Weekend plans in the Cape often start with a visit to a winery. And, of course, the more adventurous love to discover treasures off the beaten track, places where the land clearly writes the script of what’s in your glass. October weather also invites scenic drives along Clarence Drive – that winding, wave-lashed road linking Gordon’s Bay to Pringle Bay with mountains embracing the Kogelberg biosphere tumbling into the Atlantic. But this road less travelled for the wino doesn’t end in a cellar, but in a distillery.
The gin wave that crested a decade ago has flattened, leaving room for more thoughtful practices in the spirit world: environmental awareness, sustainability, and place. Out of this shift, the Elves family created the Pringle Rock Distillery.
Pringle Rock Distillery is a family-run business hidden in the Kogelberg Biosphere, surrounded by mountain slopes thick with fynbos and on the raw edge of the Atlantic Ocean. Here, the Elves have created something unique and truly special: a fully sustainable, engineering-led distillery where whisky and gin are made with as much respect for place as for craft.
It is not a walk-in destination. Guests are collected in the quaint village of Pringle Bay itself and driven along a scenic, rocky road to the farm. Along the way, distiller-owner Leigh Elves and his son point out the Cape Rockjumper – a shy, near-threatened bird species that hops across boulders in the reserve. This little bird, charismatic and endemic, became their inspiration and namesake.
Engineering roots
“We generate our own energy from solar, and our water comes from a well on the property. Our pot stills are heated by a boiler fired with alien vegetation,” Leigh explains, as we arrive at the converted horse stables that now house the stills and tasting room. It feels both industrial and intimate as Leigh’s story starts far from the fauna and flora of this mountainous valley.
“My dad started Allweld in 1962. From the age of twelve, I was picked up from school and taken straight to the workshop in Ndabeni. I grew up in the docks doing ship repair and learnt about desalination, boilers, processing plants, pumps, and motors.”
When his father passed in 1996, Leigh expanded the business, taking on large-scale turnkey projects – the Cape Town Stadium, SAB, Distell, Eskom, mining, oil and gas. By all accounts, a career defined by steel, pressure, and scale. But in 2011, a business trip to Scotland changed everything. Staying in Dufftown, he visited Speyside distilleries and was captivated by whisky-making. “I immediately started distilling whisky when I got home,” he says, “and I read everything I could find on the subject.”
As whisky takes years to mature, and with it, considerable cost, Leigh had the freedom to turn his focus to gin: a spirit that can be distilled, bottled, and enjoyed straight away. Crafting a fine gin was always part of the vision, which is why a separate ginning still was acquired to avoid any cross-contamination of fragrances and flavours between the whisky and gin. The trio of gins could also set the tone for the brand and establish its place in the market early on. While they remain rooted in the traditional methods used for making a Scottish-style whiskey, gin offers a canvas for great creative expression, hence their range.
What began as an experiment grew into conviction. By 2016, impressed with the results, he sold the engineering company to commit himself fully to spirits. On their Pringle Bay farm – home since 2005 – he set out to design an eco-distillery that could stand independently, treading lightly on the land.
Copper and conviction
Every piece was designed and fabricated by Leigh and his youngest son, Justin. “Copper pot stills are mostly manufactured in Scotland by Forsyth’s. But because of my background in copper fabrication, I could design and manufacture my own. The stripping still has a straight tapered gooseneck. The two spirit stills both have reflux bubbles, a bit more profound than your average Scottish still. Long copper lyne arms lean at a one-degree angle – allowing the spirit vapour to touch copper as much as possible before condensing into new-made whisky spirit. It gives us a lighter, smoother, fruitier spirit.”
The stills even carry names: Victor, the stripping still; and Josephine and Gerry K, the spirit stills. Each has its role in producing new-make spirit at 72% ABV, later diluted to cask strength and matured in French and American oak barrels sourced locally, many with a fortified wine history. The entire process is gravity-fed, reducing energy use. Waste is recycled into compost. Grain to glass, every step happens on site, giving them complete control over quality.
Monique’s sensory map
If Leigh is the engineering and distilling mind, his wife Monique is the eloquent guide to the glass. She leads the gin tasting with a sensory flourish, drawing on her deep knowledge of how aromas interact and translate into texture and flavour. Guests pass around jars of botanicals – citrus peel, mountain fynbos, dried kelp – while Monique threads it all together, in a way that makes the whole experience feel complete.
“The Rockjumper Gin range has three expressions, with many of the botanicals grown and sustainably harvested on the farm. These gins are, quite literally, the farm distilled.”
“The Mountain Fynbos Gin represents our mountain – distilled with botanicals from the upper slopes, pairing beautifully with cheese and charcuterie or in a Negroni. Our Coastal Gin infused with clean kelp that washes up on our rocks – crisp and briny with lemon zest nuances, is made for oysters, mussels, crayfish, or a dirty Martini. And then the Classic – citrus-infused – bright and zesty, the one for hot summer G&Ts, light salads, soft cheeses or poultry.”
The gins are bottled in recycled Italian glass, both elegant and versatile – complex enough to sip neat, yet flexible enough for modern cocktails.
The longer game
Whisky is the longer project. “Whisky (in pot still) and gin (in column still) each have their own stills to avoid cross-contamination. Our whisky style is a full-bodied single malt, light, fruity, and unpeated. The French and American oak barrels I use are from the local wine industry – they’ve held fortified wines before. The flavours they are giving so far are exciting,” Leigh says.
The first release will not be ready until 2026, but industry visitors have already shown excitement about the fine quality of the spirit. For a distillery that has only been open for tours for 18 months, the reputation is building quickly.
What gives the distillery its heart is not its sophisticated setup per se, but its relationship with the environment. “Having access to clean natural water from the fynbos-covered mountains contributes to a sense of well-being and quality of life. The pristine environment and natural resources of the biosphere provide a unique setting that inspires a deep appreciation for nature,” Leigh reflects. He is not reciting a marketing line but describing what the land itself has given him: water filtered by fynbos, the cycles of alien vegetation cleared into fuel, the purity of a system in balance. That sense of place filters through the experience of the tasting, too.
Tourism and beyond
It’s wonderful to see how businesses built on respect for the environment add value to a small town. In Monique’s words: “Our hope is to be recognised for making the finest spirit most sustainably.” But they also want to share this place – and now is the perfect time to visit, before the silly season begins, with whales moving into the bay, klipspringers darting across the slopes, and Cape Rockjumpers joined by Ground Woodpeckers in the fynbos. Pringle Rock Distillery, by serious good measure, is one to watch.
For tours and tastings, contact them via WhatsApp on 082 541 5944 or visit their website, pringlerock.com, for more information.