Driving down the long avenue of palm trees at Meerlust, I get that feeling of calm and well-being that can come only from visiting a wine estate. On this particular occasion the sensation is amplified: it’s a perfect spring day in Stellenbosch and this is one of the Cape’s oldest wine estates. It’s been in the Myburgh family since 1757 – the current generation still live in the old Cape Dutch manor – and there’s a tangible mood of tranquillity here.
 
“It’s a magical place,” admits winemaker Chris Williams, who returned to the winery in 2004, having interned there some years previously under Giorgio Dalla Cia. It was the terroir and the quality of wines that could be produced here that drew him back, says Chris.
 
With a Mediterranean climate and the moderating effect of the coastal breeze, which makes for a slow-ripening season, Chris is able to produce characterful wines with great fruit definition. Then there is the winery’s history and ethos.
 
“It’s a living, working farm,” says Chris. “We don’t want to take that away. The focus is on wine. We haven’t diversified to restaurants or anything… If it looks slightly scruffy, that is by design. We don’t want it to look like a corporate investment.”
 
So is Chris more a traditionalist or is he open to new winemaking techniques?

“I’d say we make wine in a traditional, classic style, letting the character come from the soil,” he says. That said, he uses very up-to-date viticulture techniques – as long as they preserve character and history. “We wouldn’t do reverse osmosis,” he says by way of explanation.
 
Consequently, Chris recommends pairing Meerlust wines with good wholesome food, where the ingredients haven’t been played with. The flagship red – the Rubicon (SA’s first Bordeaux blend) – works well with a great cut of beef. For the merlot, Chris recommends lamb; fresh line fish for the chardonnay; and pasta, game, pheasant or tuna for the pinot.
 
As for the harvest, it’s done the traditional way, entirely by hand. “We have 35 families living here that have been here for years,” says Chris. “They’ve worked with the vines for many years, and have been trained to prune properly.” Thankfully, they’ve got a large cellar, and since the different varietals ripen at different stages, Chris doesn’t have any of the headaches of some larger wineries.
 
The equipment is all located, somewhat unusually, outside. The buildings, Chris explains, are national monuments, so the vast stainless steel vats are under the skies. Chris takes me up onto a platform on top of the towering equipment.
 
From up here, I can just see the peaks of the mountains of Franschhoek, still covered in snow. Chris points out, in the opposite direction, to the sand dunes that mark the edge of the sea. “That’s why it’s called Meerlust,” Chris explains. “Love of the sea”.
 
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Quick-fire: five minutes with Meerlust winemaker Chris Williams
 
What are your favourite SA wines?
Creation wines, Hamilton Russel’s pinot, Riesling from the Constantia valley, cabernet from Helderberg and shiraz from the Swartland.
 
What is the last bottle you’d drink before you died?
A Musigny pinot from Burgundy.
 
What are your favourite restaurants for a special occasion?
96 Winery Road, Terroir, The Test Kitchen and The Pot Luck Club.
 
And your choice spot for a quick bite?
Diaz Tavern.

By Katharine Jacobs