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TThe Durbanville Wine Valley, right on Cape Town’s doorstep, is a world away from the bustle and traffic of the city. In-the-know Capetonian wine lovers are content to let others programme their GPS systems for a long-haul winelands road-trip elsewhere, while they nip next door to Durbanville for good food, ocean views, benchmark Sauvignons, and picturesque vineyards.
The Durbanville Wine Valley was established in 2004, but some families on this Cape Town wine route have been making wine for six generations.
Durbanville, a ward of the Tygerberg wine district, was awarded Wine of Origin status in 1989. Wineries range from boutique, small-yield estates to large-scale farms harvesting 6 000 tons per annum. With its vineyards on average just 12km from the chilly Atlantic Ocean, Durbanville is one of the Cape’s coolest coastal wine areas.
Vines are exposed to moisturising seasonal coastal mists that combine with cooling southeaster breezes from False Bay, slowing the pace at which the grapes ripen in the hot ‘Mediterranean climate’ summers of this region. Shale-derived, deep, well-drained soils capture generous winter rainfall. This climate and geology give Durbanville’s winegrowers the flexibility to produce an array of cool-climate New World wines.
Durbanville’s most planted cultivars are Sauvignon Blanc followed by Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Shiraz and Chardonnay. Winemakers at Durbanville wine farms are also experimenting with lesser-known cultivars like Pinot Gris, Barbera, Pinot Noir and Semillon.
Sauvignon Blanc, Durbanville’s signature wine, is produced in a variety of styles, both wooded and unwooded, and is made by all 12 member wineries of the Durbanville Wine Valley.
If you’ve only a day to explore, head up or down the M13 Tygerbergvalley Road, where you’ll find several Durbanville wine estates – including Durbanville Hills, Hillcrest, Nitida, Bloemendal, D’Aria, and Altydgedacht – within easy reach.
If you’ve a little more time, discover Durbanville’s scenic back roads. Visit De Grendel on the M14, follow the Vissershoek Road (M48) to the historic cellars of Meerendal, and don’t miss Diemersdal, off the M58, on the Koeberg/Adderley Road.
For oenophiles looking for award-winning wines with serious cellar potential and families seeking a country escape alike, nearby Durbanville Wine Valley is one of Cape Town’s coolest wine routes in every sense.
Did You Know?
TTravel tips & Planning info
Who to contact
Durbanville Wine Valley Association
E-mail: info@durbanvillewine.co.za
How to get here
From Cape Town, head north towards Paarl on the N1. Take exit 23 and drive along Durban Road (R302) past Tygervalley Centre until you reach the centre of Durbanville. Drive through town until you reach the first traffic circle. Take the third road leading out of the circle onto Wellington Rd (R302) and continue through town following the Klipheuwels Rd (R302). The first Durbanville Wine estate, Groot Phesantekraal, will be on your left.
Best time to visit
The Durbanville Wine Valley is most picturesque in late spring and summer, from October to February.
Around the area
Bird-watch at the Durbanville Nature Reserve, take a stroll in the Durbanville Rose Garden, play a round at the Durbanville Golf Course, place a bet at the Durbanville Racecourse, spot some game at the Clara Anna Fontein Game Reserve, fish and hike at Hillcrest, or ride a mountain bike along one of the many trails in this area.
Get around
Hire your own car in Cape Town. Tour operator services may be booked from Cape Town or Durbanville.
Length of stay
You can zip through the Durbanville Wine Valley in a day, but it’s also a great tour on which to while away a weekend.
Where to stay
Cape Town, Tyger Valley or Durbanville central. Along the wine route, there are Cape Dutch cottages at Welbeloond and 4-star cottages at D’Aria, among others. The Protea Hotel Vineyards Estate is Durbanville’s newest hotel.
What to eat
Several wine estates have restaurants offering a range of options, from contemporary Cape cuisine to country comfort food and fine dining. The restaurant at Durbanville Hills Cellars and Cassia Restaurant on Nitida Wine Estate have superb food, wine and views.
What's happening
The Feast of the Grape harvest festival is in March, the ‘Soup, Sip and Bread’ winter weekend is in June, and the Season of Sauvignon showcase is in October.
Best buys
Wines, fresh produce from Nitida’s Farmers’ Market (the last Saturday of every month), olive oil from Hillcrest and deli products from Meerendal.
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