I’ve regretted telling anybody I’d never been to Stellenbosch since the words first left my mouth. I might as well have told them I had grown a tail. Same reaction. The remedy, finally, came to me in the form of a weekend invitation to Klein Welmoed Luxury Guesthouse, situated 15 kilometres outside of Stellenbosch in the famed Cape Winelands.
My girlfriend and I headed East from Cape Town on a Friday afternoon on a short(ish) road trip involving some heavy afternoon traffic, a stubborn Beatles album and an impressively succinct argument about directions. I lost in record time. I mean, I got us lost. I’m crap with a map. I had it right in front of me and still botched the whole thing. I didn’t even bother defending mankind. Sorry, men. I have since frantically started growing a moustache to save any shred of manliness. It’s not going well. I should have started in May.
Nonetheless, with my man cred at an all-time low, our wheels crunched along the rust-brown gravel driveway of the 39-hectare wine and olive farm on at around 18h30, a little later than expected. We were greeted by the guest house manager, Heloise, and Jack, the resident border collie, shown to our cottage and given a brief history of Klein Welmoed (which I will get into later).
The cottages at Klein Welmoed are amazing. No, that’s not accurate enough. The cottages at Klein Welmoed are like fat people – both cosy and spacious at the same time, a tough combination to get right without a wheelbarrow full of Snickers and a bomber jacket. They are modern with a country feel, there is WiFi, two televisions (which we hardly used), a don’t-even-try-get-out-of-me, king-sized bed and a smart kitchen equipped with everything you need to make anything from frugal French toast (my speciality) to a full on roast (probably somebody else’s speciality). On this occasion the fridge was already stocked with a decent selection of goods for us to cook. Thoughtful, considering I hadn’t even thought about what we were going to eat that night.
The following day we tucked into a wholly wholesome (read: healthy and abundant) breakfast at the main house before heading out to explore Klein Welmoed’s beautiful surrounds with Jack in tow, or rather, leading the way. We figured he was either telepathic or had guided many a guest along the roads that encircle the property. He led us through the vineyard, along a ridge teeming with birds, past a dam and straight to the sheep pen. Every inch of the walk was filled with creatures springing to life and dancing to the soft hum of springtime fornication. Every now and again an oddly nonchalant stand-off took place between Jack and the resident ducks and sheep. They clearly had a history.
The vines and olive trees on the estate are quite new. In fact, steeped against the deep history of many of the wine farms in the area, they’re embryonic. Klein Welmoed has just had its first harvest and the winemakers are deliberating on a name for the wine as the name ‘Klein Welmoed’ is taken by another winery in the area. The vineyards and guest cottages, Heloise explained with the aid of a photo album, are built on what was once an old, dilapidated tobacco farm. The transformation is incredible. Looking through those old photos one really gets the feel that the new owners have gone to every length to provide maximum comfort, impeccable service and an old-world aesthetic that already matches up to many of the more established farms in the area.
We stayed a little later than check out on the Sunday. It was partly due to the after effect of a rambunctious night out in Stellenbosch (I thought it’d be rude not too, considering it was my first time in the Cape’s drunkest town) but mostly due to the fact that we weren’t really too keen on changing our view just yet. We had breakfast, took another lazy walk and spent the late morning chilling on the grass outside our cottage drinking grapefruit juice and white wine. Where better to spend a lazy Sunday morning than in the heart of the Cape Winelands? Thanks again to Heloise and the team at Klein Welmoed. What a way to wind down.
Rates
There are four cottages at Klein Welmoed as well as accommodation in the main house. Cottages are from R550 a person sharing (for two people) or R600 a person sharing (for up to four people). Rooms in the main house start at R550 a person sharing (for two people). See full details fo accommodation at Klein Welmoed here.
Do you have suggestion for what Klein Welmoed should call their wine? Leave it in the comment box below.
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