Wines and spirits South Africa

A stopover at this winery is a must for future newlyweds. Admire the Cape Dutch-style buildings, the slave bell, the well-trimmed lawns and the ultra-modern wine cellar. At Morgenhof, there's a small restaurant offering the famous and delicious picnic baskets, which must be reserved the day before for at least the following day. On the other hand, there's the coffee-shop, where you can sample local produce. On the wine side, Morgenhof estate, Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc are highly rated.

A beautiful location on the hillside on the charming R310 road in Franschhoek. It is the ideal place for a picnic. Graff's British multi-billionaire has redesigned everything, combining traditional architecture with an ultra-modern glass and steel space. We particularly like the large steel cheetah statues with the sublime mountains in the background. You can also see the barrels in the glass cellar lit by blue neon lights. Splendid, just for the visit, a tasting, or perhaps a night of luxury.

Do you know that Carel Nel offers one of the largest Ports in South Africa, a covered wine of international medals and prices, the Cape Vintage Reserve? Very serious Muscadet and brandy aged from Limousin.

Cape Town spring water and the best cereals, plus a little know-how... to produce an excellent craft beer. Since 1998, Birkenhead Brewery has been one of the oldest craft breweries in South Africa. Here, the beer is inspired by the power of the South African landscape and its charismatic characters, filtered, pasteurized, but above all made with love in the moonlight by the expertise of the brewers. We come to the pub and restaurant on site, in a very modern setting, to taste these beautiful and good creations.

We have a nice view of False Bay from this estate. On a clear day, you can see all the way to Cape Point. If the view is magnificent, the wines produced here are also well worth the detour. At the Longridge estate, we work largely on natural wines. Here, we let ourselves be guided by the vine and its natural essence and not the other way around. This accentuates the taste of the terroir. We use ancient natural winemaking techniques and knowledge to produce delicious treasures, the Merlot being among the best.

The Manor House, a work by Paul de Villiers in the Cape Dutch style, is registered as a historical monument. With its splendid parquet floors, the woodwork and the objects of cabinet making... One walks through the park, planted with pomegranate, Indian lilac and pear trees, an immense estate. Opt for the Picnic from mid-October to mid-May: you buy your basket with a bottle and lie on the lawn for lunch. Both the restaurant and the shop remain open all year round. As for the cellar, you will love the black white (rosé), dry, fragrant, seductive as a tavel.

La Motte Estate is surely one of the most beautiful tasting rooms in the region. One room has been specially fitted out in the cellar, but separated from it by a huge bay window. The bottles are displayed in glass cases, like jewels. It is the property of the opera singer Hanneli Koegelenberg, daughter of the late billionaire Anton Rupert, the world's second largest luxury goods company and owner of three major cigarette brands.

The Viljoen brothers produce a chardonnay, a colombard-chenin blanc and a nice pinotage. What a location, right on the Breede! Come and have a picnic and embark on a mini-cruise on the fully open double-decker barge, sweetly named Uncle Ben. A delightful time on the water. Enjoy the river experience, good wine, groceries and beautiful scenery. We cross many species of birds in the wild olive trees that border our ride. Let yourself slide on the water!

The high-tech estate in the valley, with its ultra-modern wine cellars and beautifully furnished tasting rooms in contemporary style. Inside, there is an art gallery upstairs in a large modern building whose large bay windows let you see the cellars, magnificent. The property is superb, especially the landscape architecture with ponds, mountains and of course the vineyards in the background. Sauvignon blanc, viognier, grenache, shiraz. The "full circle", the flagship wine of Domaine de Saronsberg is a blend in the Côtes du Rhône style.

When the Germans lost the war, Jean Retief planted a Norfolk pine. When the Japanese lost the battle of the Pacific, she did the same... and so, thanks to this woman with Huguenot roots in Orléans, now sadly no more, Van Loveren has a magnificent garden. It's around this backdrop that her descendants make top-quality Pinotage wines. You could, for example, taste the blanc de noir shiraz with its raspberry nose; feel all these flavors explode in your mouth!

The estate most visited by tourists because of its cheese production, the Camembert style roydon, its goat tower, and its impressive range of wines. The Fairview Wine and Cheese is unfortunately a bit of a victim of its success. Charles Back tries his hand at viognier, a rare grape variety in South Africa and France... and also at the Côte du Rhône style with his wines called - attention, sound effects - "Goats do Roan" and "Goat Rôti". The National Institute of Appellations of Origin has lodged a complaint (!). Pleasant restaurant.

