Madame de Wyn

Kinky painting of a women revealing her one breast as you entered the tasting room. The guy who helped us was friendly and the 2010 Sauvignon Blanc showed potential.

We visited Hamilton Russell on a Tuesday morning at around 11am. They lady in the tasting room was incompetent and made us feel unwelcome. We only spend about 5 minutes there because of the bad vibe and one could see that she was annoyed with our arrival and was so not in the mood to even say hallo.

The wines were great. Truly delicious and expensive, which is not a problem, but if you sell Gucci your customer expects 5 star service. The service that we received did not deserve 1 star unfortunately. The fact is that I will remember this bad experience everytime I see a bottle of Hamilton Russell and this saddens me.

The warm fireplace and a friendly lady welcomed us. They only have 2 wines, a Pinotage and a Sauvignon Blanc.

There’s a cool story surrounding their 2004 Sauvignon Blanc. They left 50 bottles under water in the Hermanus Harbour for 4 years. They only pulled it up recently and opened some bottles of which only one got some water. The bottles are complete covered with sea stuff/creatures. Definitely something different and memorable. The wines will be available at certain restaurants in Hermanus.

Wow! what a cool place! You see a chapel-like building on the hill and as you get closer you find out that this church from the outside is actually a Wine Lounge on the inside. I fell in love with the modern interior, the big bright paintings and the place.

Johan was super friendly and shared his knowledge and passion for wine while we sipped on the amazing wines. The Chardonnay is definitely one of the best in South Africa in my opinion and the Serenity is also delish.

Pity we could not stay longer and had to rush back to Cape Town. So gonna go back and just sit there, take in the beauty of the place and enjoy they lovely wines.

A BEE farm who has 140 share holders, all actively working on the farm.

We decided to line our stomachs here and tasted the wines along with the food. Very easy drinking wines that lacks a bit of character, but it’s not undrinkable. Slightly overpriced for what you get.

The lady who helped us (Johanna) was friendly and the food was good value for money.

Mrs Gower herself conducted our tasting and the fact that the corkscrew was missing just added to a memorable experience. We bought the Sauvignon Blanc and the Riesling which were both very well priced and oh so tasty.

Also caught a quick glimpse of 2 of the Gower son’s. Someone recommended them as potential wine hotties…soft on the eye indeed!

Due to the rain we could not do the golf car joyride, so they took us up with a bus. Surrounded by the entire Pierneef edged art collection one does feel a bit green when you think of all the money the Ruperts have.

Melissa conduced our tasting and she was knowledgeable and friendly. On the wine side I enjoyed the Terra del Capo Arne 2006 at R115 and the Anthonij Rupert Cabernet Franc which is the best one I’ve tasted to date in South Africa and it breaks my heart that I will probably never drink it again because way over my wine budget at R430 a bottle.
I also enjoyed the Syrah 2006 which reminded me of Wilson Toffees and I did not record the price because I can not afford it in anycase. But definitely worth every cent if you are fortunate enough to have a bank full of money.

I had a good experience once again and will recommend a visit, even if it’s just to view the artwork.

Revisited Seidelberg just after 9am on a rainy Saturday morning. My friend who organised the trip still phoned them to find out if they are open so early on which they replied yes. When we arrived at the tasting room however the staff looked confused and informed us that they only open at 10am. A lady called Rita came to our rescue and said that it’s fine and that she will conduct our tasting.

She was friendly and well informed on the wines we tasted. We did however all had to taste the same 6 wines, because that’s the rule if your in a group of 6 or more and our group consisted out of 6. A bit limiting I’d say and it’s not as if the service was that much faster considering the fact that we all tasted from the same bottle.

The wines, well, maybe it was our freshly cleaned toothpaste palates, but they did not impressed. We tasted the MCC, which I felt was way overpriced if you compare it to other MCC’s that retails at R120 and less. The viognier was a definite spit. The reserve range was not bad, but nothing really grabbed me.

We were welcomed by a very friendly lady called Jackie at the entrance. The tasting room was stylishly decorated with some antique and some modern pieces which gave the big room a classical yet funky feel. A bit of music would have added to the vibe though.

Jackie explained the tasting options and we could choice between a normal tasting or the flavour sensation tasting for R50. They also have a chocolate and wine tasting, but Jackie informed us that “someone” ate all the chocolates that’s suppose to pair with one of the wines. We opted for the flavour sensation and thoroughly enjoyed the tasting.

The wines were presented in beautiful long stem glasses and I enjoyed the Chardonnay and the Sauvignon Blanc at R85 each. The Merlot was not bad either and the Shiraz was great, but I felt that it was slightly overpriced at R220 for what you get. I would have been sold at R150.

It was a pleasant experience and everyone in our group enjoyed it.

We had a very good tasting experience at Klein Roosboom on a rainy Saturday morning. Laura was our host and made us feel right at home. They also had a variety of cheeses and fresh bread which worked extremely well with the wines on tasting. Definitely a hidden little gem.

Big sale happening at Kanu at the moment! From Chenin to Shiraz to odd bins! R20 and less. What a bargain!

Their roasted tomato and pepper soup that they offer at the Soetes and Soup festival is divine! Friendly staff and one great view adds to a great experience.

