The De Wet family history can be traced back to 1694 when the first De Wets landed on the Cape of South Africa. By the early 1800's, the De Wets owed vineyards in the Robertson area and in 1972, De Wetshof became the first registered estate winery in the valley. The estate is owned by winemaker Danie de Wet, a graduate of Geisenheim, the wine institute in Germany. While he was a student in Europe, the wines of Burgundy captured his imagination, especially Chardonnay. After returning home Danie did exhaustive tests before planting carefully selected Chardonnay clones and rootstocks, becoming one of the first wineries in South Africa to do so. Danie has worked extensively with American viticulturist, Dr. Phil Freese and South African wine expert Francois Viljoen, of VinPro. Danie is joined by his sons, viticulturalist Johann and assistant winemaker Peter. Two-thirds of the 494 acre estate is planted to Chardonnay, the remainder is planted with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Muscat de Frontignan, Pinot Noir and Riesling. Each vineyard on the estate has a different soil composition, leading to unique expressions in each wine. The soils in Robertson Valley, comprised of limestone and gravel, produce flinty, full-bodied Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The estate vineyards closer to the Breede River Valley are planted on limestone and clay soils and lend structure and depth to the wines.
