84 of 800 - Doolhof, Wellington

Meet wine farm 84 of 800! Doolhof wines in the small, country town of Wellington, South Africa. The name itself, Doolhof (meaning "Labyrinth" in Afrikaans) was aptly named due to the rolling hills of the estate. The land was granted as a grazing estate in 1709 and despite this history, is a relatively new winery with the first wines produced in 2005 and completion of the tasting room and accommodation in 2008. BOOKINGS & WINE TASTINGS: It's only R25 to taste 5 wines and pensioners can taste for free on Wednesdays. If you purchase wine over R100, then the tasting fee is wavered.WHEN TO GO:  This wine farm is suitable for the summer or winter months but I would say better in the summer months.LENGTH OF VISIT: One to two hours is ample.RESTAURANT: Yes but lunches and picnics should be pre-booked and arranged.OTHER AMENITIES: MTB and mountain trails.ACCOMMODATION: Yes. https://www.granddedale.com/CHILD/PET FRIENDLY? Not recommended however they are not unwelcome.LARGER OR SMALL GROUPS? Best for groups of 4 or 6 people.LOCATION: About a 1.5 hour drive from Cape Town in the Wellington wine region. The road to the farm is quite a long gravel road. I would recommend parking before you get to the gravel road and then take a mountain bike ride to get to the farm. Doolhof Directions. OTHER RATINGS: Find out what others have to say on the Doolhof Trip Advisor Review Page. 

Here is my experience:

My poor, little car struggled along the long and winding gravel road so I was happy to finally arrive after driving 10km/p for 15/20 minutes :) It is very scenic though - you are surrounded by such natural beauty!The outside tasting area is quite spacious but also felt a bit quiet but it could be because I visited on a Sunday.  The inside tasting room was spacious and the wines were well represented.I liked the comfortable seating and clean decor. The staff were friendly and tentative too. Don't expect top service though, it is extremely relaxed here. The tasting was quite different. You can select 5 wines and they deliver it on a tray for you with tasting notes and wine glass tags. It's a "teach yourself the wine" type of tasting.The serving sizes were too small for my liking but I actually did enjoy comparing the notes of the wines I chose with that of my friend which selected different wines. For R25 a tasting, this is actually very good value for money.There was a very unique Malbec Bush vine Blanc de Noir that I discovered which had a lovely truffle aftertaste. One of the bigger style reds was TheSeus at R270 a bottle. A Bordeaux blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc and Malbec. It has a charming story behind it of mythical gods so I would encourage you to visit the farm to explore some of the stories.Their Single Vineyard collection Pinotage has some great accolades and this is testament to the quality of wine being produced on this estate. This is definitely a MTB town so I would recommend doing a cycle and then ending at the tasting room for some rewards.I had a very relaxed Sunday here and enjoyed taking it slow.So which farm is next? :)x