Morgenster Manor House

As a child, I remember going to watch Polo being played on a field near Morgenster in Somerset West.  It was just after the Second World War and we sat in our mostly large American cars, Studebakers, Packards and Cadillacs on the edge of the field and watched our fathers on horseback hitting the light wooden balls around the field.  Between chukkas we used the white balls for a primitive bowling game.

In the ‘60’s and ‘70’s Morgenster belonged to Dinky and Leonard Hawkins.  Dinky, from the well know Cullinan Diamond Mining Family, was legendary for being a “dazzlingly beautiful young woman” having been “a favoured dancing partner of the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Kent before the War.”  One step closer I was than the words of the Edwardian song, “I danced with a man who danced with a girl who danced with the Prince of Wales.”

Guilo Bertrand

Morgenster – Morning Star – is one of the great houses of the Western Cape.  Described by Graham Viney in his Colonial Houses of South Africa as being “given six of the most beautiful gables to be found at the Cape. The Holbol or concavo-convex style may here be seen at its most elegant.”  It was immaculately restored by Dinky’s grandchildren Pieter and Nini Bairnsfather Cloete and later sold in 1992 to its current custodian the irrepressible Giulio Bertrand. The farm which is nestled in the foothills of the Helderberg Mountains amongst Oak and Lombardy Poplar-lined avenues is close to the sea, which for its vines is an irresistible combination of the elements of nature.

Marius Lategan

Some years back, shortly after former Wine Maker Marius Lategan joined Morgenster after a varied and interesting winemaking career in South Africa and crush experiences in France, Italy and California, he called me one day as he and Giulio Bertrand wanted me to taste their first wine.  A bit like being asked by a famous author what I thought of his latest book, or a well-known painter asking me whether I like his current work.  The charming, courteous Giulio and the quietly passionate Marius opened their first wine, the Morgenster Lourens River Valley, and gently blew me away.  They were very clear that more and better was to follow.

Morgenster specialises in only four red wine cultivars with blending as their forte. More recently, Morgenster has also planted small quantities of Italian varieties Nebbiolo and Sangiovese. Director & Wine Consultant Pierre Lurton, a name synonymous with Bordeaux and two famed estates, Chateau Yquem and Chateau Cheval Blanc, works in tandem with the resident winemaker and the viticulture team, Gerhard Bruwer and François Viljoen, to offer to Morgenster’s customers the ultimate experience of a red blend.

Morgenster Lourens River Valley

Morgenster Lourensriver

Handpicked early morning grapes are sorted on selection tables at the cellar.  The three varieties are separately aged for 15 months in French Oak and the Merlot-led blend, Cabernet Sauvignon being a major partner with a touch of Cabernet Franc, has a further 45 days en barrique.

Delicious whiffs of black cherries, blackcurrants, toasted brioche and the inside of a well-kept cedar wood cupboard come off the wine.  It has an interesting sweetish entry with lots of ripe dark red berries, almonds and vanilla.  Delicious spice compliments the sappy fruit, which is overlaid with well-balanced acid and softly ripe rolling tannins.  Lovely elegant thread running through from fruit-filled nose to long-lasting tail.

Morgenster – the Estate’s premium blend

Morgenster Estate Blend

Three specific Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc vineyards are chosen for special care and attention for the first vintage of the flagship Morgenster Estate Wine.  During vintage the wines are barrel aged separately and racked twice during the maturation period.

The Morgenster Estate Blend is a wine which reflects the individuality of their vineyards, represents a specific style which is dictated by varietals, but more so by the level of concentration from that vintage.  This wine is a rich, garnetty plum red revealing its pleasures gently rather than showing itself as a sassy young thing.  The two Cabernets reveal themselves with a presence of blackcurrants, peppertwist and plum pudding spices.  It just fills the mouth with a three-way balance of the classic oak tannins, the fresh ripe berry flavours and the ripe integrated tannins of the three varietals in the blend.

These wine labels have not only established themselves in South Africa but also on the international market, being exported to the UK, Europe, North America, Canada, Sweden and Singapore.

Morgenster’s recent wine accolades have come in from various sources and corners of the Globe.  Morgenster Wines can be purchased direct from the Estate at the address details above and are also available from:

Gauteng
The Wine Emporium, Weltevreden Park
Bootleggers, Fourways
Norman Goodfellows, Rivonia
Rivonia Cellars, Rivonia
Solly Kramer’s, Parkhurst
Johnny’s Liquor, Pretoria

Eastern Cape
Lagoon Wine Shop, Plettenberg Bay
Picardi Rebel, Beacon Isle Centre, Plettenberg Bay
Picardi Rebel Liquor, Knysna
Picardi Rebel Liquor, Plettenberg Bay

Western Cape
Carolines Fine Wine Shop, Waterfront & City
Giovanni’s Deli, Green Point
Wine Concepts, Newlands & Kloof Street
Vino Pronto, City Bowl
Chapmans Peak Bottle Store, Hout Bay
Constantia Uitsig Wine Shop, Constantia
Manuka, Steenberg, Somerset West & Willowbridge
Don Vino, Tygervalley Centre
Picardi Rebel Liquor Stores
Wine Export Centre, Stellenbosch
Pick a Liquor, Strand
Wine Village, Hermanus
E-Wine

Stellenbosch Winemaking Region in the Helderberg Area
Owner Guilio Bertrand

Vergelegen Avenue, Off Lourensford Road, Somerset West, 7130
P O Box 1616, Somerset West 7129, Western Cape, South Africa.
Tel: 021 852 1738, fax 021 852 0835
E-mail: wine@morgenster.co.za Web: www.morgenster.co.za