THE CURIOUS QUAFFER
ANDREAS
Unusually , to start , can I just say ... please read on . Read on and you will find an offer you should not turn down !
A mecca for tourists , South Africa is a land of immense beauty . It also , these days , houses many of the world ’ s most dynamic wine producing regions . Over the last twenty years the country has gone from strength to strength when it comes to the production of world class wines . . When we think about South Africa , and its wines , I guess most of our minds immediately log in the word ‘ Stellenbosch ’. Yet , the truth is that today ’ s world class wines from South Africa come from many different world class wine producing regions . From Cape Town ’ s mighty Table Mountain down to Constantia , to Stellenbosch itself , Paarl and Franschoek ; then north to Swartland and Olifants River ; then east to Worcester and Robertson ; then south to Elgin and Walker Bay . These wonderful wine producing regions , benefitting as they do from a mainly benign Mediterranean climate and prevailing ocean winds , are all today producing a dazzling array of world class wines .
As much as we may think of Stellenbosch , when we think about South African wine producing regions , I guess most of us would also immediately think of Chenin Blanc , Pinotage and Cabernet Sauvignon when it comes to South Africa ’ s signature grape varieties . Whilst you would be right to identify these three grape varieties , and associate them with some of South Africa ’ s great wines , this only tells part of the story . Today we also find world class Sauvignon Blanc , Chardonnay , Riesling , Syrah , Pinot Noir and even some excellent fortified Muscadels coming from its various great wine producing regions .
So , this month , welcome to the Andreas Wine Estate . This hidden gem is to be found in the Bovlei Valley , just outside Wellington . At the centre of the Estate is the Original Cape Dutch farmhouse , dating back to the eighteenth-century . Fully refurbished , it now also provides a wonderful base from which to explore all the wine producing areas in the Cape Town area .
This lovely , picturesque , boutique wine estate is home to 4.5 hectares of vineyards that produces a wonderful Syrah . The current wine maker is Shaun Meyeridricks , formerly of one of Paarl ’ s most famous producers , Boekenhoutskloof ( producers of world class Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah , but perhaps best known for its cult favourite - ‘ The Chocolate Block ’). Later this year the Andreas Estate will also , for the first time , be welcoming the world to a new premium wine called the ‘ Lithic Whisperer ’.
Some months ago , now , I had the good fortune to meet with one of the four directors of Andreas Wine Trading Limited , which now owns the Estate . He is also its largest shareholder . It was a chance meeting for a game of golf . I have , since , retained contact with him . The game of golf was not in South Africa …… neither is his home . Like the rest of us he lives , and also plays golf , here in the North West of England . So , a native who owns a world class winery in South Africa !
His name is David Croft . His story , his vision and his plans for the future make for an interesting story . Inevitably , I thought , there was no better way of relaying his story , other than to leave it to the man himself . He has done so by answering a number of questions I fired at him . Here goes :
What possessed you to purchase a winery in South Africa ? Some would argue that it was a mid-life crisis thing . Maybe it was ! I had only been retired for half a day before I suddenly became spooked by the idea of not having enough to do . I was fearful of a life operating without the discipline and the order that work ( for all its ills ) brings . I wanted to do something new and to prove myself in an industry in which I had never worked .
So , the idea developed … buy a winery in South Africa ! Ultimately , after a bit of searching out in South Africa , the Andreas Estate was purchased in late 2017 . We ended up with 23 shareholders , all of whom were my friends ( also now proving to be a good way of keeping in touch with them as time goes by ).
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