It’s time to block out the diary for one of the South African winelands’ biggest events of the year, and to book tickets for the early bird discount! Wine Town Stellenbosch is the annual seven-day celebration of wine and wineland living that takes place from 29 July to 4 August.
The highlight of the event is the Stellenbosch Wine Festival on 2-3 August, which was first held in 1973. Hosted in the historic town hall, some 60 of the country’s best producers offer more than 200 wines for tasting, which are served alongside a never-ending harvest table of seasonal and local bites and delights.
If you’ve ever wanted to experience Stellenbosch and Stellenbosch wine in all it’s glory, this is the occasion.
The celebration is the culmination of a smorgasbord of family-friendly experiences organised by wine farms, restaurants, tour operators and guesthouses in South Africa’s wine capital. Activities feature amongst others, specialised wine tours, international conferences and regional tastings as well as winemaker lunches and dinners, specials at wine bars and restaurants around town and curated vertical tastings.
Stellenbosch wines excel across grape varieties, which is the reason for focus-tastings that include Cabernet through the ages hosted by the Stellenbosch Cabernet collective, and Chenin Blanc.
More about the Stellenbosch Wine Festival
Some of the country’s biggest names in wine will be represented at this year’s Stellenbosch Wine Festival. Among them, Simonsig, Alto, Spier, Rust en Vrede, Blaauwklippen and Kleine Zalze.
But it doesn’t stop there, the food feast on offer comes from the kitchens of celebrated chef Bertus Basson and prepared by Bertus Basson Restaurants Group Chef Adel Grewar. The culinary presentation includes a harvest table, floating small plates mostly themed around traditional flavours and tastes, and to end it all off, a buffet of desserts.
As has become tradition, there will be top notch live music too.
Festival details
- Dates and times: Fri, 2 Aug, 17:00 – 21:00 and Sat, 3 Aug: 14:00 – 18:00
- Tickets: R490pp
- Ticket includes: 18 wine tasting tokens, live music performance and harvest feast
- Tickets: Book via Plankton.
Special deals
Winelovers keen to take advantage of the entire week’s events will be happy to know that discounts and special deals are being offered across the board. For information, visit www.StayAndPlay.visitstellenbosch.org. For those living further afield, check out www.travelstart.co.za for flight-and-stay packages, and up to a R1000 off accommodation
