Last weekend I was lucky enough to be invited to Robertson Wine Valley on a Media trip organized by Hot Oven Marketing. A 3 day Robertson adventure of wine, food, and stunning views! I even got to bring the husband along, he was great, really embraced his inner photographer/blogger.

We arrived at Rietvallei Wine Estate around 12pm, our first stop on our Robertson adventure, to insanely perfect weather. You’ll find this family-owned (for over 150 years!) wine estate just outside of Robertson. Our host Elizabeth, the wife of the winemaker slash sixth generation owner of the estate, is an absolute blast. Funny, friendly, and full of life, she made an already fantastic experience even better!

We started off with a wine tasting, four whites, two reds and for dessert, a Muscadel with a Ferrero Rocher chocolate. All their wines are amazing, in hindsight I can definitely say, that for my personal palate, this tasting was my favourite of the weekend. For me, the best thing about their wines was that despite not liking red wine (don’t judge me too harshly, I used to love it but pregnancy messed with my taste buds) I really enjoyed every single one of theirs!

Our group was the first to try their new lunch concept – a braai (our version of a barbeque but better – if you ask any South African) fondue. A mini braai in the middle of the table where you get to cook your board of top quality meat, all locally sourced, and exceptionally tasty. Along with sides of garlic bread, vegetable skewers, potato salad, greek pasta salad and garlic butter, all home made and delicious.

[su_quote]Our group was the first to try their new lunch concept – a braai fondue.[/su_quote]

An enterprising idea, delicious, interactive, and fun, paired with great wine and conversation! With the Langeberg Mountains as our backdrop, we couldn’t have asked for more. We can’t wait to go back and stay at their newly opened accommodation with the whole family!

The next stop on our Robertson Adventure was De Wetshof Estate, another family run (third generation) wine estate. You can feel the family atmosphere as soon as you arrive, all the people that work there love what they do and are very close to the family. They eagerly showed us around and told us about the history of the estate – they were the first in South Africa to make Chardonnay. I also learnt that wine barrels cost between R7,000 and R15,000 a piece! That’s the last time I complain about the price of wine…

After the tour, we were treated to a picnic in one of their vineyards, lucky lucky us! And as if that wasn’t enough, our table was decorated by none other than Gera de Wet, wife of Johann de Wet, a stunning interior designer (amongst other things).

Their Limestone Hill, an unwooded Chardonnay, is absolutely superb and went perfectly with the amazing spread in front of us. The Bateleur is their flagship Chardonnay, a barrel-selection made from some of their oldest vines, and it’s regarded as one of our (South Africa’s) greatest white wines. The beauty of the vineyards, the table, and the energy of the staff as they described the family, the estate, and the wines made the whole experience incredibly special.

       

[su_quote]The beauty of the vineyards, the table, and the energy of the staff as they described the family, the estate, and the wines made the whole experience incredibly special.[/su_quote]

We said our goodbyes and got into our shuttle. On our way back to our cars we saw the most stunning sunset, so we jumped out and got a shot of it, isn’t this valley something else?? So beautiful!

Our ‘home” for the night was Jan Harmsgat Country House, a five-star guest accommodation that does not disappoint. After a quick walk under an apple orchard, we arrived at our room. Got settled in, and then had to tear ourselves away from the heated floors and a massive soft comfy bed, to go meet up with everyone by the fire. After the initial shock of the cold, the fire quickly heated us up, while we enjoyed a few piquant pomegranate martinis and stared up at the star-filled sky.

After meeting the lovely soon-to-be new chefs at Jan Harmsgat, we all sat down to a delicious three-course wine paired dinner. They grow their own produce on a 680-hectare working farm found just across the road, as such their menu is ever-changing. We thoroughly enjoyed our meals, a unique and tasty prawn starter, succulent lamb and fish main, and then their Pecan pie! A specialty made with their organically grown pecans and topped with homemade ice cream. So yummy (and I don’t even like Pecan nuts)! After enjoying all that food and wine it was off to bed so I could be up early for the farm drive. You can read all about that and everything else we got up to on my Day 2 post…

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