Spring has sprung, bringing with it long warm days, new life, and light! What’s not to love? As the temperature steadily rises and the rain clouds disappear, there are more than a few ways to celebrate the new season in the Winelands. Here’s a list of spring-inspired events, festivals, and workshops taking place in the Western Cape's Winelands this September and October where you can do just that.
Welcome spring with a family-friendly, open-air concert with lekker live music, picnic-style food, and delicious wine.
Diemersfontein invites you to join them at Piekniek Oppie Plaas at their scenic Wellington amphitheatre on Saturday 10 September. With performances by Ricus Nel and Ruan “Ruki” Theron; food stalls catering to a variety of tastes; and entertainment for young and old, you don’t want to miss this event!
Click HERE for more details.
Babylonstoren prides itself on the organic fruit and vegetables that abound in their gardens, and they are happy to share their experience with other garden lovers.
Join Brent Reid and Darryl Combrink, the Babylonstoren vegetable team, in the vegetable garden for their ‘Grow your own seasonal vegetables’ workshop. Here, they’ll demonstrate their top growing tips and tell you more about crop rotation, no-dig soil preparation, compost, mulches, propagation, and planting.
They’ll then set you up with the knowledge to plant sweet potatoes, carrots, beetroot, beans, eggplant, and fennel in your patch this season. You’ll also have the opportunity to sow some salad for your homeward trip, before sitting down to lunch, fresh from their garden.
Other upcoming workshops include ‘Japanese florals in the Winelands: a study in ikebana’, ‘Encounter the colourful world of clivias’, and ‘Discover the secret life of bees in spring’. Visit Babylonstoren’s website to find out more.
Click HERE for more details.
Head to Org de Rac for a joint celebration of Cap Classique and Heritage Day on Saturday 24 September 2022.
At Bubbles & Burgers, celebrate the best of South African Winelands culture with Org de Rac Le Verne MCC, braai burgers, live music, and kids entertainment. Org de Rac will also be open for wine sales. Party the Swartland way!
Click HERE for more details.
Chenin Blanc has made huge strides in quality and popularity over the last few years, with a passionate group of producers aiming for the stars.
The Celebrate Chenin! Festival, presented by Perdeberg Cellar, will share this passion with wine lovers, showing off styles from serious barrel fermented whites to easy-drinking, fruity summer wines to Cap Classique bubblies and dessert wines.
Approximately 20 wineries will offer their wines for tasting and for sale directly to visitors. Food trucks and live music will round off the experience.
Ticket sales will open closer to the date – watch this space!
Click HERE for more details.
Good food, great views, and amazing wines await you on 24 September at Laborie Estate in Paarl. And what better occasion to celebrate a South African cultivar than on Heritage Day?
Top Pinotage-producing wine farms from the Drakenstein region have been invited to celebrate this local cultivar at Laborie Estate. The participating wine farms are: Olsen Private Vineyards, Mellasat Vineyards, KWV, Perdeberg Cellar, Neil Joubert Wines, Windmeul Kelder, and Boland Kelder.
This exciting event will take place in The Avenue at Laborie Estate, overlooking the surrounding vineyards and mountains.There will be wine tasting, live music, and pop-up food stalls. Wines will also be available for purchase on the day.
Click HERE for more details.
Click HERE for more details.
You are invited to have a fun family day at Koelenhof Wine Cellar. They'll be hosting a KOEL day!
Click HERE for more details.
September is a special time at Warwick: their picnic season has begun with exciting new picnic menus, and they’re celebrating Heritage Day!
Visit Warwick Wine Estate and enjoy a limited edition heritage-themed picnic, including flame-grilled brisket and roosterkoeke baked over warm coals, available on Saturday (24 September) and Sunday (25 September).
They’ve got great food, stellar wine, and good vibes.
Click HERE for more details.
Summer’s winking, and with Heritage Day (24 September) on the horizon, the team at Nederburg’s The Manor restaurant has been hard at work conjuring up a feast of meat and sides to celebrate our national pastime - braai - all weekend long.
For R550 per couple, you the mouth-watering menu of a 500g grilled Tomahawk beef steak (to share); potato salad; bean salad; roosterkoek with butter preserves and cheese; and a delicious sweet finish of coconut koesisters. It comes perfectly paired with two glasses of our popular Double Barrel Reserve (a Cab-based blend).
Kids are welcome, and catered for in the form of boerie rolls, juices, cool drinks, milkshakes, and a jumping castle, in addition to an outdoor play area with jungle gym, zip line and more, on the lawn of the manor house.
Click HERE to book.
Horse lovers are invited to book for Avontuur's Foal Walk on their farm in Somerset West on 29 September.
After enjoying a glass of Avontuur Brut MCC as a welcome drink, guests will be taken on a guided tour to the stables. Here, they'll meander through the paddocks and visit some of the foals. After a casual walk back to the winery, guests will return to the tasting room for a specialised wine tasting and a light lunch.
Click HERE to book.
As spring settles in, break away for a fun weekend at the quaint village of Napier’s spring festival.
The annual Napier Wine & Patatfees Spring Festival promises to be an entertaining day of local wines, wholesome country cuisine (think soet patat and snoek), and outdoor events.
In addition, visitors can look forward to experiencing the usual favourite Patatfees activities such as the much-loved scarecrow competition, art exhibitions, music, markets, and much more.
Click HERE for more details.
Hendrik Fourie, resident fynbos and conservation expert at Bosman Hermanus, will take you on a fynbos journey through the farm on 6 October.
Hendrik will share his wealth of knowledge about foraging, endangered species, and the use of medicinal plants. The field trip will include advice on making cuttings and creating a fynbos garden.
Hendrik inspires us to live from the land and grow plants that belong in our unique and beautiful corner of the world. This workshop will take place on the morning of Thursday 6 October and guests will meet at The Frame House at Bosman Hermanus.
The workshop will be followed by a light lunch and a glass of wine or beverage of your choice.
Click HERE for more details.
One of the country’s most prominent garden lifestyle festivals returns after its inauguration last year. Stellenbosch once again pulls out the stops for gardeners and lovers of the great outdoors in a 10-day long festival that will transform its streets and surrounding countryside from 20 to 30 October.
Garden Town Stellenbosch, inspired by the world-famous flower festival of Girona, Spain, will encompass everything from horticultural tours to flower art; dining to hiking; and, guest garden specialists, all in a majestic setting. DIY vegetable gardening, wine tasting, painting, guided bird walks, wreath crafting, moss educationals, drawing with thread, honey sampling and much more – it’s all on the programme this year.
Click HERE for more details.
Did someone say Sauvignon Blanc and oysters? Well, D’Aria Winery is bringing family fun back to the Durbanville Wine Valley with the Sauvignon Blanc and Oyster Festival.
Taking place on 29-30 October, the festival’s a weekend of live music, award-winning wine, an oyster bar, great food, plenty of entertainment for the whole family, and more! Join D'Aria on their lawns as they celebrate their 15th anniversary in style with a wine festival like no other!
Click HERE for more details.
