Buitenverwachting

Only a small mountain range separates the Buitenverwachting Winery from the Cape of Good Hope. The wines of one of the best wineries in South Africa alone are worth the visit. 

The Buitenverwachting winery - beyond all expectations

The Buitenverwachting Sauvignon blanc has been considered one of the best white wines for years and with the Christine wine in Bordeaux style the winery has now also made a name for itself in the red wine sector. Who would have thought it possible just 30 years ago, with such an eventful history, of constantly changing owners, mismanagement and hungry baboons. 

Buitenverwachting Constantia

The Constantia wine region between the Indian and Atlantic Oceans is one of the oldest in South Africa. Wine from the former Dutch colony was highly regarded in Europe. But owners of the dreamy property came and went - the winery was neglected, its fame was lost. In 1980, the German couple Müller decided to restore the winery and the bright white manor house to its former glory - with a little interlude of marauding baboons, which in the 1990s ate over half of the vines with relish and devastated the place. Today the estate invites you to linger under palm trees. The gourmet restaurant is considered excellent, the wines are great and the view over the Constantia Valley is fantastic. Buitenverwachting is locally considered a pioneer of numerous social projects for its employees and sustainable and organic cultivation for nature. Buitenverwachting's own little world south of Cape Town has a lot to offer, especially a multi-layered terroir for first-class wine.

Terroir and winemaking team

The Müller's son Lars Maack has discovered the terroir for himself. The business studies student decided against a secure career and decided to run the winery - without any expertise. Courage, which was rewarded. With the support of cellarmaster Hermann Kirschbaum, winemaker Brad Paton and a few helping hands, the Buitenverwachting now stands as good as never before. Absolute top wines and innovative experiments increase the reputation of the winery with every bottle. Such top quality cannot be attributed solely to the winemaker's craft, yield reduction and manual selection of the best grapes. 

The granite soil plays a major role, from which the vines feed with minerality and freshness. Sunny days and cold nights, surrounded by cool ocean winds, cause slow ripening so that fruity aromas are concentrated in the vines - depending on the individual vineyard. Most of the plots on the Constantiaberg develop lively white wines with a bouquet of yellow fruits like melon or apple. The Husseys Vlei vineyard expresses itself in the Sauvignon blanc with green aromas. And the vineyards with the northern flank offer ideal conditions for the velvety Bordeaux-style red wines, which are left to macerate for 28 days and matured for 2 years in barriques. A total of 150 hectares for the best Sauvignon blanc and emerging red wines from South Africa.

The Buitenverwachting wines

• The clear figurehead and possibly the number 1 from South Africa is the Sauvignon blanc Constantia from Buitenverwachting. Bold, fruity, sparkling - an absolute top wine from overseas.
• A liquid fruit basket with gooseberry, green pepper and tropical aromas is obtained with the Buiten Blanc, which reveals a simple and straightforward pleasure - perfect for the terrace.
• With the Christine red wine, named after Christine Müller, Buitenverwachting has now made a name for itself in the wine world for red wines. The harmonious blend of strength and finesse and the wood finish make the Christine from Buitenverwachting very popular not only within South Africa.
• Playfulness is common to the winemaking team - you can taste it with the Blanc de Noir Rosé. The cuvée of Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot was vinified like a white wine despite the red grape varieties. 

The Buitenverwachting team is pleased about its financially successful Sauvignon blanc wines. This gives them the freedom to try something new. Whether fresh plots with Gewürztraminer or pure wines that primarily live from the strengths of the wine region, the expectations of all participants are exceeded by every vintage. Discover the stars from Constantia - the top wines from Buitenverwachting.