In 1907 a handful of farmers from the Bovlei Valley and broader Wellington area established Bovlei Cooperative Cellar, in a joint venture to utilize the grapes cultivated on their farms.
This year the Bovlei Centenary range was launched to commemorate the anniversary and in the past few months these wines received a number of awards in both local and international competitions. The range consists of the
Shiraz / Mourvèdre 2005,
Merlot 2005,
Shiraz 2005 and
Cabernet Sauvignon 2005.
This month the Bovlei Centenary Shiraz / Mouvèdre 2005 was awarded Gold and selected as the best Shiraz blend from the South African wine regions at the International Wine and Spirit Competition in London. At this year’s annual SA Terroir Wine Awards the same wine was selected as the Top Red Blend out of the entire Paarl wine district, and the Bovlei Centenary Merlot 2005 was chosen as the Top Merlot from the Paarl wine district.
The Bovlei Centenary Merlot 2005 also garnered a Gold medal at this year's Veritas Awards and the Bovlei Centenary Shiraz 2005 was awarded three and half stars at
WINE magazine's 2007 Pick 'n Pay Shiraz Challenge. The standard Bovlei range also produced a winner with the Bovlei Pinotage 2005, which obtained a Gold medal at the 2007 Michelangelo International Wine Awards.
"The awards which the Bovlei Centenary range received this year, after 100 years of wine production, are a clear indication of consistent quality, coupled with a keen spirit of cooperation amongst the vineyard farmers, viticulturist and winemaker. Enduring excellence, combined with innovation, is the key to success," says Marius Erasmus, General Manager of Bovlei Winery.
The Bovlei Centenary range is sold in Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, England, Scotland, USA and Canada, as well as locally in supermarkets, restaurants and liquor outlets.
After 100 years Bovlei has 39 wine-producing members who annually deliver 8,000 tons of grapes. Every wine farm has its own micro-climate and soil types and the vineyards flourish in the clean air of the area.
According to Frank Meaker, Cellar Master of Bovlei, it is an advantage that due to the diverse terroir, Bovlei's wines all have distinctive characteristics.
"The diversity of the Bovlei grapes come from the unique texture of the different wine growing areas, including Bovlei Valley, Voor- and Agter-Groenberg, the Hawequa Mountain and the Perdeskoen. These wonderful terrains express the best of the different areas in Wellington and give the winemaker numerous options to capture in a bottle of wine. Our target markets are clients with specific preferences in the premium and ultra premium sectors," says Frank.
The Chairman of Bovlei Winery, Pieter Cillie, received a token of gratitude at the 100th Anniversary celebrations for his and his family's contribution over many decades. In his speech he painted a colourful picture of some of the events leading to the winery's current success.
"In the early 1900’s the government nurtured agricultural activities because they played an important part in the country's economy. During the 1908 sitting of the Cape Parliament a new law was passed through which cooperative wine cellars could be financially supported by government and Bovlei received £2,000. By 1910 the financial situation was almost down the drain and a special crisis meeting for cooperatives was held in Paarl. As a result the government wrote off 50% of their debts."
"Even though, in 1914, the price dropped down to less than £3 per leaguer (571 litres), new shareholders joined Bovlei and additional wine tanks and a vinegar wine cellar were built. When KWV was founded in 1918 - eleven years after us - everything improved financially for the wine cooperatives. Good wine prices were set in 1940 and the orderly marketing of the fruit of the vine came into being. In those days the only issues that existed were Ford or Chev, Nat or Sap," Cillie said with a chuckle.
Absa and the Chairman's father, Joubert Cillie, are also part of the interesting history of this wine cellar. The relationship began more than 60 years ago when Mr. Cillie was the first client of Volkskas Bank and Bovlei the fifth client in the Wellington area.
In 1944, ten years after Volkskas was founded, Mr. Cillie and Frans Malan sourced shares from farmer members to purchase £5,000 of shares in Volkskas (the minimum amount required), in order to open a branch in Wellington.
The shares were mailed to Volkskas in Pretoria and the bank opened its 36th South African branch in Wellington, on 1 December 1944. It was a two-roomed office which was then rented from the Wellington Board of Executors. Today Bovlei's account is still with the same company, which, after merging with other banking groups, has now become the financial giant Absa.
Caption for photograph
Today's key players, after 100 years of innovation and quality. From left are Frank Meaker (Cellarmaster), Fritz Schade (Relationships Executive: Absa Corporate and Business Bank), Pieter Cillie (Bovlei Chairman) and Marius Erasmus (Bovlei General Manager).