The story of one of the oldest wine estates in the Western Cape Province of South Africa.
That is a little Cape White-eye bird wanting some sugar for his coffee in the photo above. So grab a coffee and let's look at this prestigious and historic wine farm. Come and walk in the wide open spaces with fresh mountain air and many adventures.
Founded in the 1700s Vergelegen farm has a long history indeed and the estate has had many trials over the years, but it has survived and is now an award-winning venue for visitors to experience it's warm hearted welcoming.
There is much to see, to taste and to eat and the sights are out of this world.
The estate was settled in 1700 by an early Governor of the Cape, Willem Adriaan van der Stel. Van der Stel used the resources of his employer, the Dutch East India Company, to improve the estate, and in 1706 a number of free burghers at the Cape drew up a formal memorandum complaining about van der Stel's illegal activities. This memorandum contains some of the earliest images and descriptions of the estate. As a consequence of the free burghers' complaints, van der Stel and other officials were sacked, and three-quarters of the original Vergelegen estate was sold off, drastically reducing the size of the property.
Now that you have had your coffee, or a glass of Sauvignon wine with snacks, grab your camera and come and take a walk with us.
This pale Guinea fowl below is amazing, as normally whenever one tames a guinea fowl they turn into pale colors, but this one is in the wild. And he seems to be the leader of the pack.
Some of you might remember the song; The leader of the pack and I felt it fitting to use the title here.
Wild and free and who wouldn't want to be wild and free in these vast surroundings?
Vergelegen's Cape Dutch house, gardens and winery are open to visitors. Interesting features of any visit include a trip up the mountain to the winery plant, and a walk under the vast Camphor laurels (Cinnamomum camphora) planted by Willem van der Stel in about 1705 which have been declared a protected provincial heritage site. The winery is uniquely shaped in an octagon form that is mirrored on the vineyard's labels.
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They are Bonteboks and there are several of them on the estate, as wine is not the only produce, because there is also regular farming taking place.
Now what do you think this strange bird sculpture below might be?
Right, I have shown you maybe 1% of the estate here and there is so much more to see. There is one of the top quality restaurants behind this sculpture on the estate.
Amazingly as a part of the Vergelegen estate gardens they also hold the title of one of two International Camellia Garden of Excellence in the Southern Hemisphere. The other one is in Melbourne's Royal Botanical Gardens (Australia). So we are pleased to visit the garden at any time that we like, as it is the only one in Africa.
Don't know what a Camellia is?
It is a flower that blooms during winter seasons.
Here are two of my Camellia photos.
There are rare specimens from countries such as Japan, USA and New Zealand also in the garden apart from the South African ones. Camellias were originally planted in the gardens in the 1920s and the gardens cover a 10 hectare area of many kinds of flowers and trees. Then there are also forests and a lovely river that runs through the farm.
Vergelegen offers visitor tours and they also have a wine tasting center and two 5 star restaurants.
I have tried to give you as much information as I can, but I am sure that I have missed many other exciting aspects of the farm, so I will include the estate's own link here.
They are renowned for their top class Sauvignon wines.
I hope that you have enjoyed the story and the photos.
And That's All Friends.
Photos by Zac Smith-All Rights Reserved.
Camera: Canon Powershot SX70HS Bridge camera.
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