The de Villiers family has left deep footprints in the history of the South African wine industry through the centuries, and Kleinood and the Tamboerskloof wines are no exception.
History
Tamboerskloof is once again an integral part of the de Villiers family history as well as that of Cape Town and the Boland. The name Tamboerskloof means the valley (kloof) of the drums (tamboer).
The Dutch settlers immigrated to the Cape in 1652 to farm with fruit and vegetables to supply the Dutch East Indian Company ships on their way to the east. Lookout posts manned with spotters were established on the hills and mountains around the Cape peninsula. The first spotter was placed where the suburb of Tamboerskloof lies today. These spotters drummed the message of an approaching ship from one lookout post to the next until the farmers in the surrounding valleys heard the drums and proceeded to harvest their crops and hasten to Cape Town harbour with their wagons in order to meet the ship on arrival.
Before moving to the Boland, Gerard, Libby and their two children, Spicer and Katharien, lived in this Cape Town suburb for 25 years. Thus, with the fondest memories and the need to acknowledge the happy years they had spent there, they named their wine Tamboerskloof.
Estate Overview
- Kleinood is situated in the Helderberg area near Stellenbosch
- This area is renowned for its warm days and cool nights, making it ideal for wine grape production
- The plantings are done on North and West facing slopes at altitudes varying from 172 to 198 meters above sea level
- The estate sites on 22 hectares of which 10 are under vine and 2 are under olives
- Grape varieties grown – Syrah mainly, then Viogner, Roussanne and Mourvèdre
Kleinood Wines
The excellence of the Tamboerskloof Syrah 2016 vintage is confirmed by 94/100 points awarded by world renowned wine critic, Tim Atkin, and a Gold Medal award at Syrah du Monde International competition of the best Syrah wines of the world.
Once again the ethical and meticulous approach where no viticultural or oenological effort is spared in the delicate balance between science and passion and the winery designed to afford the wine maker the most flexibility possible, underpinned by a dedication to producing a singular and intensely personal wine of the highest quality, has produced a vintage of excellence.
“The palate is medium-bodied with super-fine tannin. There is killer purity here, a gentle crescendo in the mouth towards a poised, saline finish – a quite brilliant wine.”
A perfect pale colour. Peach, floret and a lush mix of citrus show immense concentration right from the start. Both precise and dense, the scents and flavours flow through into a tightly wound rich finish, bright with citrus. The length and concentration are simply spectacular.
“The Tamboerskloof Viognier with its cunning addition of 11% Roussanne, is an astounding wine and certainly the finest white I have tasted from this farm. The greengage theme makes it unlike any viognier I have tasted before. It is crisp and firm as well as sensual and provocative.”
The bright eyed, bushy tailed and overtly feminine Tamboerskloof Katharien Syrah Rosé was named after our youngest child and equally, bright eyed and bushy tailed, only daughter.
The Katharien Tamboerskloof Rose 2019 is a very pale salmon pink coloured wine. The nose is highly aromatic a with a broad flavour spectrum profile, noting lychee, strawberry, raspberry, citrus and violets. Particularly food friendly and versatile – perfectly mimicking our award winning Tamboerskloof Syrah with its mouth-bursting intensity
“Pale orangey pink. Fresh fruit on the nose. Round, even slightly sticky, but with lots of fruit and charm. Round with no rough edges. Very well balanced, with great depth and length.”
The reason for making the John Spicer Syrah is based purely on the outstanding and unique character of the wine produced by this vineyard year after year – wishing to keep it apart as the ultimate expression of our terroir, supporting the philosophy that great wines are made in the vineyard.
“Luxurious, five-star fruit ripeness with silky tannin, then a long and spicy finish. Really finely layered and lingering. Superb.”
For the sake of distinction; the Kleinood flagship, Tamboerskloof John Spicer Syrah, is adorned with a black label. However, it is still printed on recycled, handmade paper, hand torn and hand pasted by us on Kleinood. The bottle is then dressed in an artwork by a different artist for every harvest.
– a truly handcrafted wine, in every sense of the word.
