It’s all about perfection and the personal touch at this classy Cape ‘New World’ wine farm where winemaking husband-and-wife duo Gary and Kathy Jordan transformed the family vineyard delivering grapes to a nearby co-op into a casual but stylish contemporary winery, with a signature chef restaurant and exclusive guest suites.
California Dreaming
This family winery epitomises South Africa as a ‘New World’ wine country, which is not surprising, given the credentials and experience of husband-and-wife duo Gary and Kathy Jordan.
He’s a geologist, she’s an economist and after their University of Cape Town bachelors’ degrees they studied winemaking at the University of California, Davis, during a two-year stint in the United States.
They brought all their new skills to bear when they built the Jordan winery in 1992 and continued developing the vineyards that Gary’s father Ted had started replanting a decade before.
Situated at the top of Stellenboschkloof, Jordan is the last stop on a narrow road that dissects the small valley. You can book a guided tour with a winetasting of the vineyards or the cellar, while connoisseurs will relish the Reserve tasting of top wines in fine Riedel glassware or selected wines paired with artisanal chocolates.
Vineyard Tour Vines From All Angles
The typical vineyard tour might start on a grassy hill where - with a glass of Sauvignon Blanc in hand - you look out over a patchwork of mountain-fringed vineyards.
Just over 100 of the farm’s 160 meticulously tended hectares are planted with specific varieties and clones, on various different soils and on slopes facing north, south, east and west. Such diversity of both aspect and soil on one property is rare, and underpins Jordan’s outstanding quality across a wide range of wines.
Altitudes on the farm vary too, from 165 to more than 400 metres, and the next stop on the tour might be at a higher point, from which there are views of distant False Bay, Table Mountain and Table Bay.
Here you’ll get right in among the vines for a look at buds, berries and leaves, and your guide will point out the decades-old vineyard that produces Jordan’s acclaimed Nine Yards Chardonnay.
Steppe buzzards take to the air from posts planted among the vines to encourage the local birdlife. In addition to the buzzards, Cape and spotted eagle-owls and barn owls are among the species that help keep vineyard pests at bay.
By 2000, Gary and Kathy’s son Alexander had compiled a checklist of more than 100 bird species - and the counting continues (enquire at the tasting room whether the list is available).
Further along the track you’ll come to the vineyards to produce Jordan’s great reds: Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. The best barrels of the last two are selected for Cobblers Hill, Jordan’s flagship blend named in homage to Ted Jordan’s previous life as the man behind a well-known South African footwear business.
Evidence of the Jordan’s commitment to conserving fynbos is all around, and you may even see a rhebok, Cape grysbok or steenbok.
The farm relies solely on water from two natural springs and its dams are rich in birdlife - the evocative call of the African fish eagle is often heard. Jordan’s Chameleon range of easy-drinking wines is named after the rare Cape dwarf chameleon, which is now thriving on the farm after being protected by the family for years.
Laid-back Meets Luxe
The cellar tour brings to light the equipment Gary and Kathy have designed to facilitate the gentle handling of grapes and wine. Here you can try Jordan’s barrel-fermented whites (Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc and Chardonnay), which are something of a speciality, and a few of the reds too.
In the hushed underground Chardonnay barrel room, try putting your ear to a bunghole and you’ll hear the wine fermenting. Each barrel is rolled regularly during the bâtonnage process so that the Chardonnay is gently shaken (‘Not stirred,’ as Gary quips) while on its lees.
Through plate-glass windows in the tasting room you can observe the workings of the cellar, or you may prefer to settle into a comfortable leather sofa to watch an audio-visual representation of a year on the farm.
The Cellar Door also offers wine tasting with delectable dishes from an all-day seasonal menu seven days a week, and provides gourmet picnics for enjoyment in carefully sited lawn pods overlooking the farm dam and a vista of vineyards and mountains.
For more elegant dining, also with a view, choose Jordan Restaurant, where acclaimed chef George Jardine opened one of the Cape winelands’ first signature chef’s kitchens.
Having relocated in 2017 to the Sussex countryside to apply their farming and winemaking skills and passion to growing grapes and botanicals for sparkling wine and gin on medieval Mousehall Estate (circa 1086), Gary and Kathy (and daughter Christy) decided to open their Stellenbosch family home as Jordan Luxury Suites, providing secluded and beautifully appointed farm accommodation.
And, while still keeping an eye, and hand, on things from afar, they’ve entrusted Jordan wines to long-time winemaker Sjaak Nelson.
The southern part of the Stellenbosch winelands is dominated by the Stellenbosch and Helderberg mountains and, further south, by the magnif...