Best of Wine Tourism Awards 2008

At the Annual General Meeting of Great Wine Capitals in November 2007 in Porto, Portugal, an international jury selected a global winner for each of the categories, selected from the 47 national winners.

Vergelegen won the global "Best Of" award for Art & Culture, further underlining the breadth of the offering of one of South Africa's premier wineries.

In total, 320 wineries and wine tourism businesses from the Network cities and their wine regions entered the 2008 Best Of awards program, a record number, indicating the growing popularity and international recognition of the Best Of wine tourism awards.

26 January 2006: Vergelegen was announced as New World Winery of the Year by the prestigious American Wine Enthusiast magazine.

Planet Wine is proud to be the New Zealand distributor of Vergelegen. The offering is currently restricted to small volumes of three red wines but will extend to the much-awarded chardonnay, sauvignon and Bordeaux white blend in the future. Go to www.winemag.com to read the article in Wine Enthusiast magazine.

VERGELEGEN

Vergelegen, meaning “situated far away”, was granted to the Governor of the Cape of Good Hope of South Africa in 1700. Willem Adriaan Van der Stel, was a man of divergent interests who transformed the uncultivated land into a veritable paradise. He planted vines, camphor trees and oaks, laid out fruit orchards and orange groves, and introduced cattle and sheep. During its long history Vergelegen has developed a unique culture. It is embodied in physical properties, in its people and in the more aesthetic traditions established over the last 300 years.

The property continues to give pleasure to its numerous visitors with its layout, including historic camphor trees (planted in 1700) and octagonal garden, the stately homestead and the fertile valley where fine wines are grown. Today, it is one of those rare places where the visitor can begin a progressive discovery into a world that harmonises the past and present; where an air of dreaminess pervades; and where synergy between man and his bountiful environment is accomplished.

André van Rensburg is often referred to as the enfant tèrrible of South African winemakers. He is larger than life and outspoken. He has twice won the Pichon Lalande Trophy for the best red blend at the International Wine & Spirits Competition in London and a multitude of other awards. His wines reflect his personality as well as that of the terroir of Vergelegen.

www.vergelegen.co.za