What is Remhoogte's style?

A rewarding split personality. On one side, classical Simonsberg reds led by the Sir Thomas Cullinan Bordeaux blend; on the other, taut, low-intervention Chenin Blanc and savoury Pinotage in the modern Cape idiom. It's an estate where the old guard and the new wave share a cellar, and both are worth tasting.

On the granite foothills of the Simonsberg, north-east of Stellenbosch, on the same mountain that gives much of the region's most structured red. The altitude and drainage show in the wines' firmness and length.

Do I need to book at Remhoogte?

Booking is wise, especially over summer. It's a working family estate with a relaxed, view-blessed tasting spot rather than a big commercial operation, so a call ahead gets you an unhurried tasting.

Remhoogte

Here's an estate that never made you choose sides. Remhoogte, on the granite foothills of the Simonsberg north-east of Stellenbosch, makes both the classical thing — a serious, cellar-worthy Bordeaux blend — and the new-wave thing — taut, low-intervention Chenin Blanc and savoury Pinotage. One cellar, two traditions, and no apology for either.

That doubleness is the reason to come. You get the whole conversation about modern Cape wine in a single tasting.

Old guard, new wave, same slope

Most estates pick a lane. Remhoogte runs both. The flagship reds are unashamedly traditional — structured Bordeaux-style blends built to age, the kind Stellenbosch made its name on. Alongside them, a younger, restless streak: native-yeast whites, minimal handling, wines that chase freshness and site over polish.

The rare estate where the traditionalist and the new-waver would each find their favourite bottle.

The clever part is that the two styles sharpen each other. The reds keep the whites honest about structure; the whites keep the reds from getting heavy. It's a cellar arguing productively with itself.

The flagship: Sir Thomas Cullinan

Start with the estate at its most classical. Sir Thomas Cullinan — named for a figure tied to the property's history — is the flagship Bordeaux-style red blend, and it's the estate at full stretch: dense, structured, cedar-and-cassis, built for the cellar rather than the drive home. This is the wine that proves Remhoogte belongs in the serious-Simonsberg conversation.

The new-wave heart

Then swing the other way. The Reserve Chenin Blanc, off old vines and made with a deliberately light hand, is where the modern side of the estate lives — taut, mineral, precise, the antithesis of a heavy oaked white. And the Aigle Noir Pinotage shows what happens when you treat the grape with the low-intervention care usually reserved for fashionable varieties: dark, savoury, structured, none of the sweet caricature.

Taste the Chenin and the Cullinan back to back and you feel the whole span of what this estate is willing to do.

The Simonsberg in the glass

Location matters here as much as philosophy. These are the same Simonsberg granite slopes that give the region much of its most structured red — good altitude, good drainage, cool nights. You can taste it in the firmness and length of the wines, reds and whites alike. It's the ground that lets a low-intervention approach work: the site has enough backbone that the winemaker doesn't have to add any.

Visiting

Book ahead, especially over summer. This is a relaxed, view-blessed family estate rather than a polished tourist machine, which means an unhurried tasting and room to talk. Ask the team to walk you from the new-wave whites to the classical reds — the contrast is the whole point, and hearing why the cellar makes both makes each taste better. It sits among the quieter Simonsberg estates worth visiting, away from the busiest routes.

What to buy

Take Sir Thomas Cullinan home for the cellar — it's the estate's classical statement, and it rewards patience. Add the Reserve Chenin Blanc for the new-wave side and a white that ages better than its price suggests. And the Aigle Noir Pinotage is the savoury, serious red for a proper table tonight.