner, who was also hosting a birthday party for his six years old grandson. And our wine hostess informed us that he essentially is the ‘pioneer’ with Pinot Noir and Pinotage in Stellenbosch, since he introduced this relatively hard to grow grape in South Africa over 45 years ago. The winery had a nice piece of land, which the birthday party had taken over, and it was lovely to taste delicious wine, hear the descriptions of the grapes and the way they were produceded, and watch the birthday boy and his friends play a mixed game of soccer and rugby.

The fourth vineyard was Ernie Els. He is South Africa’s top professional golfer. It was by hands down one of the most beautiful wineries that I have ever been to. The patio of the restaurant overlooked terraced gardens, rolling hills, jagged mountains, which seemed like a backdrop out of a movie scene. Fourty-five hectares of mountain slopes are exclusively planted to red varieties. We ordered a fruit and cheese plate, and tried five more glasses of wine, and just relished in the afternoon sun.

We scurried over to Rust en Vrede before the winery closed at 5pm, so we could check out the spot where two of Dex’s friends got married. It was a lovely place, with a beautiful garden, and were greeted by a friendly Golden Retriever and Rottwelier. This “estate of mind” consists of thirty-eight hectares of red varieties, and is known as the first South African property to specialize in the exclusive We tasted four more glasses of wine, and then began our journey along Highway N2 along the East coast of South Africa.

All in all, it was a spectacular day. We tasted some amazing wines, visited some beautiful vineyards, and enjoyed the company of friendly and hospitable South Africans.