With the season’s first grapes awaiting to be picked, all eyes are on the coming grape harvest from which the wines of 2024 will be made, and this anticipation includes Simonsberg wine estate Delheim preparing for its popular public Harvest Festival.
This event, to be held on 27 and 28 January this year, has become an institution in the winelands, one allowing the public to visit one of Stellenbosch’s most popular wineries during the thrills of the grape harvest wherein they can partake by getting hands and feet dirty and juicy, as well as enjoying the various hospitality offerings for which Delheim has become renowned.
As per usual, the most exciting part of the Harvest Festival is the once-yearly opportunity for visitors to harvest their own grapes in a Delheim vineyard. Using secateurs to snip the ripe bunches, guests can then take their haul to bins and stomp them to remove the juice – just as was the case in the early days of wine-making.
This physical task of harvesting one’s own grapes gives guests the opportunity to indulge in a tactile vineyard experience, picking bunches in the open air and experiencing the soil and climate of the Simonsberg slopes that make Delheim so unique in its diverse and quality wine offering.
A bit of added fun is the set of challenges harvesters and stompers will be given, including the showing of the best team-spirit as well snipping the biggest grape-bunch.
Those wishing to get a more complete look of the Delheim vineyards and the farm’s magnificent mountain terroir can embark on a tractor drive through the farm to take-in the amazing natural environment and see the estate’s commitment to sustainable wine- farming. And limited cellar-tours will be available for people wishing to see the inside of Delheim’s working cellar. (These must be booked in advance when making your Harvest Festival reservation.)
It is a bit of work and a bit of play, after which visitors attending will relax at the Delheim Restaurant, enjoying an al fresco experience of wine farm hospitality at its finest.
The ticket price includes one bottle of wine for sharing between two people, a welcome snack upon arrival and a traditional winelands harvest spread for lunch, including coffee and dessert.
Live music will add to the ambience and guests will have the chance to meet the Sperling and Thiel families, owners of Delheim, who are your hosts for the day.
Delheim’s range of premium white, red and rosé wines will be available for purchase for enjoyment during the event, as well as to take home.
Tickets fare R850 per adult and R300 for children 12 years or younger.
Please note that there is a maximum daily capacity of 100 adults and 20 children, so bookings are on a first-come, first-served basis. Booking via Quicket for 27-28 January 2024.