Annandale Wines

Time unchanged! A refreshingly rustic tasting room where you have to engage with the other patrons because of the intimacy of the place. Very friendly service. Although the wines released late, they still need more time.

We went to Annandale with my Father and brother and Mr. Hempies du Toit offered the wine tasting to us it was quit special and the wines are amazing and are aged at least 8 years. We also tasted the Sir Prise lovely wine so worth it !!!! Shiraz and the Cab are both very tasty wines. Will definitely go back again

Amazing wines that were aged at least 8 years before release! So good to drink! The tasting room in an old horse stable has so much character!

Abso-bloody-lutley FANTASTIC wines! I also had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Hempies Du Toit who offered the Shiraz to us to taste! Incredible wine! Thi farm may not be mordenised at all but that just gives more charm to the wine! You might only be able to taste 2 wines that are both Cabs but it is so definitely worth it!

No bling here, just good old-fashioned charm and amazing wines. Where else can you taste a nine-year-old red blend as the norm? Classic, elegant, made to age.

Very nice tasting very old vintage wines. There Cab. very nice.

Annandale Cavalier 2001 was only one of the 2 available wines at the moment, but what a lekker sip of pressed and fermented grapes.

A alley of trees guided us on the wine farm and to the “Ring the bell”-Sign. Let’s say it was truly a bell to toll. If somebody sounds a bell like that you immediately feel like calling in for church day and a sacramental wine tasting.

But let’s focus on the wines. The Cavalier is an out-standing good blend of red with a 36 month-developed wooden backbone. A wine that instantly makes you forget all thoughts of save your money on such a steal for 85 ZAR.

The second wine was a Cabernet Sauvignon of an undeniable truthful character, if someone knows about Cab there won’t be much to say except a pleased facial expression.

Great experience, I love the authenticity of this farm! Greeted by owner and Ex-Springbok player Hempies du Toit and his equally massive Boerebul, I knew this visit will be quite special. And right I was!

No frills, no pretentions – this once was a horse farm and riding school and it still has this character. The tasting room is in a barn, with a warming fire place, love seeking dogs, a big dark wooden table, old pictures of Hempies in his rugby days, dust, spider webs and a rustic damp smell to it – like in my grandma’s storage cellar – if you know what I mean. The atmosphere is so cozy and homely, relaxed and un-rushed – I could sit there all day, forgetting the time and everything else.

It seems as if they do exactly the same: after filling the red wines in oak barrels, they forget about it. Minding their daily business, they only come back after 4 – 5 years to check what happened to it – oh boy, what a recipe! The first wine on tasting was the 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon: 5 years on wood, another 3 years in the bottle. “This is not a rushed wine”, was the comment. Yep. Full bodied, full of character, smooth well integrated tannins, the right oakiness, a beautiful example of how CabSauv should taste. A bargain for R100! The only other wine on tasting was the Cavalier (can’t exactly remember the vintage), but similarly impressive. The port was sold out, but I will remember to come back in February when the next vintage will be released…

Sitting in Hempies’ barn at the fireplace, running your fingers over the dust-covered vintages of Alto wines down to 1965 and sipping his incredible Cabernet gives you a sense of timelessness, the rush of the world outside suddenly seems so far away. Not to be missed!

@__MrHyde

if more people in SA would make wine like Hempies, we would be the nr 1 wine producer in the world. This man and his wines score a 10/10. No chasing big bucks here…in his own words: Hierdie is n stadige wyn….Love it!!

@Cobus Coetzee – dude I have to disagree! REALLY good wines! Their 2004 will be bottled soon and I can not wait to get my hands on some. A true treat to the palate and the wallet! You will struggle to find such quality for the same price.

If you want truly old world style wines… do not miss the Cab or Shiraz from Hempies du Toit’s farm. The wines spend an average of 4 years in barrel and another 2 in bottle before it is released. Truly magnificent wines.

below average

Nice cosy place. Enjoyed the Cab but not much else. Hosts were nice with Hempies wandering around greeting people which is nice

So after I enjoyed that magnificent Cavalier 2001 the other night, I just had to go back for more. This time around we met the legend himself, Springbok Hempies du Toit and the winemaker Ryan Wynless. (What a ironic name

Ryan shared a bottle of 1984 Alto Rouge with us, the oldest wine I’ve tasted to date. It was so, so yummy and we all felt super privileged. Ryan informed me that they have quite a few older vintages in their cellar. I was super stoked to find out that they even had a 1979 Alto Rouge which is my birth year. Considering the fact that I’ll be turning 30 in October, I immediately invested in a bottle. What a cool gift to buy for yourself and to share with your friends on your birthday.

Annandale is a real piece of heaven on earth! A truly special experience not to be missed.

First impression: someone hand me the Mr Min, a duster and some Handy Andy!! However, the urge to clean, will strip the tasting room of all its enchantment.

Ryan Wineless (this winemaker should stay in the tasting room because he was as warm and welcoming as the fireplace) took over from our tasting hostess and offered us a special tasting of a 24-year old Alto (if only all 24-year old were this perfectly matured, the world would be a much better place). Up next was the farm dog, literally UP next because he’s all over you with his massive head. Luckily Hempies came to the rescue from the horse-dog-saliva-assault.

Ripley’s, they barrel their best wines for an average of 5 years for the smoothest reds ever and you don’t have to worry about making your mortgage payment after a purchase, believe it! Also the best original and perfect port ever tasted which is partly fermented in whiskey casks with none of that overpowering sweetness one often find when it comes to port.

Only thing missing is a restaurant (I’m not taking anything away from this already perfect gem), I will then spend an entire day sucking in the beautiful surroundings and overdose on the fabulous wines with the truly true and awesome people from the estate.Definitely going back soon!!

^M^

Enjoyed a bottle of their 2001 Cavalier last night. THE BEST! Really yummy and hearty. A must for any collection.

We got carried away playing with the dog and almost forgot to wine taste(not). Wines are old school and classics the whole range is great.
Keep it up

“Ring the Bell for service”… Finally, a farm that use their Slave Bell for more than just an “extra” in wedding photo’s!

It almost felt as if we entered a Fairy Tail. If you take in consideration that Annandale keeps their wine in French oaks barrels for 5 years….Hallo Neverland! Oh, but it’s actually Rugby Land.

The owner of Annandale, Hempies du Toit, is an ex Springbok. Hempies believes in the traditions of “Old World” wine making. This means that the grapes are hand-selected during harvesting and that the entire maceration and maturation process is conducted at Annandale Estate’s cellar. One can only appreciate the passion and the effort that goes into their wines, especially when you taste it. Great, great, great! The best part, you don’t have to pay an arm or a leg for a bottle. What a great find. Highly recommended!

5 year wooden red, and that’s 5 years in wooden barrels. WOW

Absolutely amazing wine!