Tasting the sweet water

Berene Sauls and I finally meet in the Hemel-en-Aarde valley, part of South Africa’s Walker Bay wine region, after a few false starts (Covid, floods, road closures). Having been impressed by her mineral-focused Tesselaarsdal Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, tasted both in London and in Cape Town, I am looking forward to hearing the extraordinary story of how she came to be making wine at all. 

But Berene has other ideas. First, she wants to talk about Hamilton Russell – the estate where we are standing – and her fairy godfather, Anthony Hamilton Russell. She tells how the first family visionary, Tim Hamilton Russell, identified the potential for Burgundian varietals in the Hemel-en-Aarde (Heaven and Earth), bought a sheep farm at the bottom of the valley in 1975 and planted vines. The first vintage was 1981 and the rest, for them, is history (pioneering the claim on the valley’s climate, aspect and stone, clay and shell-derived soils as perfectly suited to Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, the granting of Wine of Origin status and dedication to protecting it). 

Anthony, Tim’s son, took over in 1991 and continued the drive for excellence both in winemaking and in raising up and empowering the next generation of farm workers in the New South Africa. He got rid of the historic ‘dop’ system (by which vineyard workers were part-paid in alcohol, leading to widespread social and economic harm), built a school and implemented multi-disciplinary training programmes for the benefit of both the community and the business. 

Berene was an early beneficiary of Anthony’s management ethos. She was born and bred in Tesselaarsdal, an enclave near Caledon built on land bequeathed by Dutch settler Johannes Tesselaar to his freed slaves on his widow’s death in 1832. The Sauls are descendants of those slaves. Articulate, funny, confident and energetic, it’s no surprise that Anthony recognised these qualities in the young woman who was engaged to look after his children in 2001. He watched her grow to adulthood, face down adversity with strength and determination, and kept challenging her with new and evolving roles at the winery. From exports and logistics to guiding visitors at the waterside tasting room, she did it all while raising two sons on her own.

But could she make it as a producer in her own right? Ten years ago Anthony gave her that opportunity. In his words: “A small offer of ‘no strings attached’ money. A recognition of great work ethic and ability. A plea not to leave our team. A joint discussion of concept and goals. And a thing of beauty was born.” 

Pride in her Tesselaarsdal heritage made the naming of her new enterprise easy, and soon she was sourcing grapes from growers on the Hemel-en-Aarde Ridge, renting space in the Hamilton Russell cellar. “My only assets were amphorae and barrels,” she says. With winemaker Emul Ross the 2023 vintage was her biggest yet, 13 tons each of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, and the celebrity foot-stomper was her son Darren, now 20 and a trainee winemaker who will one day bottle his own Tesselaarsdal. 

In 2019 Berene was offered “a beautiful piece of farmland” close to her grandparents’ home in Tesselaarsdal. North-east facing towards the Klein Rivier mountains, with clay soils said to be good for Pinot Noir, she took advice from Anthony and others (most had reservations, her accountant warned of “business suicide”), then emptied her bank account and signed. “I was walking on air that day,” she says. “I felt like a million bucks”. She took her sons, who worried that they were trespassing until she broke the news. 

Some heartache and buyers’ remorse lay ahead as the ground water was deemed too salty for viticulture  but as we already know, Berene is not a quitter. “We put in electricity and a desalination unit and started planting Pinot Noir on five different rootstocks,” she beams. “Copper and mulch were needed but they grew really well.” 

This year a further 2,000 bush vines of each cultivar have gone in, and 1ha of each will be added every year with 6ha set aside for conservation. 

Inside Tesselaarsdal’s imposing new gates, a winery is next on her agenda, ready for the first homegrown harvest in 2031. In the meantime, tastings are conducted at her grandparents’ home, where her grandfather is wont to put a pot of stew on the stove and invite everyone to tuck in.

Back in the Hamilton Russell tasting room it’s time to taste the 2023 Tesselaarsdal vintages but first, Berene has other ideas. She presents the wines of Hamilton Russell with great pride and warmth, before her own. Her wines are as I remember: the Chardonnay crisp, textured, well rounded with nutty, citrus notes and great charm; the Pinot Noir brimming with red cherry and strawberry and a hint of warm spice. Elegant food wines that more than hold their own. 

The Sauls, Tesselaarsdal and Hamilton Russell are inextricably linked. “I don’t ever see myself leaving,” she says, fulfilling the promise of one pioneer to another. 

Tesselaarsdal is exported from South Africa to 13 countries worldwide.  Imported to the UK by Swig, and available on very good wine lists everywhere including The Pig hotel and  The Drapers Arms  Starwinelist

© Linda Galloway 2024