Anniversaries
Often the easiest to plan, because you already know what you both like. Tell me the year and what you drank at the wedding — if it is still being made anywhere in these valleys, I will find it.
06 — For two
A day built
for two.
Why two is different
The easiest day
to get right
Two people is the smallest group I take and, honestly, the one I can build the best day for. There is no committee to satisfy, no compromise between what one person wants and what another will tolerate. The whole day can be pointed at exactly what the two of you like.
- 01
Estates chosen for the setting, not just the wine
On this kind of day I pick for gardens, long views, and tasting rooms that are not full at midday. Some of the most famous estates are the worst choice for it, and I will say so.
- 02
Two estates slowly beats three in a hurry
Most days run to three. For two people I would often rather drop one and let you sit longer where you are happy. You are not being moved along a schedule.
- 03
The lunch is the middle of the day, not a break in it
A long table, a view, and no reason to leave it. Tell me what you want the meal to be — a proper kitchen, something simple under trees — and I route the day around the booking.
- 04
Occasions arranged with the estate in advance
Anniversary, honeymoon, birthday, or a proposal. I arrange it directly with the estate — a table away from the tasting room, a quiet corner, the timing held until you are ready.
A day for two
Slower than the usual day
This is the rhythm I would suggest, not a schedule you have to keep. The whole point of two people is that the day can move at whatever pace suits you.
09:30
Collection from your door
From Cape Town, the Atlantic seaboard, or anywhere in the Winelands — 10:30 if you are already staying in the valley and would rather not rush the morning.
10:45
The first estate, before the crowd
Somewhere quiet to start. A cellar walk and a guided tasting with time to actually talk, usually with someone from the farm.
12:45
A long lunch
The centre of the day. Booked in advance around what you told me you wanted from it, with a table worth sitting at for two hours.
15:00
The second estate, chosen on the day
By now I know what you have both reached for twice, and I can pick accordingly. If you would rather stay where you are, we stay.
17:00
Late light, if the season allows
From November to March there is enough day left to finish on a terrace with the sun going down behind the mountains. In winter we start earlier and end beside a fire instead.
18:00
Home, unhurried
Back to the same door, with notes on everything you liked and whatever you could not leave behind in the boot.
Occasions
If the day is marking something
Tell me when you book, not on the morning. Estates are generous with this sort of thing when they have notice and hopeless when they do not, and the difference is usually a week.
Honeymoons
Usually the slowest day I run, and it should be. Most honeymoon couples have been on a schedule for a week by the time they reach the Winelands and want a day with nothing in it.
Proposals
Weeks of notice, please. I arrange the spot with the estate directly and hold the timing until you signal — a table off the tasting room, a corner of a garden, whatever suits the two of you. I will tell you honestly which estate fits what you are imagining.
Birthdays
A vertical of the birth year where an estate still has the library stock, if that appeals. Not every farm can, but enough of them can that it is worth asking.
The Cape Winelands
Somewhere worth
staying a while
Mountains on three sides, vines to the fence line, and lunch that lasts as long as you let it.
Is a private wine tour for two more expensive per person? +
No. The rate is R2 950 per person whether there are two of you or ten. Two guests is the smallest group I run, and it is also the easiest day to build, because there is no compromise between one person's taste and another's.
Can you help with a proposal? +
Yes, and I would rather know weeks ahead than on the morning. I arrange the moment with the estate directly: a table away from the tasting room, a quiet corner of the garden, the timing held until you are ready. Tell me what you have in mind and I will tell you honestly which estate suits it.
Which estates are best for a romantic day? +
The ones with room to sit still. I choose for setting as much as for the wine on this kind of day — gardens, long views, tasting rooms that are not full at midday. Some of the best-known estates are the worst choice for it.
Can we finish the day at sunset? +
In summer, yes. From November to March the light lasts long enough to end on a terrace with the sun going down behind the mountains. In winter the day ends earlier, so we start earlier and finish with a fire lit instead.
Can you arrange flowers, a cake, or a special table? +
Most estates will, with notice, and anything charged by the restaurant is added to your bill rather than marked up by me. Tell me a week ahead where possible so the estate has time to say yes.
How long is the day, and how many estates? +
Five to seven hours, and usually three estates — but for two people I would rather do two estates slowly than three in a hurry. The lunch is the centre of the day and it is not rushed.
Do you pick up from Cape Town? +
Yes, door to door, and it is included. Pick-up from Cape Town is usually around 09:30, or 10:30 if you are already staying in the Winelands.
Not sure which valley
Stellenbosch or Franschhoek?
For a day like this the valley matters more than usual, because you are choosing a setting as much as a set of estates. Franschhoek is the more dramatic of the two and has the better restaurants; Stellenbosch has more room to find somewhere quiet. I have written up how I help people choose, or you can simply tell me what you are imagining and let me pick.