My second visit to Stony Brook and absolutely LOVED it this time around. Joy, the lady of the farm was so friendly and made us feel at home.

The Stony Brook SMV stole my heart at R140. It’s really,really yummy! But all the wines were really enjoyable. A lovely place with cool dogs and passionate people. 10/10 this time!

Well done Saronsberg for winning the 2010 Shiraz Challenge! Dewald you rock!

Visited them on a Monday after at around 2pm and end up leaving after 9pm. Kyle Zulch was the man responsible for the amazing tasting that we had. He is the newly appointed winemaker and one passionate chap!

We started with the White Grenache, the only white in South Africa. Very interesting wine with a almost foreign taste. I also enjoyed the Rose at R35 a bottle, the Threesome, which is a red blend at R50, the Cabernet Franc @R70 and the Syrah at R70.

What makes these wines so special is that some of them are made from grapes that comes from their Kalkbay, Orangezicht and soon to be Campsbay vineyards.

This is a really cool spot, where you can taste interesting wines or just buy yourself a bottle for R70 and enjoy it there. My new favourite hang-out in the city centre!

This was one of our stops during the Stellenbosch Festival and I’m glad that I’ve revisited them. This time around the lady in the tasting room was friendly and passionate about their product and I enjoyed a tasting at the counter, while the others rushed of to try the “uber special” vintages in the art gallery.

Some of them were not impressed with what they tasted in the art gallery, but I decided to taste for myself. They must have had from the old bottles, cause when I went to taste the wines they opened fresh wine and it was great! They also had nice big glasses, so bonus points!

A definite improvement since my last visit! Well done guys!

We enjoyed a vertical tasting here the other day. What a great experience. Truly amazing to see how one vintage differs from the other. The 2001 really rocked my world! Soft, elegant and oh so tasty.

Sakkie Kotze, the winemaker is just such a friendly man with a big heart, I just want to give him a hug every time I see him! And his wife makes the best cooksisters in the whole wide world!

Had a great time at Villiera during the Stellenbosch Wine Festival. We received personal attention and even had the opportunity to taste the base wines of their bubbly. And their bubbly really got us bubbly! Friendly people and a great vibe. Love it!

Wow! Very awesome setting. Almost felt like another country!

We went on a Saturday afternoon at around 1pm and they were very busy and unfortunately under staffed. There was only one lady (who was very friendly, well spoken and professional) that was serving all the tables and shame she was spinning! The other lady only poured the wines and did not seem to have much knowledge about the wines. Some guests eventually helped themselves at the counter.

After about 20 minutes we received our wines and decided to try the light lunch menu, seeing that they are the only farm in the region that are open (apart from Welvanpas) and serving lunch. We opted for the Venison Burger and what a disappointment. Apart from the miniature bread buns that made the whole burger look like a joke, the patty was over-cooked and dry and the “topped wit goats-cheese”….what goats-cheese? It was definitely not worth R65 a burger, venison or not.

The wine were averaged and pricey. I enjoyed the Shiraz (R120+) the most. They charge a tasting fee of R20 for 5 wines. And if you are into those coffee wines – they have one of those.

oh and I’ll rate them a 5 – mostly due to the scenery- because after all the wait they still served me wine out of a CHIPPED glass and I might just sue them for the cut in my mouth. Not something one will expect at an establishment with a “5 star” guest house on the property.

Very cool setting! Spooky yet friendly and very farmy!

The farm dates back to 1705 and has been the home of the Retief family for 7 generations – amongst them Voortrekker leader Piet Retief. How cool is that?!

The owner Dan Retief conducted our tasting and one can see that he is very passionate about his wines and the farm. Something interesting and different was the small red fish that appears on the label of each bottle ,which resembles the Retief Family’s strong Christian values.

They have a Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay for the whites and both are 2006 vintages, But don’t fair, it not to old yet and at R35 a bottle quite a steal. The reds are both blends and both were enjoyable at R55.

A hidden gem with a lot of history and warm hearted people. A good experience.

What a nice surprise! We were welcomed by a friendly lady who is also the owner’s wife. She shared the history of the farm and the wines. A boutique winery with quality wines and very well priced. Full bodied and a lot of character!

They also offer light lunches on the outside patio from where you have a stunning view over the Paarl valley. You won’t find their wines in the shops, so better you make a plan and visit the farm. Well worth it! My favourite was the 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon at only R70.

Oh, and check out the bill board at the entrance of a pretty lady and a seductively placed red wine glass…very kinky!

Enjoyed a very nice lunch here in their lovely garden. They are probably not your traditional wine farm but they do have a whole village packed with little shops which gives the place a very fairy like feel. Find anything from olives, artwork, knitwear and wine. Much fun!

The worst breakfast ever during the wacky wine weekend. Went their on the Sunday morning and our whole table almost choked on the bacon. It was so dry it was black. But that’s not the farms fault though, just the catering company I guess.

The Brut was the best out of the wines I tasted and cheap at R30.

The sweet wine named Madonna’s Kisses will be your best option here.

They have one red and a sweet wine and it’s both nice and good value for money.