One of my many pre-booked activities for the recent Robertson Slow Festival was the Mystery Chardonnay tasting at De Wetshof. This was my first visit to the estate and on driving up towards the beautifully impressive tasting room I wondered why. These guys are one of the few 3rd generation operations in South Africa and have a reputation for producing exceptional Chard's.
Johann De Wet opened the huge solid doors for us and we entered a reception room that was warmed gingerly by a wood-fire and generously by a hospitality that you'd expect at a mates home. We learnt about the variety of soils on the farm, from clay to rock, and how this is uniquely expressed through the wine. We learnt about the importance of cellaring, enhancing the natural characteristics of the grapes but not being too pushy with wood. Most of all we learnt about the families passion for their land and how it comes to life in each and every bottle.
I was blown away with the whole thing and that was before I encountered the 1993 Finesse. Eish!
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