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The South African Winelands

Wine lovers take note! Stellenbosch is the place for endless wine tastings. This area has many famous wineries such as Robertson and Elgin Wine Valley. Pour a nice glass and discover the diversity of the South African wine regions.

The heart of the Western Cape winelands

Let's start with Stellenbosch. This is the heart of the Western Cape winelands. There is a good chance that this is the most Dutchified part of South Africa that you will see during your trip. Beautiful vineyards that contrast with the high mountains and chic wineries where you can drink wine all afternoon for a song, you want to experience this of course. Exactly that, everyone who visits Cape Town thinks, logical! Now this city, together with Franschhoek, forms the heart of the Western Cape winelands. But, from here there is so much more to discover.

Elgin Wine Valley

Just an hour's drive from Cape Town you will find Elgin Wine Valley. This area is located between the Whale Coast Route and Stellenbosch. The vineyards of this region benefit from high altitudes and cold winters with abundant rainfall and a south-easterly sea breeze in the summer. So you can imagine what this place looks like. Wineries overlooking the sea, wine tastings between the green vineyards and all of that with a view of the immense mountain ranges. All these elements together ensure a slow maturation, resulting in wines with complexity and elegance.

The wines from Elgin are therefore described as distinctive and full of character, just like us?! It is therefore not without reason that Elgin Wine Valley has quickly made a name for itself in the wine world and we at Charlie's Travels are happy about that. Elgin used to be known for its production of apples and pears, but in recent decades a few passionate wine lovers have retrained as winemakers. If you do what you love, you never have to work again, right?! You will be warmly welcomed into the community and enjoy small-scale and intimate wine tastings.

Did you know that every wine farm in Elgin is family owned? So you will taste real passion during a tasting. Sometimes you will even get an explanation about the wine from the winemaker himself, which is not something you will find so quickly in Stellenbosch! Pure, authentic and family-like, that makes Elgin Wine Valley an undiscovered gem within the winelands in the Western Cape. Does this taste like more?

Robertson Wine Valley

Robertson Wine Valley is a bit further from Cape Town and is therefore not really convenient to visit from Cape Town. However, if you are going to drive the Garden Route, it is of course very cool to stay here for two nights. Because you can stay here! Robertson Wine Valley has almost 50 wineries and is a must see for Chardonnay and Shiraz connoisseurs. These wineries have one goal and one shared passion: creating the most memorable wine and digestive experiences that are offered by unique, authentic rural hospitality. This is partly due to the many citrus and apple farms that can be found in the area. 

One last one... Tulbagh

Okay, we understand that you are now running to the supermarket for a bottle from your favorite region, but Tulbagh, an award-winning valley, should not be missed in our opinion. We could continue writing about the cool wine regions around Cape Town, but this is really the last one. This cute and authentic village is surrounded by a few gems when it comes to wineries that we want to show you.

Tulbagh is located in a valley, surrounded by impressive mountain ranges. The Obiqua Mountains in the west, the Witzenberg Mountains in the east and the Winterhoek Mountains in the north. The south side of the valley is open to cooling south-easterly winds during the hot summer months. The rapeseed fields make this view even more spectacular, because around July and August the area around Tulbagh turns yellow. This city has no less than 32 provincial monuments in, yes you read that right, one street.

 

Here, history and tradition go hand in hand with innovation. In the area, you will see a variety of authentic estates, interspersed with architectural masterpieces and ultra-modern cellars. Due to the current high-tech tricks that they use, this area is slowly becoming a little more well-known. Where Elgin and Robertson are known for their special and characterful wine, Tulbagh is known for its innovations in winemaking.

Here you can visit various wineries and private cellars that have received national and international awards. For example, Jonge Gezellen was the first estate to introduce night harvesting, a concept that is now used throughout the Cape. Enough reason to visit this area, right?

 

But of course we don't do all this ourselves with the car

 

Back to those wine tastings… Because let’s be honest: who doesn’t like a nice glass of wine every now and then!? There are many different ways to taste wine. Sit back and relax in a van. Or make your tasting even more special with a tram ride (yes, the tram…) from Franschhoek to taste some tasty wines.

Another option; cycle off the wines by turning it into a mountain bike ride. You cycle from one vineyard straight into the next! This last one is our personal favorite; every time you arrive at a new vineyard, you really deserve a glass of wine with a snack. Don’t forget to smell, sniff, gargle and smack! Just like real wine connoisseurs would do.

 

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