The KWV cellar in Paarl is one of the largest in the world. From its first roots in 1918, the year Nelson Mandela was born, KWV was already a small cooperative of producers, proud pioneers with the vision of improving the standards and quality of the wine industry in South Africa, it has become a global producer. Our favourite moment: the tasting part of Brandy & Chocolate after a visit to the distillery, a real change compared to other wineries.

Nestled against the local Alpilles, an estate that is worth a visit primarily for its enchanting postcard setting. At Avondale, terra est vita is the philosophy, which means "the soil is life". One can guess that the estate is oriented towards organic, biodynamic and natural agriculture. Water, energy, plants, animals, people and even the buildings that stand on the Avondale soil are considered to be part of a whole, interconnected system. Wine is consumed here in honour of the love of life.

This is another area where you won't run into a busload of Japanese tourists. At Glen Carlou, it's all about tailor-made, high-flying craftsmanship. Marius Cloete is one of those winemakers who work on each bottle, slowly, lovingly and without waiting for an order from a central purchasing office. We settle down on a beautiful terrace overlooking the Paarl countryside and its vineyards as far as the eye can see. So this is the great classic! A Bordeaux-style blend, with Chardonnay, one of South Africa's jewels in the crown.

Danie and Fanie Malan, Huguenots from Saint-Martin-de-la-Brasque in Provence, work miracles in their ungrateful land. Taste the Port, one of the best in the country, and their famous shiraz. And say hello to our friend Bertus, the former patron saint of Witsand, who is now living here. If you can simply enjoy the family restaurant Pleasant Pheasant, or buy wine, a visit to Allesverloren Estate is also an opportunity to treat yourself to a wine tasting with a team of bon vivants and enthusiasts.

The Kalahari Wine Cooperative is located in the town of Upington. The cooperative owns a vineyard covering over 15,000 hectares along the Orange River. Despite its location in the Kalahari desert, this vineyard benefits from an irrigation system using water from the river. Since the end of apartheid, this vineyard has been undergoing rapid economic development, notably thanks to the cultivation of table grapes for the European Christmas markets. However, this economic development is subject to fluctuations in air fares and in the local currency, the Rand. In addition, new competitors such as Brazil and India threaten the vineyard. Despite these challenges, Kalahari vineyard growers are rapidly adapting to changes in the world market.

After having made his fortune in coal, Graham Beck, who is no longer with us today, gave himself a man's dream: a winery. So Johan Wessels drew him a cellar with revolutionary contours, while sculptor Eduardo Vila imagined a mysterious African mask to decorate the entrance and adorn the labels. In the tasting room, a lone hill chardonnay and a Cap Classique method in evening dress are offered. Also taste the viognier. Behind the bay windows, the décor resembles a postcard.

The Swellendam region accounts for 95% of the national production of youngberries, a type of thorny vine that produces purple berries with a slightly acidic flavour. Farmers make a delicious liqueur from these berries picked in November and December. There are then several types of liqueurs and sweets, jams, chutneys... Everything is to be tried in the tasting room. The Wildebraam brand, with its 24° alcohol content, is one of the best known brands of liqueurs in South Africa. It is possible to sleep at the Wildebraam Berry Estate.

Albert Camus, who is buried in Lourmarin, would no doubt have liked the Mediterranean sweetness of this sumptuous residence which cultivates the memory of its first owner, Jean Roi, originally from the Luberon. The beauty of the garden, the horses, the mouldings of the house, the small museum of old cars... It's all like a dream! The arms and the names of the Huguenot families appear on all the barrels. Note in the corner of your head that smoked white is a national bestseller and pinot gris a rarity.

Achim von Arnim has two loves: the champagne and Citroën. A DS and one 2 CV sleep in the courtyard. As for champagne, Achim made the bet approach some as much as possible by rigorously applying the Champagne method, or rather the Cap Classique method. Haute Cabrière is the only private estate to be devoted exclusively to the sparkling wines of big class. Haute Cabrière also produces, in very small quantity, the only ratafia liqueur of South Africa, as well as the quiet one, a high delicious rosy gray starting from a Champagne assembly.