The Winelands view from Franschoek
Today we got up early to drive about an hour out to the winelands near Somerset West to meet Helen Hutchi, a member of Rondebosch Church, who is an accomplished tour guide. She lead us on a tour to the winelands surrounding the town of Stellenbosch and a lunch in Franschoek.
Our first stop was the Fairview winery and farm. This place was a large farm that had been run by a family for three generations. They produced wine and cheese and we had a wonderful sampling of various wines and cheeses to go with them. We heard a story about one wine called "Goats do Roam". The name got them in legal trouble with the French wine authorities.
Our next stop was for lunch at the La Petite Ferme in the town of Franschoek. It is a restaurant that has a small winery attached to it. Most of the wine produced by the winery is consumed in by the patrons who dine there. It has a beautiful view of the winelands. The town it was settled in the 17th century by the Huguenots, a Protestant group that left France in search of religious freedom. They brought wine making and a tradition of fine food with them. We had a wonderful meal and a little more wine tasting.
The last part of the day was a short drive and walk around old Stellenbosch. This town was founded in 1679 by Dutch settlers. It has a large central square with Cape Dutch houses and other buildings interspersed with buildings of English, Georgian architecture. This town of about 100,000 today shows its colonial roots as it was variously governed by the Dutch or the English over the past centuries before becoming part of modern South Africa.
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