The Taberers arrived in Africa in 1862 as humble missionaries and rose on a bow wave of exultant acclamation as pioneering leaders, businessmen, and farmers and for generations now, have followed this advice. Besides their reverence for fine wines and fast horses, the one thing they inherited from their forebears was a sense of values. This year, as a family, they celebrate 201 years of Avontuur and 41 years of winemaking.
Winemaking is a microcosm of the more complex universe, as well as an escape from it, where all dreams are for the perfect balance of skill, good luck and fine fortune. The Avontuur terroir is a rap sheet accountable only through the unique contingencies of its makeup – ancient soils, steep slopes, and an ocean view which had met in a serendipity the old alchemist sought unavailingly for generations.
A timeless, 110 hectare, mosaic of granite, shale, and sandstone perched on the weathered slopes of the Helderberg, each layer holding the memory of millennia. These ancient foundations are tamed only by the cool and relentless Atlantic breezes which whistle in from False Bay with a regularity which makes the Greenwich time signal look over its shoulder.
At a time when fashion reigns ahead of all else in the world of wine, provenance and a sense of place are the uncontested kin. These wines display distinctive depth and minerality – wines that tell the story of this patch of terra firma and its unique character.
Some soils may be capable of writing more improbable wine scripts than most humans but as winemaker Dominique Modena will tell you, there's more to winemaking than a scribble on a blending board. It lies in the power of the remarkable to transport us to extraordinary places, and Avontuur is reserved for the exceptional, just as you have come to expect from the Taberers.
Dominique has crafted a collection of wines that invites you to explore beyond the coats in the closet of Narnia and into the world of the West Peak, Stone Field, and Disa Gorge. A Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Chardonnay will transport you on an adventure through this time-worn geological tapestry to reveal their concomitant brightness in a display that may make the Sphinx blink.
A collection of wines that will take you back to the evocation of Val de Ra and Luna de Miel leading from the front and kicking for home in the final furlong with the rest of the field unable to respond. Wines that reminisce the special mixture of relief and satisfaction that pervaded the morning air in the early days of Marydown and Borrowdale.
And finally, a wine that tells it all, of the tenacity and perseverance of a family who stood tall, shoulders square, facing the fury of the gale in the pursuit of the exceptional, which would endure for generations.
Wines of power, precision, and poetry
The Taberer
A flagship expression of the estate’s identity, The Taberer 2022, a Cabernet Sauvignon-led red blend, is a wine of noble depth and deliberate power. It is a tribute to heritage. A masterstroke of strength and finesse. A call to those who recognise excellence, and aren’t afraid to seek it.
The Avontuur Collection
This collection is a testament to terroir – where Helderberg soil, sea air, and sunlight converge under the hand of the winemaker.
The West Peak Cabernet Sauvignon reflects the rugged intensity of its terrain with a poised, powerful profile. The Stone Field Syrah reveals the region’s cool-climate finesse, and the Disa Gorge Chardonnay dazzles with bright minerality and nuanced oak.
The Thoroughbred Collection
A tribute to the champions that have thundered across Avontuur’s pastures, this collection celebrates motion, memory, and mastery.
The Val de Ra Red Blend, named for South Africa’s sprinting queen, is smooth, structured, and spirited – a wine that races across the palate with grace and intent. The Luna de Miel Chardonnay, inspired by a beloved broodmare, captures both charm and complexity, while the Borrowdale Sauvignon Blanc bursts with freshness, echoing the energy of a young colt breaking into stride. These are wines born of bloodlines, boldness, and the will to win.
Avontuur Cap Classique Brut NV
Effervescent, electric, unforgettable. This Cap Classique is a toast to legacy, excellence, and the courage to seek the extraordinary.
To drink Avontuur wines is to enter a world alive with momentum – where the past charges forward, and every bottle carries the heartbeat of a living legacy. From the first swirl to the final, lingering note, this is more than wine. It’s terrain. It’s tradition. It’s triumph.
This is Avontuur.
This is the Helderberg.
And this is the taste of a land that dares you to seek the extraordinary.