BRANDY ROUTEIn 1997, 325 years after the first brandy was distilled in South Africa, the South African Brandy Foundation launched the Brandy Route, the first of its kind in South Africa. Stretching from Stellenbosch through Paarl and Wellington to Worcester, it gives visitors an opportunity to learn about the many sides of the brandy industry, such as the different varieties of brandies and the various production methods.
South Africa is the fifth largest producer of brandy in the world, and brandy represents 65 per cent of all South African spirits. Average annual production amounts to over 57 million litres, and there are about 50 brandy trademarks in the country. There are currently nine cellars on the Brandy Route, seven of which are described in this tour. |
STELLENBOSCH...with its extensive vineyards, is a natural starting point on the Brandy Route.
Stellenbosch, with its oak-lined streets, water furrows and beautifully preserved historic buildings, is the centre of the country’s best-known wine-producing area and an important university town. South Africa’s second-oldest town, Stellenbosch was founded in 1679 and named after the Dutch governor, Simon van der Stel. In addition to its numerous splendid Cape Dutch buildings, the town also has fine examples of Cape Georgian and Victorian houses.
The cultural heritage of Stellenbosch can only be truly appreciated by taking a stroll down Dorp Street, which has one of the longest rows of historic buildings in the country. Well worth a visit is the Stellenbosch Village Museum, comprising four buildings from different periods of the town’s history. Art-lovers should not miss Oom Samie se Winkel and the Rembrandt van Rijn Art Museum in the historic Libertas Parva homestead. The nearby cellar is now known as the Stellenryk Wine Museum. |
 VAN RYN CELLARSThe Van Ryn Brandy Cellar at Vlottenburg is the oldest working brandy cellar in the country, and was the first to open its doors to visitors. The cellar is named after a Dutch immigrant, Jan van Ryn, who arrived at the Cape in 1845 and established the cellar. On a guided tour, visitors will find out all about the production of brandy. The tour includes a visit to the distillation pot stills, maturation cellars and the cooperage – one of only two working cooperages on the Brandy Route. Here, visitors can see how the maturation barrels are made from French oak in the traditional manner. |
UITKYK...on the slopes of the Simonsberg, has as its most outstanding feature the magnificent neoclassical manor house attributed to the French architect, Louis-Michel Thibault. Completed in 1788, its urban design in a country setting makes it unique among the historic buildings of Stellenbosch. Uitkyk’s history goes back to 1712, when the farm was granted to Jan Oberholzer, but its winemaking potential was only realised in the 1930s.
The estate produces two white wines (chardonnay and sauvignon blanc) and two reds – the full-bodied flagship wine, Carlonet (cabernet sauvignon) and a cabernet sauvignon and shiraz blend. All Uitkyk wines are marketed by the Bergkelder. The estate recently introduced a fine 10-year-old estate brandy to the market. |
BACKSBERGSet on the northeastern slopes of the Simonsberg, Backsberg was originally known as Babylonstoren. Since 1916, it has been in the hands of the Back family, after whom the farm was renamed. Renowned for its excellent wines, the Backsberg range includes seven white, a rosé and seven red wines. Owner Michael Back also produces an estate brandy – named after his father, Sydney – that is similar to the cognacs of France, but with its own distinctive character.
Wine from the estate’s chenin blanc grapes is distilled in a computer-controlled pot still imported from Cognac in 1991. It is then matured for three years in French Limousin oak barrels before it is released and sold under the Sydney Back Estate Brandy label. |
 PAARLWhen the Dutch fiskaal (revenue collector), Abraham Gabbema, and his party first saw the granite domes that dominate the Berg River valley glistening like gems in the rising sun in October 1657, he named them the ‘Paarl’ and the ‘Diamant’ (Pearl and Diamond). In 1687, Governor Simon van der Stel awarded the first farms in the valley, and in the following year several Huguenots settled here. Paarl Mountain lies within the Paarl Mountain Nature Reserve, accessible along the 11-km-long Jan Phillips Mountain Drive. The mountain originated some 550 million years ago when granite intruded into the rocks of the Malmesbury Group. Over millions of years the softer, overlying rock was eroded, exposing the more resistant granite outcrops. The Afrikaans language had its formal origins in Paarl in 1875, with the foundation of the Society of True Afrikaaners. |
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