Cheery blue skies hung overhead as I sped toward Stellenbosch for a spot of weekend wine tasting with my friend, Amy. I’ve nursed a burning desire to go visit De Trafford since I first sampled their wares at the Hartenberg Shiraz festival and could hardly have chosen a more splendid spring Saturday to venture into the vine lands.
Winding wistfully up the Helderberg mountain, the dirt road was an adventure itself but with spring painting new life over the countryside canvas, it was utterly breathtaking. Waterford got the first “Aahhhhhh!” for it’s white daisied paddocks and happy herd of one trick ponies.
The road continued up through groves of twisted trees, past rustic rambling vineyards and through the gates of Mont Fleur (a magical venue for either a conference or wedding) until, nestled in deep shade, we finally found what we were looking for: the delightful De Trafford cellar.
Suitably welcomed by charmingly down-to-earth assistant winemaker, Waldo van Zyl, we settled down to taste their fine handcrafted wine. Waldo’s warmth, humour and old-school passion for making “˜proper’ wine made the whole experience immensely enjoyable. There’s something so honest in the way they cultivate and create wines here: done slowly, using traditional artisan equipment (I spied a vintage wine press which Waldo confirmed they actually still used) and with great care – a distinct detour from more typical mass produced, big bottom line methods that have become so profitable, I mean, popular of late. De Trafford reds are left in barrels for longer to soften tannins and you can certainly taste the difference: their wines are eloquently refined, elegantly complex and perfectly balanced. It’s worth the wait.
The tasting’s conducted with a certain intimacy that heralds back to a bygone time where wine lovers met the wine maker, chatted about grapes, earth, elevation and oak over a couple of bottles of their best. Which is what visiting a wine farm used to be like. Sadly many new age, industry (bleurgh) wine farms have turned tasting into a fast paced sushi bar trip:
Slap down R60, splash some wine in a glass, pounce on about how amazing your 15,000 mega litres of screw top, better-in-a-box, balsamic asyn masquerading as merlot is. And please just hurry the hell up already so we can hustle the next busload of dehydrated tourists through these doors – we’re here to make sales, people!
Here’s a strange fact: wine lovers seem stupidly to like (nay – expect) to be treated with disdain by wine merchants and makers alike. In my opinion, precious time is wasted on posing and pretentious marketing in the wine world instead of focusing on what really matters: like quality. And customer care, perhaps? Which is why I thoroughly appreciated the slip-slop hop equivalent earlier this year. Since I essentially prefer the grape, love vineyards and am fascinated by viticulture, finding a wine farm steeped in truth is a treasure.
Reformed architect (his past is echoed in the labels), wine maker and farm owner, David Trafford’s honest passion and biting humour is evident when he explains wine making as
“”¦understanding and working with the vineyard to coax something magical from the land, after that… hold thumbs you don’t cock it up in the cellar.”
I tasted their Syrah at the festival and was stuck by it’s lush rust complexion and sheer sophistication. Shiraz is a bold, big breasted cultivar much like Dolly Parton whereas theirs is distinctly genteel, dignified and beguiling. Think Katie Melua. While Dolly’s great for a strip joint and a rowdy night out at the Dros, you’ll want to take Katie to meet your mom – and marry her. My kind of wine.
Their flagship Elevation 393 (meters above sea level), is a fresh Cab, Merlot, Syrah blend (50:40:10) – their best of the best (think Top Gun elite). All barrels are tested and only if David feels the standard is high (erhm, elevated?) enough will the blend see a bottle. Which is pretty damn cool and shows ruthless integrity. Get Bono on the line – I’ve found a wine U2 would love!
In addition, they boast a second line called Sijnn (naturally, I taken by the name which sounds like clever word play for “˜sin’ when you consider what generally happens when drinking red”¦ ). Amy and I were totally charmed. Not entirely sinful, this pure bush wine (heavenly and green) takes it’s name from the San word for the Breede River – Malgas area where it’s grown wild and untrestled. A unique site inspired Trafford’s team to plant hotter varietals with a more Mediterranean (predominantly Portuguese) flair. The 2008 red blend (Syrah, Mourvèdre, Touriga Nacional and Trincade) is sexy and smooth, upfront and relatively uncomplicated with a delicious caramel finish.
If you’re in the market (or the mood) for a fabulous getaway, they have a romantically luxurious garden cottage you can hire.
Wine tasting at De Trafford
Call 021-880-1611 or email [email protected] for details.
For an old school tasting of award winning hand-crafted wine in a breathtaking setting, De Trafford can’t be beat. They’re open for tasting on Friday and Saturday mornings only between 10:00 and 13:00.
