Jean Daneel

His quiet, unobtrisive manner means Jean Daneel is equally at home in the wine fraternity or stalking game in the bush. The cellar is just one place where he is most comfortable. By Fiona McDonald.

 

One of the most recognisable faces in the local wine industry belongs to Jean Daneel. But in 1992 it was his prowess in the vineyards and cellar that garnered him recognition as the Diners Club Winemaker of the Year – specifically for the Buitenverwachting Merlot 1991.

“I remember that wine well because it was a blend of two Merlots I’d made. They were from two different vineyards with completely different soils – one was Hutton, the other decomposed granite.

“I have to give a lot of credit to an old friend who is now dead. I still recall Pieter du Toit of Groot Constantia and I arguing about this wine. We just couldn’t agree.

“The way the barrels were arranged in the cellar, there was one row from the one vineyard and a second row from the other.

“One Saturday afternoon we tasted every barrel – and we just couldn’t agree. He liked the wine from one row and I, of course, preferred a wine from the other. We argued backwards and forwards before we said ‘let’s just throw the two together!’ And that’s the wine that won!”

Jean’s real education in wine started in Germany simply because the facilities didn’t exist in South Africa.

He’d gone on to Elsenburg from Paarl Boys High but the only study options available were viticulture or pomology – the study of fruit.

During his three-and-a-half year stint in Germany there were numerous trips to France to taste and try and acquire knowledge.

“I remember going to the Médoc but the winemakers were very unfriendly in those days. They wouldn’t tell you anything. “I found the people in St Emilion and Pomerol far more approachable and willing to share their knowledge and that’s possibly why I’ve always had a feel for Merlot rather than Cabernet.”

Upon his return he did the rounds of KWV, Distillers Corporation and Stellenbosch Farmers’ Winery – only to be told he was overqualified.

“Simonsig took me in and I’m very proud to say that I was a scholar of Frans Malan.”

But after a year Jean felt a little insecure, stating that he didn’t have enough experience, so he went back to Germany.

While there he was asked to help start up a business in South Africa.

“It was a company doing filtering. Then the Buitenverwachting project came up in 1983 and I got involved.”

Jean modestly skates over his involvement in what was obviously a mammoth exercise – from designing and building a cellar from scratch, to uprooting and replanting the Constantia farm.

And 1985 was when the project bore fruit.

“We had to put something on the market.”

That something was the phenomenally successful Buiten Blanc that Jean admits he blended in the dunes of the Kalahari.

“I put the various wines in a box and headed out into the desert. Our ad agency had also given me a list of names. So I did my blends in the dunes – had a lot of time and a nice clean atmosphere. I also liked the name.
“But Constantia as a region has a huge quality factor – the wines virtually make themselves. There’s a wonderfully cool climate, good water in the ground and I remember that Constantia gives nice acidity. I never used to acidify at Buitenverwachting.”

The same year he was crowned Diners Club champion he moved to Morgenhof.

“There’s an old saying that my knowledge and your money can work well together! That was the case at Morgenhof.”

The Huchons were prepared to invest in Morgenhof in a big way, to get involved in the South African wine scene. Behind it all was their belief that Morgenhof would be recognised for quality.

“They asked me how long I thought it would take. I said 10 years – and it took five.”

“Morgenhof had some good wines – it was just a matter of getting things in order.

And what of the future?

“I’m a traditionalist. You go to Europe and you see a family working a wine farm together. The grandfather tasting wines during racking and so forth. I wanted to be able to give my sons something.”

That “something” is Jean Daneel wines – made on a Franschhoek property belonging to a long time friend, Gert Grobe.

“My goal is to try and source the best grapes available, to vinify them separately and make the best wine possible. I want to make one great white and one great red.

“These two wines will be the only ones marketed under the Jean Daneel label. But I understand that people want affordable wines, so that’s why I’ll have a second tier range – the JD wines.”

It may appear ironic that this lover of animals is also a hunter of note – always for the pot.

But the interesting thing is that he has been bow hunting for the past 15 years.

Ag, I used to have all the rifles with the telescopic sights and then switched to bow hunting. It was more of a challenge. But there again I have gone from having the latest hunting bow with sights and everything. Now I hunt with an English bow – like Robin Hood used to have!”

Under pressure he concedes that he often hunts for a week without shooting anything. That’s no reflection on his skill, simply his appreciation for nature. He talks passionately about stalking animals, walking through the bush and looking around, noticing the birds and even bugs.

“I’ve got this camouflage suit from America that makes me blend right into the bush. It’s amazing to see how close you can get to the animals. I once came within 5m of a little duiker before he realised I was there. But he couldn’t figure out what the threat was. He stamped his little hooves and bobbed his horns a bit but that was beautiful. That’s what it’s all about for me.”

He has even refined his method of getting out into the bush. Gone is the 4x4, and walking takes too long, so it’s a mountain bike with a difference.

“I’ve got it set up to carry my bow and everything. It’s fantastic and it works so well.”