South Africa ( R317, Bonnievale Road, Robertson, ZA )
Situated right in the heart of the mountain ringed Robertson Valley Springfield is a family run winery. Jeannette Bruwer runs the front end while her brother Abrie Bruwer looks after the vines and reigns over the cellar. The farm is located at the border of the Breede River which gives it access to the most precious resource in the Cape. – Water. On one side of the terroir consist mainly of granite very dense and nearly impossible to penetrate which gives the grape a fruity mineral character. Along the banks of the Breede River its mainly clay which gives these grape a completely different taste profile. The Bruwers are forth generation wine farmers and originated from France. They were part of the exodus of French Huguenots that came to South Africa with a bunch of wines under their arms leaving the Loire Valley and bringing wine making skills to the new world.
The winemaking part of the farm is relatively young and started in 1995. On the 150 ha. 50% reds and 50% white wines are produced. It took years to convert the farm from an agricultural to a wine farm and the varietals are still increasing with the newest addition of Albarinho. Due to the terroir it takes considerable effort to prepare the ground. For one plot heavy equipment had to basically crush solid rock into gravel, hence the name `Life from Stone` for that Sauvignon Blanc. Right from the beginning the Bruwers established principles for their business which is expressed in their motto - Made with Honour - Best expressed in the Project Thunderchild The Thunderchild story started in 1918 when a revenging flu took the lives of nearly 140.000 people in SA leaving many children as orphaned. The small community of then 3500 people founded an orphanage the. Herberg Children’s Home and donated 5ha of land then farmed as an orchard. In the early 2000’s fruit prices fell and it was more healthy to change growing wine. In 2008 the maiden vintage took place. All the wines are produced pro bono by Springfield yet another story how the Bruwers live up to their values.
Arbie Bruwer started the cellar at Springfield in 1995. Very soon he made his mark on the industry John Platter about Abrie: “Born to it” His colleagues call him affectionately “crazy”. His wine making process is particular and different to many other makers. Cold maceration, no pressing of the red grapes, no filtration and pumping to avoid any stress on the young wine and no use of artificial yeast which is always a risk. - When they first produced `The Work of Time`3 years the wild yeasts played havock until they got iot right. Jeannette told me that she has still some barrels in the celler which she could only sell to a fish and chips shop. But they didnt give up and now this particular wine is one of our most sought after wines. Abrie lets the wine rest for longer periods on and off the lees to offer drinkable wines upon their release. We can honestly say that this winery lives by its motto, Made with Honour
