Vriesenhof Estate

Vriesenhof Estate

Form and fashion come and go, but class, as they say, is permanent. From the time of my earliest visits to the Cape vineyards over 25 years ago, Vriesenhof was always at the top of my wish list, the estate that I always felt to be obviously compatible with the wavelength of a Savage Selection catalogue. The reason lies not simply in the way that the wines actually taste, but in the attitude and philosophy of the man behind them, that ever modest genius and former Springbok rugby legend, Jan ‘Boland’ Coetzee, the owner of this homely estate in the Paradyskloof Valley just outside the graceful town of Stellenbosch itself. This is an ego-free zone, an oasis without expensive toys in the cellar or cars in the farmyard, with no frills or pretentions, but instead a place where wines are made with an innate respect for nature with minimal intervention and the goal of individuality, elegance and refinement.

If you are after hot climate, New World fruit bombs, you will be disappointed. ‘Wine is not about the winemaker’ comments Jan, ever humble, and these wines remain natural expressions of grape and place rather than over-manipulated artefacts designed for the catwalk rather than the kitchen. The Coetzee family acquired their first land in Stellenbosch in 1682 and Jan bought Vriesenhof in 1980. One of the few winemakers to have mastered the art of making good Pinotage as he did in the early days at Kanonkop, he also introduced both chardonnay and Pinot Noir, no doubt inspired by a wine making stint at Joseph Drouhin in Beaune. More recently we have seen the arrival of Grenache, both from fruit grown at the farm, but also from old (70+ years) monster bush vines, ungrafted and unirrigated, growing at 700m altitude at Piekenierskoof, up the Western Cape near Citrusdal, a truly extraordinary location that produces outstanding quality Grenache, the perfect variety for a Mediterranean climate such as this. The result is a remarkable wine indeed, but we should not forget what Vriesenhof can do with Cabernet Sauvignon either. Some of the wines now being made and matured by cellar master Nicky Claasens here are comparable in class to the most expensive wines from Bordeaux and certainly better value. I find many of the Bordeaux Blend wines being made in the Cape are indistinguishable from each other. At Vriesenhof we are seeing something truly original and exciting, even if the farm and its modest governor continue to keep themselves out of the media limelight and below the general radar. As such we find ourselves with kindred spirits and the emotion content of our visits and their wines just continues to increase. How fortunate we are to be able to play with such jewels.