- JUST OUTSIDE WELLINGTON, LOVELY VIEWS AND GOOD WINE!
A friend told us we had to taste the Welbedacht Hat Trick next time we were there because it really is quite impressive! And so I made sure to pop into the tasting room.
Welbedacht is home to Welbedacht, Schalk Burger & Sons and Meerkat wines. The tasting room is small, but you can always ask to sit on the tables outside, or even buy a bottle and go lounge on the grass. The views are beautiful overlooking the dam and across the valley.
The rugby paraphernalia adorning the tasting room walls is also a nice personal touch and a little insight into the family history of the farm owners and their rugby achievements.
The next time we visited the farm was actually to watch some rugby on a big screen in the No.6 restaurant with boerewors rolls, wine & beer. (No. 6 restaurant is closed now for the winter months and should be opening again sometime in August, I think) . So, while we were there, I quickly hopped across to the tasting room, during the half time of the British Lions game, to taste the Welbedacht Hat Trick and Cricket Pitch wines. I must say, I was quite impressed!
Most of the Welbedacht wines, I read later, actually have 4 stars in the John Platter guide.
The Welbedacht Hat Trick 2007 is a Cape Blend (I was surprised that I hadn't heard of this more often living in the Cape, but I don't think it is a very common blend). This blend is made up of 50% Pinotage, 35% Grenache and 15% Merlot. It is a lovely smooth blend with the berries in the Merlot perfectly complimenting the bitter choc and coffee of the Pinotage. Very enjoyable.
The Welbedacht Cricket Pitch 2008 is a typical Bordeaux style blend with 45% Cab Sav, 40% Merlot, 11% Cab Franc and 4% Syrah which gives that tiny bit of extra smokiness to the wine. Also a smooth, very good blend, although you can distinctly taste the Cab Sav influence and flavours compared to the Cape blend above.
The farm actually has a cricket pitch behind the winery, which is regularly used and from where the name of this wine comes.
Both wines are older vintages and therefore smoother having aged somewhat. Having said that, now is probably the perfect time to be drinking these wines. Both of these wines are very good and reasonably priced at R155. We took a bottle of the Hat Trick home with us that day.
I will definitely be back again to taste some of the other Welbedacht wines, probably again during a half time of a rugby game.
Their Meerkat second tier range is not a favourite of mine, I have previously tasted the Sav Blanc and Chenin Blancs. While it might be good value and reasonably priced easy drinking wines, are don't find them so enjoyable - a personal preference.
Welbedacht Farm, Wellington
Follow the signs from the R44 as you leave Wellington towards Tulbagh / Riebeck Kasteel
021 873 1877
Labels: Farms, Schalk Burger and Sons, Welbedacht
A friend told us we had to taste the Welbedacht Hat Trick next time we were there because it really is quite impressive! And so I made sure to pop into the tasting room.
The Welbedacht Hat Trick 2007 is a Cape Blend (I was surprised that I hadn't heard of this more often living in the Cape, but I don't think it is a very common blend). This blend is made up of 50% Pinotage, 35% Grenache and 15% Merlot. It is a lovely smooth blend with the berries in the Merlot perfectly complimenting the bitter choc and coffee of the Pinotage. Very enjoyable.
The Welbedacht Cricket Pitch 2008 is a typical Bordeaux style blend with 45% Cab Sav, 40% Merlot, 11% Cab Franc and 4% Syrah which gives that tiny bit of extra smokiness to the wine. Also a smooth, very good blend, although you can distinctly taste the Cab Sav influence and flavours compared to the Cape blend above. 