RUGBY AND PINOTAGE LEDGENDS AT WELBEDACHT IN WELLINGTON

If you're a SA rugby fan, then you will know the name Schalk Burger and Schalk Burger Senior - both South African Springbok Rugby players. I had the privilege of meeting and enjoying a wine tasting and even a cellar tour with Schalk Burger Senior himself at the charming Welbedacht wine farm which he purchased in 2004.

The Location

I learned that Welbedacht means "well thought out" in Dutch and the tasting room is set in the old wine cellar which has Cape Dutch architecture. it looks quite small on the outside but is rather large on the inside.

The farm is situated just on the outskirts of the Wellington town centre, about an hours' drive out of Cape Town. It was quite dilapidated when Schalk took over the farm and spent years nurturing it back to full functionality. The tasting room has been kept quite rustic as all the funds went to the brand new wine cellar. The tasting room boasts a fireplace which will be great for winter! If there's a rugby game on, expect it to be played on the big screen!

Welbedacht Wine Tasting

There is a rather large list of wines up for tasting and the Welbedacht Barrel Fermented Chardonnay and superb Pinotage struck me as something special!

For something lighter on the pocket, the Meerkat range of wines offers great value and you can buy this range at Checkers for around R80 a bottle.

The Wine Cellar

Below is a photo of the barrel room which is actually quite massive and I really like the chandelier. It is in this room that you get to experience the scale of the volume of wine produced on this estate. Phone to enquire about a cellar tour in advance. +27 (0) 21 873 1877

I had a great time meeting Schalk and enjoyed a spoil by tasting a 2009 Pinotage! Thanks Schalk!