Kloovenburg tasting room review
Grapes and Olives
Relatively new to the business of wine, Kloovenburg Vineyards celebrated a decade of winemaking last year. Not that the Du Toits need any introduction: theirs is a famous name in the Swartland valley. Kloovenburg was previously owned by Piet "Spiere" (Muscles) du Toit, a Springbok rugby player in the '60s. Today it is headed by son Pieter and his wife, Annalene, with much made of how their boisterous four young boys also help out in the vineyards and cellar.
From the turn-off at the whitewashed entrance, there is an air of affluence. A well-kept garden boasting agapanthus and lush greens lines the short paved road up to the tasting room, where enormous oak trees cast cool shadows over the parking area.
There is wheelchair access to the tasting room, but bathrooms are tucked away in the garden on a slight incline, which makes use difficult. The tasting room reflects the familial pride of the Du Toits. Big family pictures and granddad's rugby jerseys enjoy prominence over framed wine awards that are somewhat hidden behind a row of barrels... Also more prominent than the wine awards are the glass-eyed zebra, kudu, warthog and impala heads above the entrance - hunting mementos I don't fully appreciate.
Megan, the tasting room attendant, tends to me in a most nominal way. After she has poured two wines without offering any background information, I start to quiz her and she responds with some basic information. However, when pushed for more knowledge on the White from Red Shiraz 2008, she hastily admits to being a student who only helps out on weekends and "not the winemaker".
Not that I mistook her for such. Her reaction puts me off , and for the remainder of the tasting there is not a single smile from her. I opt to move away from the counter and peruse the rest of the tasting room where Annalene's award-winning olive products are on display. Everything from cosmetics to consumables is made from this fruit, and the success of this leg of the business is unmistakeable - last year Kloovenburg's olive oil was voted best in South Africa by a WINE magazine tasting panel.
While the wines largely fail to impress, the olive products are enticing. It seems to me that many people come here primarily to buy olive products, and only taste the wines as a secondary consideration - which would make this an olive tasting and not a wine tasting, wouldn't it?
Tel 022 448 1635
OPEN: Mon - Fri 09:00 - 16:30,
Sat 09:00 - 14:00
SERVICE: 3/10 - sorry to bother...
AMBIENCE: 8/10 - a lot of thought
has gone into the room to give it
a distinct character
VALUE: 5/10 - wines are relatively
expensive for what you get
QUALITY: 5/10 - go for the
olive products
Photographs by Danie Nel
