Vergelegen
Encyclopedia
Vergelegen is an historic wine estate near Somerset West, in the Western Cape
province of South Africa
.
. Van der Stel used the resources of his employer, the Dutch East India Company
, to improve the estate, and in 1706 a number of free burghers at the Cape drew up a formal memorandum complaining about van der Stel's illegal activities. This memorandum contains some of the earliest images and descriptions of the estate. As a consequence of the free burghers' complaints, van der Stel and other officials were sacked, and three-quarters of the original Vergelegen estate was sold off, drastically reducing the size of the property.
louse in the late nineteenth century wiped out most of Vergelegen's grape production.
Sir Lionel Phillips
In 1917 Vergelegen was purchased by the millionaire mine magnate Sir Lionel Phillips
as a present for his wife Florence. She remodeled aspects of the house and planted the magnificent gardens, but removed the few remaining acres dedicated to grapes.
blend Vergelegen, single-vineyard cabernet sauvignon
Vergelegen V and semillon
/sauvignon blanc
blend Vergelegen White regularly achieving a maximum five stars in John Platter's annual Guide to South African Wines.
house, gardens and winery are open to visitors. Interesting features of any visit include a trip up the mountain to the winery plant, and a walk under the vast Camphor laurels (Cinnamomum camphora) planted by Willem van der Stel in about 1705. The winery is uniquely shaped in an octagon form that is mirrored on the vineyard's labels.
Western Cape
The Western Cape is a province in the south west of South Africa. The capital is Cape Town. Prior to 1994, the region that now forms the Western Cape was part of the much larger Cape Province...
province of South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
.
Foundation
The estate was settled in 1700 by an early Governor of the Cape, Willem Adriaan van der StelWillem Adriaan van der Stel
Willem Adriaan van der Stel was appointed as extraordinary Council of the Dutch Indies, and Governor of the Cape Colony, a way station for the Dutch East India Company , from January 23, 1699 to 1707...
. Van der Stel used the resources of his employer, the Dutch East India Company
Dutch East India Company
The Dutch East India Company was a chartered company established in 1602, when the States-General of the Netherlands granted it a 21-year monopoly to carry out colonial activities in Asia...
, to improve the estate, and in 1706 a number of free burghers at the Cape drew up a formal memorandum complaining about van der Stel's illegal activities. This memorandum contains some of the earliest images and descriptions of the estate. As a consequence of the free burghers' complaints, van der Stel and other officials were sacked, and three-quarters of the original Vergelegen estate was sold off, drastically reducing the size of the property.
Vineyards
In 1798 the estate was sold to the Theunissen family, who planted extensive vineyards and concentrated on the production of grapes until an infestation by the phylloxeraPhylloxera
Grape phylloxera ; originally described in France as Phylloxera vastatrix; equated to the previously described Daktulosphaira vitifoliae, Phylloxera vitifoliae; commonly just called phylloxera is a pest of commercial grapevines worldwide, originally native to eastern North America...
louse in the late nineteenth century wiped out most of Vergelegen's grape production.
Sir Lionel PhillipsLionel PhillipsSir Lionel Phillips, 1st Baronet was a South African mining magnate and politician.-Early life:Phillips was born in London on 6 August 1855 to a family of lower middle-class merchants, who formed part of a growing group of Jews set to play a major role in the commerce and politics of...
In 1917 Vergelegen was purchased by the millionaire mine magnate Sir Lionel PhillipsLionel Phillips
Sir Lionel Phillips, 1st Baronet was a South African mining magnate and politician.-Early life:Phillips was born in London on 6 August 1855 to a family of lower middle-class merchants, who formed part of a growing group of Jews set to play a major role in the commerce and politics of...
as a present for his wife Florence. She remodeled aspects of the house and planted the magnificent gardens, but removed the few remaining acres dedicated to grapes.
'Punch' Barlow and Anglo-American
Following the death of Lady Phillips the estate was purchased by the Barlow family, and Charles 'Punch' Barlow oversaw the reintroduction of limited planting of grapes. However, by the time Anglo-American bought the property from Barlow's son in 1987, no grapes were being cultivated.Wine production
Anglo-American concentrated on the production of high-quality wines from Vergelegen. The first vintage under the company's stewardship was harvested in 1992. Within ten years the estate was recognised as producing some of South Africa's finest wines, with the cabernet sauvignonCabernet Sauvignon
Cabernet Sauvignon is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Canada's Okanagan Valley to Lebanon's Beqaa Valley...
blend Vergelegen, single-vineyard cabernet sauvignon
Cabernet Sauvignon
Cabernet Sauvignon is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Canada's Okanagan Valley to Lebanon's Beqaa Valley...
Vergelegen V and semillon
Sémillon
Sémillon is a golden-skinned grape used to make dry and sweet white wines, most notably in France and Australia.-History:The origin of the Sémillon grape is hard to determine. It is known that it first arrived in Australia in the early 19th century and by the 1820s the grape covered over 90 percent...
/sauvignon blanc
Sauvignon blanc
Sauvignon Blanc is a green-skinned grape variety which originates from the Bordeaux region of France. The grape most likely gets its name from the French word sauvage and blanc due to its early origins as an indigenous grape in South West France., a possible descendant of savagnin...
blend Vergelegen White regularly achieving a maximum five stars in John Platter's annual Guide to South African Wines.
The estate
Vergelegen's Cape DutchCape Dutch
Cape Dutch are people of the Western Cape of South Africa who descended primarily from Dutch and Flemish as well as smaller numbers of French, German and other European immigrants along with a percentage of their Asian and African slaves, who, from the 17th century into the 19th century, remained...
house, gardens and winery are open to visitors. Interesting features of any visit include a trip up the mountain to the winery plant, and a walk under the vast Camphor laurels (Cinnamomum camphora) planted by Willem van der Stel in about 1705. The winery is uniquely shaped in an octagon form that is mirrored on the vineyard's labels.
Some Awards
- Best Winery - Wine Magazine SA 2004-2006
- New World Winery of the Year - Wine Enthusiast Magazine USA 2005 & 2006
- Best overall performance - Old Mutual Trophy Wine Show SA 2002-2004 & 2006
- Vergelegen V 2001 - John Platter Guide 2005 (5 Stars); Selection Mondiales des Vins 2004 Grand Jury Prize for South Africa
- Vergelegen Red 2001 - Mondiale Bruxelles 2005 Gold; International Wine Challenge 2004 Bronze; Fairbairn Capital Trophy Wine Show 2003 Gold
Further reading
- WINE Magazine, South Africa Great interview with Andre van Rensburg about Vergelegen and in particular the current problems with viruses.