Taking a trip in the middle of the year during one of the weirdest years to date was just what the doctor ordered. My family and I packed up our bags a couple of weeks ago and headed off to the Winterton side of the Drakensberg for some much needed downtime. Although we spent a majority of the time working, we did make sure that we took some time to explore the Champagne valley. We ate at amazing places, had some incredible cheese and chocolate, but one sign stole my attention and it made for the perfect mom and me date.

On a chilly Thursday morning, which was our last full day in one of the most picturesque locations ever, I treated my mother (an avid wine lover like me) to a boozy brunch, well rather a cheese and wine tasting at a little-known gem, Cathedral Peak wine estate.

Situated within the Winterton Valley the Wine Estate is flanked by 3,000 ha of game farm to the North and 1,200 ha of cereal farming to the East. The river acts as natural barrier. To the west are the magnificent mountains.  The logo on the label is the view form the wide veranda. The rest of the fertile valley is farming land and then of course the magnificent national Park. The lifestyle here is wine, wildlife and nature.

We were welcomed by a knowledgeable and friendly sommelier, Siphesihle, who gave us a thorough history of the Estate, the wines and what to expect.

On the Estate there is  29 ha of vineyard. On this is the old farm house and the cellar. A further 160 ha of land forms part of the wine estate.  The bottom section leads into the game farm. From 1 January 2015 some 15 sub divisions of 4 ha each will be available for sale.

We had the pleasure of tasting 8 different wines, yes, 8. I settled on a couple of wines that expose how weird my pallet is. The cabernet sauvignon reserve from 2016 was absolutely delicious and satisfied my love for high tannins and a rich oak taste, no surprise there. The other two, which form part of the their Zulu range , was the soft red and the intense red. They both have completely opposite dry red tastes but I loved them. I saw myself having them on different occasions; one by the braai and another with smokey meat.

A notable mention that didn’t make my top 3 was the UNESCO 985, which got its name from the site number it was made from: Number 7 in South Africa to receive World Heritage Status.

What I loved most was is the difference in wine regions between the Kwa Zulu region and the Cape region. My entire knowledge of South African wine comes from exploring regions in the Western Cape so my expectations of Cathedral peak were… actually I had none. I had no expectations because it was unknown territory for me.

I am calling Cathedral Peak wine Estate a hidden gem that NEEDS to be explored. It stands as the closest major wine estate to Johannesburg at just under 5 hours drive, to my knowledge.