This year we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the new winery and 324 years of passion, since Jacques de Savoye founded Vrede en Lust in 1688!

There are only 120 tickets available and a number of last year’s guests have already applied for bookings, so please book soonest to avoid disappointment.

The Harvest Festival is one of the highlights on our calendar! Those who want to harvest some grapes themselves, will be able to get into the vineyards with Etienne & Susan earlier in the morning – just come prepared with a change of clothes.

Wines to be released

The Boet Erasmus 2009, the Syrah 2009, and Caseys’ Ridge Elgin Viognier 2011. In addition, the 4 wines that make up the exclusive and limited release Artisan Range will be available for tasting and purchase to all guests. These wines are normally only available to Wine Club members: The Chenin-Chardonnay-Viognier 2010 (Elgin), the Shiraz-Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 (Simonsberg-Paarl), The Barrique Semillon-Sauvignon Blanc 2011 (Elgin) and the newly releases Syrah 2010 from our Elgin vineyards.

Theme

Red and white. Please dress accordingly, the best dressed couple will win a special autographed set of the Vryersvoetpad 2008 wine released to celebrate the movie Semi-Soet!

Program for the day

11:00 Jess cocktail, grape picking and grape stomping
12:00 Starters and Federweisser served
12:30 Start of a long, lazy lunch with Wine on Tap!
13:30 Desert
14:30 Blessing of the Harvest, Balloons of Dreams and announcement of the Best Dressed Couple

From 11:00 – 16:00 Tasting of the newly released wines, Boulles  & live entertainment

De Savoye Day Lunch Menu

Duncan and his team at the Cotage Fromage have created a very special menu for the day:

Starter

• Baby onion quiches
•  Gazpacho

 Main

• Duck liver parfait
•  Hot smoked salmon terrine
•  Rare roasted fillet of beef
•  Chicken coronation
•  Cold meats and cheeses
•  Baby beef and chicken burgers
•  Lime potato salad
•  Curried chickpea salad
•  Tuscan panzanella salad

 Dessert

• Special selection of hand made Ice Creams

De Savoye Day Tickets

Public - R295 per person, Wine Club Members enjoy their WineClub discounts for themselves and one partner/guest. Wine Club Members also enjoy booking priority. Tickets include the Harvest Lunch, lots of wine on tap and all activities.

No charge for children of 12 years and younger – there will be a secure play area with nannies where food and cold drinks will be provided.

Only 120 tickets are available! To avoid disappointment, please book your tickets as soon as possible and confirm you’re booking by sending your proof of payment to Elzaan Louwrens. Please note that seats will be allocated on a strictly first-pay basis.

Banking details:
Vrede en Lust at Nedbank, Business Winelands
Branch code: 149821 Account number: 1498080960 Reference: “Savoye” and last name

Accommodation

Our accommodation is already booked up for the weekend, but there are a number of options nearby at a range of prices to meet all budgets!

• Cathbert Country Inn (4 Star) – 021 874 1366
• Babylonstoren (6 Star) – 021 863 3852
• Val d ‘Or Estate Guest House (4 Star) – 021 876 3902
• Le Franschhoek Hotel (5 Star) – 021 876 8900

We look forward to sharing this day with you!

Please note the winery will be closed to the general public on the 3rd of March.

A very succinct comment from a highly regarded local film critic! We participated in the Semi-Soet Johannesburg Premier at Monte Casino (2nd of Feb) and last night’s Cape Town Premier at the Atholl Fugard Theatre. “The best South African movie yet” was the typical response heard from most of the premiere guests. Both events were packed and the guests were in high spirits, mixing with many local entertainment celebrities. The main actors – Anel Alexander, Nico Panagio, Sandra Vaughn, Louw Venter, Diaan Lawrenson, Paul du Toit and Corine du Toit - were at both the premieres where they stayed till the last guests went home.

When we were first approached about Vrede en Lust being the wine farm in the movie we had a few concerns. Not least being that one’s brand could suffer collateral damage in the event of a poor movie. We watched the DVD of Anel and James’s movie Discreet, which convinced us that the risks on the downside were less than the benefits on the upside. We had high hopes for Semi-Soet, but I suspect the movie will do much better than our wildest expectations. Semi-Soet will launch at 70 movie theaters across South Africa on the 17th of February 2012.

Everyone agreed that it was very funny, classy, gripping, professionally produced and shows that Afrikaans movies can be successful without being slapstick and musician centric. Anel and James Alexander from Scramble Productions put their heart and soul into this project and made a great movie on a $ budget that would any producer in Hollywood’s mind! They put together a strong cast backed by a professional production team. Most importantly, they got everyone to believe in what was possible and that the movie would change the direction of local movies going forward.

A big thanks on our side to the cast and crew of Semi-Soet for the great job done and for allowing Vrede en Lust to participate to the extent we do! Thanks also to Janina Otto for all her work with Semi-Soet and the premieres, and to my wife Anneke and her team who worked so hard to ensure everyone had enough wine to taste and enjoy at the premieres. The photo above was taken at the Cape Town event with the cast and some of the Vrede en Lust team.

