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15 of the Finest Wine Farms in the Cape Winelands Region
15 of the Finest Wine Farms in the Cape Winelands Region.
Without making one or two trips to the Cape Winelands, what would a trip to Cape Town, the Mother City, be? In addition to their amazing wines and breathtaking beauty, many wine farms in the Western Cape now provide other delicacies to tempt the palate, such as cheeses, olives, and charcuterie. We’ve hand-picked a few of the best Cape wineries below to assist you in choosing your itineraries.
Constantia Groot by Groot Constantia
The Grand Old Lady of Cape Town’s wine vineyards, Groot Constantia was founded by Simon van der Stel in the 1600s. It is magnificent and rich in history, with a view of False Bay, rolling vineyards, old oaks, and stunning Cape Dutch buildings.
Before visiting the museum, sample wines and take a cellar tour to have a better understanding of the history of this stunning city and farm. Beyond the tasting room, Groot Constantia features two eateries: Simon’s and Jonkershuis.
The farm produces whites, reds, and a stunning salmon-colored Blanc de Noir, with 70% of its grapes being red and 30% being white.
Vineyards at Cape Point
Do you believe that visiting an excellent wine estate in the Western Cape requires traveling inland? Rethink your thought. Travel along the breathtakingly beautiful Chapman’s Peak Drive and stop by the Cape Point Vineyards. Savor a lunch or a picnic at this breathtaking wine farm, which offers sweeping views of the Atlantic Ocean, mountains, and fynbos.
The farm produces a white and red wine under the Splattered Toad label, as well as many white wines under the Cape Point Vineyards label. These are named after the endangered Cape Leopard Toads, which are listed as endangered due to their unfortunate habit of crossing highways at night.
Hills in Waverley
The organic farm Waverley Hills is located between Ceres and Tulbagh, on the foothills of the breathtaking Witzenberg Mountains, which are covered in snow during the winter, like something out of a storybook. They take great satisfaction in their environmental awareness while producing wine, grapes, and olives.
The farm doesn’t use any fertilizer or pesticides, and their wines have less than half the sulfur found in regular wines. This is wine drinking that is good for the environment!
This is the place to go if you’re searching for a restaurant and wine tasting with breathtaking views. The restaurant serves a five-course meal with a wine pairing and serves fresh, locally produced food. This can be savored on the spacious verandah in the summer and beside a blazing fire in the winter. For ideal summer days, picnic baskets are also offered.
Enjoy a picnic at Waverley Hills with breathtaking views.
Groote Post
Groote Post is located near Darling and inland from the West Coast. It began as a dairy farm in the early 1800s and later served as Lord Charles Somerset’s “shooting box.” Today, it is devoted to producing wines, and pretty good ones at that!
In addition to the aptly called and easily drinkable Old Man’s Blends, they offer a variety of reds, whites, and a fantastic rose brut.
The farm’s restaurant, Hilda’s Kitchen, which serves lunch Wednesday through Sunday and has recently garnered several accolades. After a wonderful supper and a wine tasting, go to Evita se Plafon in Darling to see Pieter Dirk Uys perform!
The Kloovenberg
From Malmesbury, the breathtaking Kasteelberg mountain guards the Riebeek Valley as you drive over the Bothmanskloof Pass. The more than 300-year-old Kloovenberg farm is situated at the base of the mountain, with olive trees and vineyards sloping upward.
The farm’s golden labradors (or one of the four du Toit sons) greet you as you enter through their magnificent old Cape Dutch Gateway, where the ancient oaks loom over you. Take part in a wine tasting, sample their delectable olive goods, and purchase some amazing olive cosmetics to bring home. Among both white and red wines, they produce a White From Red Sparkling Wine (the name says it all).
The Fairview
Goats. within a tower. Should we say anything else?
Fairview is well-known for its award-winning cheeses and excellent wines. It greets visitors with the famous goat tower, which features goats running up and down its spiral stairway.
Beginning in the 1980s, Fairview was the first farm in South Africa to produce goat’s milk cheeses. They currently offer a variety of goat and cow milk cheeses that have won awards. You may sample them at the farm with or without their delectable wines.
There are many different red and white wines under the Fairview label. Try the appropriately named Goats Do Roam line of wines, which are the first to be made from grapes certified by Fairtrade. Additionally, purchase a few bottles for the family members at home. A portion of proceeds will go toward funding local community development initiatives.
At Fairview, sample cheeses while enjoying wine.
Babylonstoren
Babylonstoren resembles an architect’s sketch of a wine estate. It’s a pleasure to stroll around its exquisitely preserved old Cape Dutch houses, which are accompanied by well-designed market gardens with everything from fruit and vegetables to herbs and chickens (yes, I know, chickens aren’t plants!). They also own donkeys.
The gardens can be explored on your own or with a guide. In addition to sampling and purchasing their wines, you can purchase a variety of deli goods, including cheeses, meats, and handcrafted breads, at the Farm Shop and tasting room. They also serve this at their Green House and Babel restaurants.
Freshness and simplicity are abundant here, as most of the food and beverages you consume are directly from the gardens you traverse. It’s a sophisticated, well-managed, and stunning location.
