A day trip to the Durbanville Wine Valley
Sometimes dismissed as playing second fiddle to the Stellenbosch and Franschhoek wine route, a day trip to the Durbanville Hills, the unassuming La Provence of Cape Town, will pleasantly surprise you.
Directions – From Cape Town city centre, you’ll need to get onto the N1 headed north toward Paarl. Take the Willie Van Schoor Avenue exit and turn left. Follow the road until just before Tygervalley Shopping Centre and take a left into Old Oak, which will lead you to Tygerbergvalley Road, where you’ll need to take a right turn. Continue on Tygerbergvalley Road to just beyond the residential area on your left hand side until you see a farm road (also on the left hand side) – turn onto the farm Road and allow the signs to lead you to Pampoenkraal. [Travel Time: approximately 20 minutes]
Having arrived at Pampoenkraal, you’ll notice something strange – absolute silence! The wholesome countryside kind.
You are now miles away from the boisterous bergies, the blaring horns and the general hullabaloo of Cape Town.
Confused as to why this is the recommended starting point for a Durbanville Day Trip?
Pampoenkraal is generally considered (albeit half heartedly disputed) the birth name of Durbanville. Like many historical truths, this fact cannot be proven beyond a doubt but there’ll be no doubt that you have arrived in the heartland of Durbanville .
Pampoenkraal the venue, on the other hand, although authentically Durbanvillian, has a distinctly African feel. Close enough to civilization to be easily accessible yet natural enough to take you back to a bygone Africa, this is the idyllic setting for a gourmet infused special occasion. For those scouting function venues for upcoming nuptials, Pampoenkraal comes highly recommended.
Directions: Return to Tygerbergvalley Road and proceed until you encounter a majestic lane of colossal oak trees.
Dubbed the “Gateway to our Valley,” this lane of century old oak trees is not just an entrance to the illustrious Altydgedacht Winery, but a portal through time.
Five generations of the Parker family have nurtured the historically rich vineyard into the successful winery it is today (harvesting an average of 130 tons of grapes per annum).
As much as Altydgedacht has prospered, it has clung to much of its history. You can still find a three hundred year old cellar building and its matching slave bell on the grounds. Fun as it will be to ring the slave bell; it’s much more likely to get you escorted off Altydgedacht than produce a team of slaves. Rather avoid the trouble and enjoy a picnic basket or seasonal platter on the farm, sampling some of the estate’s aromatic wines. Mind you don’t have more than your legal share, this is only the first of three wine stops on this particular Day Trip.
Directions: Having completed your stop at Altydgedacht, progress further down Tygerbergvalley Road until you approach the T-Junction. Turn left onto the M13 and follow the winding road, enjoying vistas of grape clad hills until you reach D’Aria. Turn left through the D’Aria gates and enter this beautiful estate.
After a stop here, many return for a weekend to enjoy the award winning wines born from the D’Aria vineyards and to sleep over in the opulent four star cottages.
This means a bottomless supply of wine, enjoyed without the hindrance of having to drive afterwards.
D’Aria’s increasingly popular Poplars Restaurant is an attraction all of its own, boasting sensually scintillating cuisine that has added another award to D’Aria’s prestigious mantelpiece.
Quoted as a “benchmark Semillon producer,” Nitida is perhaps the most unconventional of the three wine farm stops. With wines infused with Arabica coffee, crème caramel, lemongrass, frangipani, rich cocoa and sandalwood flavours, it’s not hard to see how Nitida is blowing a little dust off the industry. Nitida itself is host to an occasional farmer’s market that makes the trip to Durbanville very worthwhile.
And so concludes the wine farm leg of the trip. Vino enthusiasts please beware, trips around the Durbanville Hills should be arranged beforehand, as some estates only host tours at certain times of the day. If you’d like to catch the Nitida market, please ensure that you book your trip in advance. Teetotallers and culture vultures alike will be happy to know that from here on out forthcoming attractions do not involve the swirling of a wine glass. If that tickles your fancy, read on.
Directions: After your stop at Nitida, head back onto the M13 and then in a southeast direction until you can take a left into St John road. Head down to the roundabout and take the first exit onto Visserhok Road….
….to behold one of Durbanville’s best kept secrets: Clara Anna Fontein, Durbanville’s own nature reserve.
Here you can enjoy unadulterated bushveld views on one of Clara Anna Fontein’s pleasant game drives. Blue wildebeest, kudu, ostrich, zebra and numerous species of buck roam the plains of this quaint little reserve. It’s also one of the spots that might prompt a return trip. The bonfire and luxury tents in the Clara Anna Fontein Forest are experiences that shouldn’t be missed.
Directions: Backtrack to Durbanville Town (via the M13) for two last stops to complete the journey.
Rust en Vrede on Ten Wellington Street is the penultimate stop of ShowMe’s Durbanville day trip. Built in the early 1800’s, this building, in contrast to its name has been anything but peaceful. It formed an integral part of Durbanville’s development and has, through the years, been subject to many different uses. Strange to think that what is now a pristine art gallery and Clay Museum used to be a prison back in the day. The building is classified as a National Heritage site and serves a dazzling dose of culture in the heart of Durbanville Town.
Last but not least is an apt way of describing your last stop.
The two hundred year old Onze Molen Windmill is one of the only two antique windmills still standing in the Western Cape. It was built by Johannes Jacobus Uys on a property that he procured in 1908. In its time Onze Molen has known abandon and dereliction but has thankfully been restored to its original impressive form