The Western Cape is one of the top wine producing regions in the world. The locals love their wine and love the winefarms that produce the wine just as much. There are over 150 winefarms in the Western Cape, some are open to the public and some are not. These wine farms produce some of the finest wines in the world and in among the wines there is a host of other activities and surprises just for good measure.
Wine is part of life in the Western Cape, wine flows in the veins of everyone who lives in the region. It is not just about the liquid produced by the farms, it is also how the wine and the farms have become so entrenched in the lifestyles and culture of the people. From Papsak to Pinotage wine is something of an everyday thing in Cape Town and wine has become part of the language.
But the wine farms really do play their part in the life and soul of the Western Cape. They make amazing places to stay or for businesses network, www.capewinefarms.co.za has a comprehensive list of the best. Some places are sophisticated and others more rustic the choice is yours, and some have more to do than just drink wine. However, everyone knows that nobody goes to a winefarm for anything other than wine… wink wink
Wonderful times
Every farm has something different, they all find a way for you to consume their wares. Some winefarms have golf courses, Devonvale is one. However, what not many people will know is that Devonvale while having a superb golf course and producing some amazing wine is influenced by sailing. This means that if the round of golf was bad the talk can always steer towards sailing and if that doesn’t work then just “suip” as the locals say. It seems to be a clever ploy that really works.
Wild nature
Some farms make the most of the nature around them. A walk through the vineyards in any part of the Cape will introduce all kinds of nature to anyone. There are farms that incorporate the wildlife as part of the wine experience. Villiera, for example, has set aside 220 hectares of land as a wildlife sanctuary and Vredenheim, just down the road has the big cats park.
Winefarms all value and appreciate the wildlife around them. Without the wildlife and without paying careful attention to the climate the entire wine eco-system is under threat. For this reason, when anyone visits a winefarm in the Cape each farm will highlight their eco activity and even use it as a selling point for their wines. The truth is that It is more than just selling wine, while the nature can be exploited it cannot be ignored or disregarded.
Wacky Wines
Of course, wine making is serious business, the wine makers take their art seriously but they also know their wines deliver fun. The farms on the Robertson wine route have turned wine into fun and host probably the most fun and important event of the wine calendar worldwide. The Wacky Wine Weekend held on the last weekend in May, gets booked up months in advance and tickets become gold. It is the ultimate celebration of wine in the Western Cape and mixes the passion of the winemaker with all the fun of life.
Many people wonder why people who live in the Western Cape are like they are. Anyone who does live in the region will always say it is because they have the perfect balance of sea, sunshine and mountains. This is not really a lie because without the sea, sunshine and mountains the real reason why those who live in the cape are like they are would not exist. The real reason why those who live in the Cape are as they are is the superb wine that makes them wonderful, wild and wacky!