Lock, stock and wine barrel: Broad Valley

I would trade my dreams for wine any day – but David and Leigh Kretzma’s story is a little different.

Back in 2010, the couple snapped up a 105-hectare property before mending it’s broken fences. “The farm was completely run-down,” David reflects.

From dilapidated buildings, massive areas with alien vegetation that sucked up precious water from the soil, the farm was given a facelift that now features hills of fynbos.

But their hopes of a country escape quickly turned into a bigger job – the pair realised they needed to make the farm commercial for it to become sustainable.

The first dream was to start cultivating French black truffles. Backing up the project with a stash of cash, there was a sad realisation that the truffles just wouldn’t start to grow.

Down but not out, the two turned to winemaking, which turned out to be the perfect way to turn the farm into a success story.

Situated just 10km from Walker Bay, its location at the northern end of the Hemelen-Aarde valley makes the farm the perfect terroir for growing classic Burgundian cultivars of pinot noir and chardonnay.

What makes Broad Valley’s pinot noir so appealing is the fact that it’s the kind of wine you can really play with when pairing it with food. During lunch with Leigh, I opted for vanilla and rosemary poached salmon.

Most people will scoff at the idea of drinking red wine with buttery fish, but it worked well because of the pinot noir’s liveliness.