Welcome to the Western Cape Wineries - a kiwi's opinion blog

I originally set up this blog to help foreigners have an enjoyable experience when visiting the western cape wineries in South Africa.

I realised that it is very difficult for a tourist to choose where to go and which wineries to visit, when you have 600+ wine producers to choose from.

When I first moved to SA December 2010, my palate struggled to adjust to SA wine, but after living here for a while and after visiting over 100+ wine estates, I have found many wines which I really like and can highly recommend.

Admittingly, when you come from another country it is hard not to compare the wine in SA to what you are used to back home. However, once you realise they are not the same (they have their own characteristics due to the different soil, climate etc) and appreciate their wines for being SA wines, it will improve your opinion and experience of the wines immediately.

If you are staying in SA for a while, don't dispair, your palate will change, and you will soon find yourself liking SA wine over your home countries wine!!

I hope my blog will help wine lovers have an enjoyable wine experience while in SA.

Please note: I am not a wine connoisseur. The comments I write about the wine is mostly for my own benefit of having them on record.

Saturday, 26 November 2011

Hidden Valley


On Saturday I took a group of 9 people around some wineries in Heldeberg. My friend told me she had some  friends from the Netherlands who were interested in doing a wine tasting, and asked if I could show them around. I was given full responsibility for where I took them, and seeing as my favourite wine region is the Helderberg wine region, that is where we went.

We started at Hidden Valley Winery. I chose this place because of the view you can enjoy while having a wine tasting and because of the architecture of the building. It is such a stunnig building they have, great location and just lovely views.

 

We were able to sit outside for the tasting which was very nice. It was the perfect weather to do a wine tasting outside.
We tried all 6 wines for tasting, this costs R30 per person which is waived if you buy two bottles of wine or more.

We started with the Hidden Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2011 (R75), this was tropical fruit flavoured, soft, had a great smell and taste. The aftertaste was a little dry. Next we tried the Land’s End Sauvignon Blanc 2011 (R75) which was grassy, little zingy/mineral tasting, light and refreshing. It had a strong zesty lingering aftertaste. The Hidden Valley Pinotage 2009 had a beautiful smell and taste, it had hints of chocolate and coffee, it was smooth, and had a slightly dry/dark chocolate aftertaste. I was not a fan of the Land’s End Syrah 2008 (R175) and the Hidden Secret 2008 (R135). The latter I especially didn’t like because it had a chalky/dry aftertaste. The Hidden Gem 2008 (R135) was quite nice though. Sadly we had to rush the end of this tasting as we had to get to our booking at Dombeya/Haskell.


I would definitely recommend visiting this winery if you want a place with a nice view, good service and a nice range of wines.


There is a restaurant on the premises, which I believe would be a very nice place to eat. This winery also has chocolate platters for R55 and includes a wine tasting, cheese platters (R230) for two people and includes a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc or Pinotage or a wine tasting for two. They have picnic baskets available for two people at R295 and includes a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc or Pinotage.

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