Wine

Although De Krans is synonymous with producing award-winning port-style wines, they have really managed to extend their relationship with Portuguese cultivars beyond their fortified range, resulting in a diverse and unique range of dry, still wines, known as the Terroir range. Appropriately so, since the Calitzdorp terroir is so similar to that of the Douro Valley in Portugal, making it a perfect area to produce quality wines from Portuguese varieties. The first Portuguese grape vines planted in 1973 at De Krans in Calitzdorp, were actually intended to be Shiraz grapes. Only when the first grapes were harvested a few years later, were these vines discovered to be Tinta Barocca,

A Twist of Fate, a blend between Portuguese grape varieties Tinta Barocca and Tinta Amarela, forms part of the De Krans Terroir Range. A Twist of Fate is a lighter style red wine, which is arguably comparable to a Pinot Noir in terms of style and use. The concept behind this wine was to produce a lighter style red wine, which should be served chilled, making this wine perfect for those warmer days. Free run juice is used resulting in delicious strawberry and cherry flavours with a lovely earthiness, hints of spice and a subtle oak character. Retailing for approximately R92 per bottle, A Twist of Fate pairs perfectly

De Krans Wines has expanded its Moscato range with the release of the Muscat Nectar Alcohol-Free Sparkling. This refreshing alcohol-free Muscat Nectar consists of 100% muscat grapes with a slight fizz added when bottled. The Muscat Nectar has lovely tropical fruit flavours with muscat tones and a balanced acidity. Similar to the De Krans White and Red Moscato Perlé, the Muscat Nectar Alcohol- Free Sparkling will no doubt appeal to those preferring a slightly sweeter, fizzy option either on a menu or on the shelf. The Alcohol-Free Sparkling Muscat Nectar retails for approximately R58 per bottle, and is best enjoyed chilled, on its own, or served with fresh summer salads,

De Krans Wine Cellar, situated in Calitzdorp along the Route 62, has again received a five-star rating, this time for its Cape Vintage Reserve 2017 port-style wine in the latest edition of the authoritative and internationally recognized Platter’s by Diners Club South African Wine Guide 2020, due for release this month. The results were announced on Friday, 8 November at an event held in Cape Town, which was attended by members of the wine and media industries. A total of 125 five star wines were awarded the coveted five star status this year. This port-style wine is no stranger to awards having won a Double Gold at this year’s

Christoff de Wet, formerly winemaker at Lutzville Vineyards, has recently joined the team at De Krans Wines as their new winemaker, taking over the reins from Louis van der Riet. Born and bred in Stellenbosch surrounded by a growing wine fraternity, it soon became evident that it would become his career choice. After completing his schooling he embarked on a gap year, not for one year which is normally the case, but two years. During this time he worked in Sonoma (California) to gain additional experience before enrolling at Elsenburg upon his return, obtaining his diplomas in Oenology and Viticulture. After his studies the ‘wine working travel bug’ was still

De Krans Wines in Calitzdorp is without a doubt one of SA’s leading port producers. This statement was reaffirmed when, for the third year in a row its Cape Vintage Reserve was announced as the Overall Fortified Wine of the Year by revered UK authority Tim Atkin MW, in his highly anticipated annual review of South African wines. This year the 2017 vintage took the honour, as well as scoring an impressive 96 points. In addition three of their wines scored 90 + points each. The deserving recipients were the De Krans Touriga Nacional 2017 (90 points), Garden Route Sauvignon Blanc 2019 (91 points) and the De Krans Tritonia

De Krans Wine Cellar, situated along the iconic Route 62 in Calitzdorp, has excelled at the 2019 Novare SA Terroir Wine Awards, where the De Krans Touriga Nacional 2017 was announced as the Best Touriga Nacional. This follows in the footsteps of the 2016 vintage, that won the same accolade last year. The results were announced at a special awards ceremony which took place on 1 August. A total of 328 entries were received for this year’s competition which was evaluated by a panel of highly esteemed judges. The panel was chaired by Jeff Grier who was joined in the judging process by David Biggs, Narina Cloete, Sandile Mkhwanazi

While De Krans has traditionally been synonymous with producing award-winning port style wines, they have also managed in recent years to pave the way with developing interesting and quality Portuguese still wines. This Portuguese blend, made up of Tinta Barocca and Tinta Amarella, is all about the story. It pays tribute to the start of the port industry in Calitzdorp when the first Portuguese grape varieties were planted in 1973, by accident. A fortunate accident it turned out to be, as the climate and the terroir embraced these supposed Shiraz acquired from the Swartland area. When they realized that the Shiraz was in fact Tinta Barocca, the port