StyleISSUE

18 THE STANDARD STYLE / FOOD & DRINK / WINES
August 3 to 9 2014
Raise a glass…
Buitenverwachting | (est. 1796), Constanta, Cape Town
Dusty Miller
I
HAVE a love-hate relationship with some
Afrikaans words!
I had a very special lady friend (a lost
lawyer, born in what is now Namibia) who
would order a bottle of Vergelegen Shiraz in
such a breathless way it would make my toes
curl…in anticipation…of the peppery red
wine!
On a recent trip to the Eastern Cape I got
back to my base in Constantia from a fairly
bibulous day-long tour of the KWV brandy
distillery at Worcester in the Breede River
Valley just in time for my host to invite me to
an impromptu blind wine tasting competition
between KWV and the local Buitenverwachting
labels.
It was all of a delightful 10 minute sunset
drive from the guest wing of a private Constantia
home in which I was staying to the
truly delightful setting of Buitenverwachting.
(Lovely place…but it’s a pain typing it!)
Buitenverwachting means “beyond expectations”
in the Taal and after experimenting
with “dumbing down” their almost unpronounceable
farm name initially to “Bayten”
for the American and UK market, they’ve now
settled on “Beyond”. And the lovely wine was
well ahead of my rather jaundiced expectations.
However the bottles we uncorked and sampled
allegedly knowledgeably for an hour or
so were all labelled with the original proudly
Afrikaans name.
We drank outdoors, in the shade of a venerable
multi-gabled, thatched Cape Dutch building,
by a lovely ornamental pool as the sun
dropped rapidly out to sea. Buitenverwachting
is wedged between the South Atlantic and
Indian Oceans and enjoys a moderate climate
with a high rainfall, exceeding 1 000ml per annum.
Deep decomposed gravel soils, south-east
facing vineyards and an elevation of up to
250m above sea-level combine to create optimal
growing conditions for vines: especially
for their award-winning Sauvignon-Blanc,
one of the winery’s flagship white varietals.
Cellar master/winemaker Hermann
Kirschbaum (his surname means “cherry
tree” in German) showed us around and introduced
his wines and the historic property.
It was part of the original Constantia Estate
founded by Dutch governor of The Cape,
Simon van der Stel and was first sold in 1796
as a 200 morgen sub-division (about 170 hectares).
The estate changed hands all too often
before being bought by the Mueller family in
1980.
Imbued with a deep sense of history, they
retraced the roots of Buitenverwachting, restored
the ancient buildings and erected 30
homes for staff working on the now 150 ha
property.
About 30% of the estate is north-facing
and more sun-exposed, making it ideal for
producing Bordeaux- varietals such as Cabernet-Franc,
Cabernet-Sauvignon and Merlot.
With emphasis on Cabernet-Franc, Buitenverwachting’s
focus is on densely-structured classic
red wines with “Christine” being the most
successful cuvee. Having said that, only 8%
of the total crush is red wine, with 90% white
and 2% rose.
The leafy, rolling, verdant estate is a popular
setting for garden weddings and boasts an
award-winning restaurant. Picnics under the
trees are popular. There is a superb deli and
coffee shop and, each May, Buitenverwachtingis
the venue of the hugely popular Cape Teddy
Bear Fair.
Cheers!
dustym@zimind.co.zw; dustymiller46@
gmail.com
$27.00 $21.00
$32.00 $59.00 $58.00
$56.90
Valid to 30th April, 2014
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