There is an interesting connection that goes back to 2003, with Corine du Toit, one of the stars of Semi-Soet. Corine was the model we had selected for the very first Vrede en Lust advertisement! We used the ad for about a year, by which time Corine had moved on from modeling to a role in the TV series Egoli. She had done numerous other TV series and movies over the last 9 years. Great to do something together again Corine!

Our wines and marketing have also moved forward a long way since then! To celebrate the release of Semi-Soet, we are launching a very limited release wine – the ‘Vryersvoetpad 2008‘, as featured in the movie. It is a smooth, sophisticated, Merlot dominant, Bordeaux blend. Only 1,450 bottles were produced. Each bottle is numbered and the Vryersvoetpad will be available exclusively from Makro fine wine departments country wide, as well as from our cellardoor and eStore.

You can also visit Semi-Soet on Facebook or follow them on Twitter.

In the winery we have from left to right: Melvin August (cellar worker), Susas Erasmus (winemaker), Anthony Mbombo (cellar worker), Ellen Lubbe (intern winemaker), Danel Morkel (intern winemaker), Baron Willemse (South Africa’s cellar worker of the year 2011), Chris Spurdens (intern winemaker) , Ansonè Stoffberg (assistant winemaker) and Etienne Buys (viticulturist).

The intern winemakers are all South Africans this year. Ellen was the Dux (top) graduate from Elsenburg in 2011. Chris graduated from the University of Brighton in 2009 with a BSc Hons in Viticulture / Oenology. Danel graduated from the University of Stellenbosch in 2010 with a Bsc in Viticulture / Oenology. We sincerely hope they really enjoy their harvest at Vrede en Lust and make a big contribution to the team overall.

No, Susan did not develop a ‘boep’ during the summer holidays, she is 6 months pregnant! Congratulations to her and Arnè ; we hope her 6th full harvest at Vrede en Lust is kind to her and the unborn little Erasmus. With a viticulturist (at Plaisir de Merle next door) as dad and winemaker mother, the little one is really born into wine.

I was lucky to take this photo of 2 Kaapse grysbokke in one of the Cabernet blocks on Ricton this morning. The block is in veraison and I hope they were more interested in the leaves than the green berries!

These are two females but there was also a male deeper into the bloc. It is always great to see them around! Lets hope they do not end in some-one’s sights.

The Chardonnay grapes harvested today comes from a 3.5H (nearly 9 acres) block at our Ricton vineyard. The Ricton vineyard is located next to Babylonstoren, about 2 km up the road from the winery. We expect the Vrede en Lust Chardonnay that goes into Marguerite to start coming in next week.

Ricton is also classified as Wine of Origin Simonsberg-Paarl, with a more uniform, lighter,  decomposed granite soil that is well drained, lighter soils. We also grow Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinotage (for Jess rosè ) and Cincaut on the farm.

We harvest the grapes by hard into plastic lugs. The lugs are emptied into half-ton plastic bins and then transported to the winery. At the winery, the bins are stored under-roof and out the sun. The bins are next rotated into the receiving hopper, where the grapes are weighed prior to release to the automatic sorting machine.

In the sorting machine, the bunches are destemmed (the bunches for Marguerite will undergo whole-bunch press) and the berries sorted. The berries that make it through the sorting machine then gets pumped though the mash cooler and into one of our two presses.

The pressing process takes nearly 6 hours under low pressure. Next the press juice gets pumped into the selected fermenter, in the white wine section of the winery. Susan will decide when to kick off fermentation, which will take place at low temperatures for nearly 3 weeks in order to preserve the more delicate flavours of the white wines.

The harvest starts today with the Chardonnay and will end in early April, probably with the Cabernet Sauvignon from our Elgin vineyard. A long harvest ahead – we hope and pray it will be a great one!

Healthy Grenache during Veraison 26 Jan 2012. Note the sandy soils!

The 2012 harvest is rapidly approaching. We expect to start harvesting the first grapes during early February. The first grapes in are normally Chardonnay from the Simonsberg-Paarl vineyards and Pinotage for our Jess Rosè, also from our Simonsberg-Paarl vineyard. The harvest will most likely end in April, with Cabernet Sauvignon from our Elgin vineyards; thus a long harvest window if the weather does not change dramatically.

At present we are optimistic about both the quality and quantity of the 2012 harvest, but berry sorting will significantly reduce the volume of grapes reaching the fermenters. We had a cold winter in 2011, cool spring and cool early summer. The first real heat waves hit in mid January. While some areas are concerned about rainfall and water reserves, we fortunately received sufficient rains during winter and spring.

Our major concerns at present are re some sunburn damage and the unevenness of some cultivar’s bunches, due to volatile weather conditions in the late spring. The photo on the right shows a Grenache bunch with both raisin berries from sunburn during last week’s heatwave, as well as uneven berry development.

Small unripe berries, premature raisin berries, rotten berries and MOG (matter other than grapes) such as leaves, small pieces of stem as well as a lot of pips, will be rejected during the berry sorting process. The toughest tannins come from the stems and pips, so quality of the resultant wine goes up! See Below.

