Sydney and I arrived in Stellenbosch on our fourth night in Cape Town. We were staying at an Airbnb in town, and our host’s name was Walter. Walter greeted us with glasses of wine, which is appropriate seeing that Stellenbosch is South Africa’s wine region! We were so excited to visit wineries the next day and fell asleep soon after we arrived.
The next morning, Walter made a huge breakfast for us in his adorable home. We were well fueled to start our wine-filled day. I was bummed that the weather wasn’t cooperating; it was chilly and rainy all day. I had been really excited to see the beautiful vineyards with mountainous backdrops, but the clouds and rain prevented that from happening. Luckily, our only planned activities for the day were sitting inside and drinking wine so the rain didn’t spoil our day too much. Best of all, most of the wineries had huge fireplaces we could sit next to and warm up!
Delaire Graff Estate
Our first stop was the luxurious Delaire Graff Estate. We felt underdressed when we walked in and worried we wouldn’t be able to afford a wine tasting here. However, it was reasonably priced and the employees made us feel very welcome. Our waiter informed us that the white wines here are delicious, so I tried their three best whites. I was not disappointed. I ended up buying a bottle to take home. The atmosphere at this winery was my favorite of the three we visited this day, especially because of the fireplace. I would love to come back!
Tokara
We had a lunch reservation at Tokara, which is across the street from Delaire Graff. The restaurant wasn’t very busy when we arrived, but it had filled up by the time we were done with lunch. I got the cauliflower soup, and Sydney and I split the Baked Alaska. I paired this with a chardonnay, as recommended by our waiter.
Lunch at Tokara
After we finished eating, we walked over to the wine tasting room, which had a giant fireplace that we commandeered. Tokara is known for their red wines, so I did a three-glass red wine tasting. Out of the three wineries we visited this day, Tokara had my favorite wines. We sipped slowly while enjoying the warmth of the fire, in no rush to get back outside.
Tokara vineyard
Boschendal
Our last winery was so picturesque. It felt most authentic to the Stellenbosch region. When you enter the Boschendal property, there is a long driveway lined with trees, with the winery at the end. We were ready for a snack at this point, so we paired our selection of five wines with a platter of cheese. It really hit the spot.
Java Cafe
Most of the wineries in Stellenbosch close around 5 pm, so we left Boschendal then and drove into town. It should’ve only been a 20 minute drive, but with rush hour traffic it took closer to 45. The wineries with restaurants open back up around 6, so we were planning on hanging out in town until then and then grabbing dinner. We got to Java Cafe and after a warm chai tea latte, we decided we didn’t want a real dinner (or to go to another winery) and just wanted cafe food. I had the malva pudding for dinner (again).
Playing with the monkeys after a full day of wineries!
After we ate, we walked around town and went in a couple souvenir shops. We then made the 45 minute drive back to Cape Town, where we were staying the next three nights.
Check out my video on our Cape Town adventures!
