Exploring Wellington: a journey through history and wine
Val Du Charron in Wellington with the breathtaking views of the vineyard and mountains.
Image: Supplied
What do the writers Adam Small and Breyten Breytenbach, Christian missionary Andrew Murray, and the legendary builder of mountain passes, Andrew Geddes Bain, have in common? Well, they all have their roots in the small agricultural town of Wellington, in the heart of the Cape Winelands, at the foot of the Groenberg mountains. This was one of the many things we learnt on a recent visit to the Wellington Museum, situated in the town’s Church Street.
In fact, we learnt during an intriguing couple of hours in this museum, a number of well-known people are linked to this historic town: people who have excelled in a range of different fields from sports to politics, literature, art, education or religion.
The museum – which, besides dedicating space to the legacies of Murray and Bain, has a rare collection of Egyptian antiquities - was the perfect place to start a tour of the town, which also boasts the Dutch Reformed Mother Church, a national monument linked to Murray’s legacy and one of the Boland’s most beautiful churches. The town of Wellington, an hour’s drive from Cape Town and located at the base of one of South Africa’s oldest mountain passes, Bain’s Kloof Pass, is known for its fruit and for the wine and brandy it produces.
Situated alongside the Kromme River, it’s also known for its production of vine cuttings (“stokkies”), of which it produces millions to the industry every year. We were in Wellington as part of a media trip to visit the newly revamped Val Du Charron wine and leisure estate.
The guesthouse has recently been renovated, and boasts 40 luxurious rooms, all of which overlook the new pool and Boma Bar.
Image: Supplied
Founded by Catherine Entwistle, the 42-hectare estate is one of the properties which epitomize the historic legacy of the area. Ten minutes from Wellington, Val Du Charron, which lies in the Bovlei Valley, is known for its hand-crafted red and white wines. During our trip, we experienced the authentic hospitality of this unique spot, as well as some great eating – and drinking - experiences, a few wonderful walks, and some hearty conversations with the owners.
We drove out late on a Wednesday morning, through the luscious vineyards and farmlands and arrived at the estate in time to check in to our rooms and to have lunch at their newly renovated restaurant, Pizza Vista. The restaurant looks out into so many different mountains that we called our waiter over to name them for us.
From left to right, he pointed them out: the Groenberg, Bainskloof and Hawequa mountains, followed, to the right, by the Dutoitskloof, Stellenbosch and Paarl mountains.The vista of rugged peaks is dramatic and stunning, and a perfect setting for midday cocktails, delicious pizza and some home-grown wines.
They’ve clearly put a lot of work and creativity into compiling the menu for Pizza Vista. My choice was a pizza called “The Good Life” topped with artichokes, baby marrows, roasted red pepper; but you can choose from Chanelle No Five (spiced strawberry jam, bacon, camembert and toasted almonds) or The Chessboard; The Joburger; or The Whole Hog - or a range of other Italian options, like antipasta, pasta, and salads. It seemed a sin not to try a glass of the recommended Val du Charron Chenin Blanc, for which Wellington is famous. After lunch, a few of us went to inspect the start of the estate’s Wild Boar mountain bike Trails.
Val Du Charron had been producing wine since 1699.
Image: Supplied
There are six routes, all of which start and finish at Val du Charron, and which are aimed at single-track cyclists. In the heat of the day, a better option was to spend the afternoon at the estate’s enormous swimming pool. There, chatting to some fellow guests from Germany, we got a sense of their unique experience of the estate, and of the Wellington area in general. By all accounts, with close to 50 wine farms in the area, Wellington is becoming increasingly popular in the wine-tourism and leisure spaces.
As scenically beautiful as Franschhoek, it has a more ‘undiscovered’ feeling to it, while still offering many options of accommodation – ranging from farm-based guest houses to historic homes and boutique lodges – as well as fine-dining, and family-friendly activities. Besides wine-tasting, Wellington’s countryside is perfect for hiking and mountain biking, as well as kloofing in the surrounding mountains.
Historic Paarl – as town known for its rock formations and Paarl Rock, for the Afrikaans Language Monument and for its wineries and Cape Dutch architecture – is a 15-minute drive away, while Franschhoek and Stellenbosch are each about half an hour away. The towns of Tulbagh, Ceres, Riebeek Kasteel, Robertson, Citrusdal and Darling are all close enough for day trips too; and for the more adventurous four-by-four types, there are five scenic mountain passes in the area, connecting a range of wine, brandy and fruit routes.Val du Charron had been producing wine since 1699, but when Catherine, originally from Johannesburg, moved to the farm in 2006, it was in a state of neglect.
Determined to rebuild it to its former glory, but with a modern twist, they set about reviving the winemaking enterprise and developing the property for tourism. Today they produce a range of wines; and wine tasting; guided cellar and vineyard tours are also part of their offering to visitors.
Specialising in blends, their offerings include the Val du Charron Reserve Collection and the Theatre of Wine. After a swim, we all trudged off to our bedrooms in the 4-star guesthouse for a quick nap before dinner. The guesthouse has recently been renovated, and boasts 40 luxurious rooms, all of which overlook the new pool and Boma Bar. We joined Catherine for dinner in the cosy, newly revamped Grillroom, whose description as “a carnivore’s paradise” made it hard to think further than having one of their signature “Proudly South African AAA Grade Aged” steaks.
Although the menu also features numerous traditional South African dishes, seafood, chicken and vegetarian options. We enjoyed some of the estate’s wines with our meal, in particular, the Black Countess (a red signature blend, whose name is based on the story of the countess of Stamford, the first member of colour of the British realm) and Erasmus (named after the first owner of Val du Charron).
Some delightful anecdotes from the charismatic duo, made for a laughter-filled evening. Catherine, a trained actuary and businesswoman, described how, after they bought the farm in 2006, they planted four-and-a-half hectares of olives before planting 22 hectares of about 15 different varieties of grapes. A couple of years into their move, she studied winemaking to equip her for the Val du Charron journey, one which has resulted in award-winning, export quality wines.
“We had so many friends visiting us that we decided to open a guest house.” They started with seven little rooms and “then the seven became fourteen”. Today, beside the 4-star guesthouse comprising 40 luxurious family-friendly rooms, the estate boasts, the exclusive Coach House with three suites, each with a spa bath, pool and private patio and the 5-star two-bedroomed Manor House, which dates back to 1699, and which has been restored to a facility offering a plunge-pool, a sauna, and a butler service. There is also a presidential suite.
The next morning, we did a two-hour walk, starting on one of the mountain bike trails, through vineyards and surrounded by mountains. A quick dip and then to breakfast in the Grillroom.
Reluctant to leave this beautiful part of the world, a few of us drove around looking for a restaurant I’d heard about in the Wellington farmlands, called Vygie, located on the farm Oaklands, and described in Tripadvisor as “a gem at the end of an adventurous drive”, and a place known for its warm hospitality, laid-back atmosphere, and delicious farm-to-table menu. We followed some winding farm roads towards Oaklands, only to find a stunning barn-like structure closed. We learnt that they only open at weekends. But what a venue, and what agorgeous setting. I’ll be back.
We stopped at the delightful Mila at Doolhof, a café situated on the Doolhof wine estate, and strolled to look at their labyrinth before having coffee and chocolate cake.Then we were off for more Wellington treasures, like the James Sedgewick Distillery,and the Car Museum at the Old Tannery.