Wine collectors' cellar
Having met Sean Stewart and his equally passionate ‘wine-ista’ wife, Anne, at several wine tastings in the past, I was eager to make a voyage to their home cellar in Grootvaly, Springs. The couple are from lighting and pharmaceutical backgrounds, and wine does not feature in their working days, but it definitely appears to take up a lot of their recreation time.
I took a trip out to Gauteng’s East Rand on a lovely sunny winter’s morning and wound my way to their welcoming home. The house is an entertainer’s dream, with a large, leafy back garden, sparkling pool, thatched gazebo with a large fireplace/ braai area and, barely a few steps away... you guessed it... an underground cellar. “We went underground because we.thought.that was generally where cellars.should be,” says Sean.
Sean’s parents used to live in the house and he and his dad virtually built most of the cellar themselves in 1981. The date is definite as there is a visitors’ book in the cellar that has been signed by each and every guest who has ever enjoyed a bottle of wine with them there, including my own name now. “It’s a nice way of remembering who has been to the cellar and what we drank or what happened when they were here,” says Anne. “We also then know where to send the account,” jokes Sean.
The decision to build it adjacent to the outdoor entertainment area was an obvious one, since they always enjoy a bottle of wine when entertaining and while getting the fire going for the braai.
In order to build the cellar, they had to get contractors to excavate the ground and secure the floor and walls. The biggest challenge was the roof. The roof structure has been made by interlocking three concrete slats that had to be certified by an engineer. Winding concrete stairs lead you down to the cellar, which has been left in an ‘old world’ bare state with a raw concrete floor, and brick and concrete plaster on the walls, all four of which are lined with wooden wine racks for the utmost utilisation of space. All the racks were chosen and fitted by Sean, with two of the racks allowing for placement of individual bottles and the others larger squares (which unfortunately prevents you from being able to see the individual labels). They have also placed a wooden table, scarred with memories, with two wooden benches comfortably seating six, for people to celebrate and socialise in the space.
Both Sean and Anne believe it would be easy for anyone else to recreate their cellar. Underground is not necessary, but it certainly creates a lovely atmosphere and vibe and there is always a joke about getting back up the stairs as you get older..The cellar is not a small one, with the capacity to hold about 2 000 bottles of wine, but it is only about 50% full at this stage. Due to the fact that it is built below ground, the cellar is quite damp, so there is no need for a humidifier of any sort. “The damp is certainly an advantage for our wines as they seem to last a lot longer in these conditions than many of our friends’ wines, and we virtually never have a wine that has oxidised,” comments Anne. They recognised the need for a good air-conditioner, having chosen a Recam International unit from the outset; though they describe it as a “total overkill for our room”, they have managed to retain the same unit since the cellar was built, which keeps the temperature at 13°.
At the outset of their journey into wine, they belonged to the Wine-of-the-Month Club, to help expose them to wines that they had not tasted before. Now they have taken their training wheels off and feel more confident choosing their own wines. “Initially we used to buy wine based on big brands, but now we like smaller boutique wines as well.” The couple belong to a wine club, officially known as The Grape Vine, but more frequently referred to as The Guzzlers. The club gets together on a monthly basis, with the host selecting a theme. The last one they hosted themselves was over the World Cup, when they did a food-and-wine pairing of Spanish, Mexican, French, German, Italian and traditional South African styles.
Unfortunately Sean and Anne don’t get to the Western Cape regularly but when they do they always ensure a visit to a few estates there. They find it difficult to get to more than three estates a day, with their last trip including visits to Glenelly, Rustenberg and Tokara. They enjoy atten ding tastings hosted by various wine estates and are listed on several mailing lists, thus getting to hear about specials and the latest industry news and wine releases, including subscribing to Wine magazine. They enjoy buying six-bottle cases, especially if they have not tasted the wine before, as 12 bottles is a much larger investment.
Sean doesn’t keep a cataloguing system of any sort, so many of the wines in the cellar turn out to be a surprise to them too! They do have a general idea of what is stocked where and try to drink the older wines first. “The idea of having your own cellar means you can plan what you drink – this is the ideal, but we don’t really practise it,” reveals Sean. “Choosing the wine is half the adventure; it makes the experience that much more interesting. When we bring guests downstairs, we play a game with the corkscrew. I open the first bottle and pass it on; by the time the first bottle is finished the person with the corkscrew must have chosen and opened the second one. And so we go.”
There are some amazing gems in this cellar – though the couple admit they will.probably not drink them – from strawberry wine made by Sean’s parents from strawberries picked in their own garden, to incredible collector’s pieces.
The latter include: 1930 KWV Muscadel; 1967 Alto Cabernet Sauvignon; 1969 Rustenberg Cabernet Sauvignon; 1983 L’Ormarins Bukettraube; 1986 Fleur de.Cap – an oak collection with each bottle having been aged in a different oak – Spanish, American and several different types of French; 1980 to 1985 Chateau Libertas; and 1988 Vriesenhof Chardonnay – 750ml, 1£ and 3£.
They also showed me an incredible bottle, received as a gift in 2002, which had a note taped around it: “Sean, you can store this till 2014, then invite Alf and I to enjoy it with you. We will be there with our walking sticks, but we will be there.”
Neither of them will say no to a lovely Cap Classique, but when asked to pick her personal favourites, Anne pulled out and opened a bottle of 1984 Uitkyk Carlonet Cabernet Sauvignon. Sean bought this wine for her many years ago and she has loved it ever since. She also has a treasured 1993 Dom Pérignon that she received when she graduated with her MBA. Sean’s favourites tend towards some weighty reds. He enjoys oldies such as Rustenberg and Rust en Vrede, along with more recent selections of Mont du Toit, Glenelly, The High Road, Raka, De.Grendel and Sterhuis.
FOR MORE TIPS
• A good air-conditioning unit is essential to ensure the wines are stored properly and will age well.
• Buy wines that you enjoy as price is not always indicative of the contents.
• Taste as many different wines as you can to determine your favourites.
