Delaire Winery

Our history dates back to1688 when the French Huguenots arrived in the cape.

Description

From their early trek over the dangerous mountain of the Helshoogte Pass, (meaning Hell of a Height) and into a dark and scary valley now known as "Banhoek" they formed the town of Franschhoek, "Corner of France".

Delaire, noted for its high altitude vineyards, excellent soils and cooling sea breezes, is situated on a slope that runs down from a mountain peak, named Botmaskop the crest of the panoramic Helshoogte Mountain Pass.

This peak of the Helshoogte Pass was their lookout point for ships entering Cape Town Harbour. The Sentry would then signal the settlers in Franschhoek of the ships arrival and they would be able to cart their produce to the harbour.

This look out point became known as "Botmans Kop" which refers to Boatman's Head, (Lookout point for the boats.) One of our flagship wines, a Cabernet Sauvignon, carries the Botmaskop name. The French Settlers brought with them a sound knowledge of viticulture and the art of wine making.

Our history begins in 1688 when the French Huguenots arrived in the cape. Taking up the Dutch East India Company's offer of land, some of these Huguenots were situated in a land so remote that the Migrating Elephants were the first to cross the mountain.

From their early trek over the dangerous mountain of the Helshoogte Pass, (meaning Hell of a Height) and into a dark and scary valley now known as "Banhoek" they formed the town of Franschhoek, & "Corner of France".

Delaire Graff Estate is situated on a slope that runs down from a mountain peak on the farm, named Botmaskop.
This peak of the Helshoogte Pass was their lookout point for ships entering Cape Town Harbour. The Sentry would then signal the settlers in Franschhoek of the ships arrival and they would be able to cart their produce to the harbour.
This look out point became known as "Botmans Kop" which refers to "Boatman's Head", (Lookout point for the boats.)
One of our flagship wines, a Cabernet Sauvignon, carries the Botmaskop name.

The French Settlers brought with them a sound knowledge of viticulture and the art of wine making. Delaire Graff Estate is situated at the crest of the Helshoogte Mountain Pass overlooking the stunning Banhoek Valley framed by the Simonsberg and Groot Drakenstein Mountain Ranges.

In 1982 John Platter, well known wine writer and maker, bought the farm, then known as Avontuur, from Cape Town architect, Gilbert Colyn. Looking at the magnificent view, John and Erica decided to rename the farm to Delaire Estate, meaning "From the Sky".

Delaire Graff Estate changed ownership twice after John Platter sold the property in 1987. Laurence Graff, purveyor of fine jewels and owner of Graff Diamonds acquired the property in November 2003 and plans to develop the growth potential of every aspect of Delaire Graff Estate's operations.

THE VINEYARDS
This 44 hectare vineyard of which 22 hectares are under vines with its rugged mountain slopes, experiences variances in altitude which range from approximately 300 to 500 m above sea level. This creates microclimates which are conducive to making multilayered, complex wines. We farm with nature as our partner and here on Delaire Graff Estate we are blessed with deep dark rich soils with excellent water holding capacity.

PHILOSOPHY
Delaire Graff Estate aims for red wines that are big in structure, with soft tannins and elegance whilst the white wines must capture the freshness of the harvest. "With our terroir, the long cool winters, and a slow ripening season we are text book material for world class wines. However, in order to pick at optimum ripeness, here in the Banhoek Valley, a certain amount of courage is called for as we can have to wait for up to three weeks after our Stellenbosch neighbours have picked, for our grapes to ripen... the suspense is killing!!"

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