Moreson
Moreson, which is close to Franschhoek, is well-known for its charcuterie in addition to its mouthwatering wines. They generate MCC as well as a variety of reds and whites. The Guide Dog Association receives a portion of the sales from one of their lines, which is affectionately named after their Weimaraner, Miss Molly.
This family-run farm has a restaurant and tasting room called Bread & Wine, which is appropriately named. The restaurant provides delectable, fresh food, including the famous breads and charcuterie treats of Neil Jewell, who lives on the farm with his family. It’s the ideal spot for a long, leisurely summer lunch, with tables set up beneath large trees and a brook running beside.
The Solms-Delta
Solms-Delta is encountered on the way to the stunning Franschhoek mountains. There are several reasons why this wine estate is intriguing. First of all, it is owned by the formerly underprivileged individuals who have consistently labored on the farm, forming a social partnership that benefits everyone. The history of the farm is depicted in a museum.
Second, dried grapes are used to concentrate color and flavor in Solms-Delta wines. The grapes are kept on the vines to dry out before being utilized to make wine in this ancient Greek method.
With a focus on its heritage, the farm provides six specialty wine and garden excursions. The nine wines that are created are tasted either inside the museum or outside among stately oak trees. Traditional Cape Malay cuisine is served in the restaurant Fyndraai. The glass floor, which displays the old wine cellar’s foundations (c. 1740), is worth seeing in addition to the delectable food it serves.
Vergelegen
Dating back to 1700, this wine farm is one of the oldest in the Western Cape and is located just outside of Stellenbosch. You could easily spend a whole day here with its vast gardens, two eateries, forest picnic areas, wine cellar and garden tours, library, and a wide selection of award-winning wines to try.
Utilizing gravitational flow, Vergelegen wines are made in their primarily underground cellar. They make a very rare limited edition Brut (2008) in addition to red and white wines. After learning about the complexities involved in producing these amazing wines during a cellar tour, savor a taste.
A perfect afternoon will include a visit to the library, a stroll through the gardens to see the rose and camellia gardens, and a siesta on the grass beneath the old camphor trees. Hear the wind rustling the tree leaves as it narrates the tales of this ancient farm.
The Waterford
Waterford has gone one step further by providing wine and chocolate tasting, as if wine tasting wasn’t already the most delectable pleasure. To complement Waterford wines and bring out their flavors, chocolatier Richard von Geusau has developed a line of milk and dark chocolates. Heavenly bliss.
Large areas of land have remained uncultivated since Waterford takes pride in its efforts to protect the area’s natural fynbos ecology. To highlight the natural splendor of the Blaauwklippen Valley outside of Stellenbosch, where Waterford is located, they provide a “Wine Drive Safari” in a game-viewing landrover.
Visit Waterford Wines for a wine and chocolate match tasting.
The morning
You may also do olive oil tastings, did you know that? No? Yes, you can, and Morgenster, which is outside Somerset West, is the location. Italian Giulio Bertrand purchased this lovely farm, which dates back to the 1700s, and has since created an award-winning wine and olive oil line.
The farm, which was established in 1711, is stunning. On the patio of the exquisitely built tasting room on the dam’s banks, savor a glass of wine and olives—we’re talking entire olives, olive oil, and olive pastes.
Wines from Reyneke
You should go to Reyneke Wines, which is outside of Stellenbosch, if you want to see a farm with a strong philosophy and a social and environmental consciousness. The farm is operated “holistically,” with a strong emphasis on sustainability and the farm’s residents.
They create ecologically conscious organic wines by carefully considering every element of the farm, from recycling to diversifying the plants (and animals) to restore a more naturally biodiverse ecosystem to concentrating on the people on the farm.
A variety of red and white wines are produced on the estate.
Make an appointment for a wine tasting at Reyneke Wines to help promote ecologically friendly farming.
Drift in the Winter
Visit the Platform 1 Eatery and Tasting Station at Winters Drift for something a little different. The original Elgin Station is where these are located. Two or three trains still run daily, and you can expect your lunch or tasting to be punctuated by the sound of a grain-laden train passing past.
The Tasting Station offers a taste of the two reds, two whites, and a rose produced by Winters Drift. The entire space is filled with vintage train relics, and the bar is appropriately constructed from old railway sleepers.
The Platform 1 Eatery serves sustainable, locally produced food whenever feasible. The wine is available at cellar-door rates, and the cuisine is rotated according to the seasons to guarantee that it is as fresh and delectable as possible. Additionally, picnic baskets can be bought in advance.
Ataraxia
On the Cape Whale Route, the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley is located just inland from the seaside resort of Hermanus. It’s breathtakingly gorgeous. The relatively young wine farm Ataraxia is located at one of the valley’s highest peaks. You have to see the vista from their tasting room, which is designed like a chapel.
Three wines make up their lineup: a red mix, an unwooded Sauvignon Blanc, and a forested Chardonnay. Before heading down to Moggs Country Cookhouse, a family-run restaurant in the valley with food (and vistas) that will leave you in amazement, stop by for a taste and the stunning view.
We’ve included a list of suggested tours below that cater to a range of travel preferences, price ranges, and comfort levels if you’re thinking of visiting Cape Town or are beginning or ending a multi-day journey there. Additionally, you can go through our forthcoming tours that leave Cape Town here.
For all the information you require in a single handbook, see South African Wine & The Cape Winelands.