Discover brandy in the Cape winelands
Just like there’s more to brandy than coke, there’s more to the Cape winelands than only wine
The days of South African brandy simply giving your coke a kick are long gone. Instead, boutique producers and savvy mainstream brands are pitching brandy as a premium tipple to be sipped and savoured.
And while you’ll find premium handcrafted brandies at your favourite liquor merchant, a far better bet is to weave them into your next road trip. For just like there’s more to brandy than coke, there’s more to the Cape winelands than only wine.
Brandy production has a long history in SA , and in 2022 celebrated its 350th anniversary. It was in 1672 that a cook aboard the Dutch trading ship Pijl managed to distil two leaguers — about 1,164 litres — of Cape wine into three ankers, 126 litres, of brandy. Fire and wine combined, and the Dutch term brandewijn, literally ‘burnt wine’, stuck.
To discover more you’ll need to hit the road, and perhaps start with one of the big hitters — KWV — in the Winelands town of Paarl. At this year’s International Spirits Challenge (ISC) in London KWV walked away with a clutch of Double Gold and Gold medals for their brandies, as well as the coveted Brandy Producer of the Year award, putting KWV ahead of some of the world’s biggest brands in spirits. Cognac who, again?
And KWV’s House of Fire is one of the more immersive brandy experiences in the Cape, with a two-story multisensory visitor centre delving into the history, craft and maturation of the spirit. Best of all, the guided experience ends with a tasting of four premium KWV brandies — including three ISC medal winners — paired with bespoke chocolates.
Another major player introducing the art and craft of brandy to travellers is just 20 minutes away in the Stellenbosch wine lands.
Here the century-old Van Ryn’s remains the only brandy distillery to maintain a working cooperage, and a highlight of the daily tours is seeing the master craftsmen at work making and repairing barrels of French Limousin oak. The tour also walks you through the precise process of distillation, from the difference between a column and pot still, to the extended maturation required to produce premium spirits. The tour ends in the elegant tasting lounge, where you’re encouraged to sit back and sip on the impressive range of brandies. Certainly don’t miss the award-winning 12-year-old, which bagged five stars in the 2023 Platter’s Guide.
But brandy hasn’t always been associated with elegance and high design. Some of the best destinations for brandy touring favour unburnished charm and rural character over polished tasting rooms and curated art galleries.
Head east along Route 62 and a few hours’ scenic drive will bring you to the Klein Karoo. Quirky Grundheim is undoubtedly worth a visit. It’s been in the same family for six generations, and the old-fashioned wood-fired stills turn out superb brandy alongside homemade liqueurs and fiery witblits. Family-owned Boplaas in Calitzdorp are skilled at both whisky and brandy while Upland Organic, also in the Klein Karoo, is one of the few distilleries growing organic grapes on-site, distilling brandy with a unique sense of terroir.