1 BOSCHENDAL WINERY
FRANSCHHOEK
After 200 French Huguenot refugees fled religious persecution and arrived in South Africa in 1685, one of them – Jean le Long – was granted 60 morgen of land by the Dutch East India Company. He promptly set about establishing a farm, introducing vines in an area considered perfect for growing grapes.
Although the farm has changed hands many times since – with the De Villiers family owning it between 1715 and 1879 – it continues to produce high quality wine. Tastings take place in the Manor House, a splendid example of Cape Dutch architecture built in 1812, and it is possible to take tours of the vineyards, farm and cellar.
The vineyards had been largely destroyed in 1890 by sap-sucking insects called phylloxera that had been introduced into Europe by Victorian English botanists more than three decades earlier. The estate was promptly rescued by South Africa’s then Prime Minister Cecil
Rhodes whose decision to re-establish vineyards on the best of the area’s land has seen winemaking flourish.
The Manor House is open daily between 10am and 5pm, with tours of the vineyard taking place on Saturdays between November and April, and the cellar’s daily tours at 1.30pm and 3pm daily. Booking is essential for each, with prices ranging from 60 to 250 South African rand (£3 to £14). https://www. boschendal.com