In 2000, after Mac van der Merwe sold the President Steyn gold mine which he had nursed back to productivity from a dormant state, he told his wife Marietjie that he was going to buy "a tiny wine farm". In fact he ended up buying the 123 acre Zorgvliet Wine Estate in the Banhoek Valley near Stellenbosch. This award-winning working wine farm boasts the most technologically advanced cellar in South Africa. Zorgvliet's winemaker, Neil Moorhouse, says they scoured the corners of the globe for the best wine-making ideas and technology to incorporate in the cellar, which was built to his specifications. "I want to make the ultimate wine, so we use the Rolls Royce of technology and equipment. We designed a process for making superb wine, then asked the architect to put some walls up around it!" The cellar and all the equipment are online 24/7. "I can tap into the cellar from my iPhone from anywhere in the world, check readings and alter them if necessary. The whole cellar is on wi-fi, which includes a wireless webcam." If you visit the cellar you may well hear the likes of Cold Play being piped through the music system, but Neil says that while this has no influence on the wines, it makes him and the other workers happy! Neil works closely with Zorgvliet's viticulturalist, Rudolf Janse van Vuuren. Mac calls them "the Rudolf and Neil show" - they complement each other extremely well and are both incredibly passionate about what they do. Evidence of their devotion is the fact that the entire crop at Zorgvliet is sorted by hand. "We harvest everything by hand and sort every single berry that comes into this cellar by hand. Once the sorting process is finished the grapes go up to a tank via conveyor belt and are crushed right above the tanks. This limits the period of oxidation - which we have got down to gravity: the time the grapes take to fall from the crusher to the bottom of the tank. All of this shows in the final quality of our wine," Neil explains. According to Mac we are in the midst of a period when 50 000 Brits are expected to visit South Africa to follow various sporting events. He has a special welcome at Zorgvliet for any visiting Brits: "We invite any Brits visiting South Africa to come to Zorgvliet for a complimentary wine tasting!" Zorgvliet is also offering a focused Wine Experience getaway which includes (per couple): 3 nights' accommodation at the 5-star Zorgvliet Vineyard Lodge, breakfast included Vineyard walk and talk with the viticulturist and grape-picking or other seasonal activity A cellar tour and wine tasting with winemaker and award-winning Zorgvliet wines A food and wine pairing gourmet dinner at the Herenhuis Restaurant A sunset picnic with wine at a mountain spot A couple's spa treatment using the TheraVine range Contact Liezel Rossouw (021) 885-1399 or (021) 885-8031 or visit www.zorgvliet.co.za for more information.