Pinotage Reject Matter Harvest 2011

The automatic berry sorting machine will have to work hard and earn its keep this harvest. I am sure Susan and Ansone are both very happy that we have the Pellenc Selectiv in place to ensure that raisins and unripe, small berries do not make it into the winery! The quality improvement from the first full harvest using the automatic sorting machine in 2011 has been significant.

We have a few new cultivars and vineyards coming into production this harvest. The first Grenache Noir grapes from the 2.5Ha (6.25 acres) block planted on Vrede en Lust in 2009. The vineyard was planted in a sandy, old riverbed section of the farm, in order to help tame Grenache’s natural vigor. Excess vigor is bad for quality grape production. Susan and Ans will have new options with Grenache as cultivar.

The Grenache vineyard has established itself well and Etienne’s team have had to drop at least 50% of the first crop, in order to help protect the younger vines. We will harvest every second bunch for potential use as rosè component, leaving the other bunches to enjoy extra hang time for red wine production.

In Elgin we have the Merlot and Cabernet Franc blocks planted in 2008, now coming into first production. Both blocks are only 1Ha (2.5 acres) in extent and planted along the warmer, north facing Bokkeveldt Skalie (an ancient shale) slopes. The soils have a 70% gravel content, are very deep and it takes the vines longer establish themselves. Once their roots get down to rock beds with more water retention, they take off. We expect small maiden crops from both these blocks, similar to the maiden harvest of 1.5 tons Casey’s Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon last year.

I am very excited about the quality of the 4 barrels of Cabernet Sauvignon from the 2011 harvest. Bright red fruit, elegant, no green characters and very smooth tannins. If the Merlot and Cab Franc develop in similar style and quality, we will have some really exceptional grapes to work with in the cellar.

There has recently been a lot (two Grape blogs, Pendock, Eedes et al) written about the green character in some Cape Bordeaux style red wines, due to elevated levels of 2-methoxy-3-isobutylpyrazine (or IBMP),  resulting in Cabernet Sauvignon with an excessive ‘green’ character.

Hats off to Charles Hopkins from De Grendel for highlighting this important issue and also for giving the local wine press something really useful to write about. It is going to be interesting to see how winemakers tackle issue this harvest. I suspect lots of IBMP level tests running through the labs right now!

Looking out over the Casey's Ridge vineyard in Elgin towards the Palmiet river and Kogelberg mountains

While Elgin’s early acclaim has come from the high quality white wines from wineries like Paul Cluver and Iona, I suspect that in the medium term, the real game changers will come from Elgin red wines, especially where the right soils have been carefully matched to the correct grape cultivars, clones and rootstocks. Our near-neighbor Shannon, a bit higher up the Palmiet river, has already surprised wine critics internationally with their Mount Bullet Merlot.

The décor looked amazing, with detail in every bit.  The instant cameras on the tables ensured some great memories for the newlyweds and their guests as well.  We adored the couple’s fun loving sense of humour.  May the joy in their hearts and laughter on their lips remind them that this is a sign of a pretty good grasp of life.

Service Providers:

Florist & Décor: Leipzig

Catering: Vrede en Lust

The theme was cheese and wine, which blended well with the wine lands indeed.  Vrede and Lust wish Abigail and Gareth a prosperous future together, and may your love age like good wine.

Service Providers:

Photographer: Jan-Hendrik van der Westhuizen

DJ: Cape Town DJ’s

Florist: Leipzig

Lighting: Something Different

Bar: Urban Tonic

” A long marriage is two people trying to dance a duet and two solos at the same time.” 

~Anne Taylor Fleming

Here is to Leanne and Lynton, and may they never stop dancing to life’s harmonies.  It was a pleasure to host this lovely couple at Vrede and Lust.

Service Porividers:

Minister: Geoff Jamieson

Photographer: Gareth Hubbard

Videographer: KarenGermishuys

Florist: Heike le Cordeur

Music: Simply Strings, Me & Mr. Brown

A ribbon symbolized their union to one another, which was also resembled in their bold decor.   Vrede en Lust would like to send our best wishes and may their marriage always feel like that exhilarating first date.

Service Providers:

Florist/Decor: Michelle, Kaleidescope

Catering: Vrede en Lust

The diversity of their guests accentuated the crisp, fresh and vibrancy of their wedding.  The energy of this unforgettable couple shone through the colours on their special day and it was a day which would be remembered at Vrede en Lust for seasons to come.  We hope that Nonye and Tunji continue to spread their light wherever the road may take them.

Service providers:

Photographer: Henk Hatting

Catering: Vrede en Lust

Accomodation: Vrede en Lust

Natalie and Travis simbolized their love through white doves during the ceremony, which was also included in the décor.  This was a beautiful way in which to celebrate the serenity and faithfulness of love.

We at Vrede en Lust, want to wish Natalie and Travis a full and prosperous life together.
 

Service Providers:

Sound, lighting and DJ: Kilowatt AV

Décor: Hireworx

Photographer: Sarah Wood

Waiters: West Staff Services

Catering: Vrede en Lust