Marvellous Sparkling MCC Wine Tour

Don't miss this chance to enjoy some of the best MCC wines, widely regarded as the South African version of Champagne that is prepared following the original, bottle-fermented process used by the French producers.

Your first stop of the day is the organic Longridge Wine Estate – one of the leading wine estates in Stellenbosch. Situated at the foot of the Helderberg Mountain, the estate offers stunning views of Cape Town and the magnificent Table Mountain from its restaurant gardens and tasting rooms. Enjoy their unique selection of Methode Cap Classique (MCC) wines made by Jasper Raats, a legend in the industry despite his relative youth. An alternate stop for the morning would be another organic and family-owned estate, Villieria, for an equally impressive MCC tasting and pairing.

The MCC at the historic Boschendal Estate, your next stop of the day, is crafted from classic varieties in the time-honoured traditional method with the second fermentation taking place in the bottle as it ages. The estate itself is magnificent and spans many hectares in the breathtakingly beautiful Franschhoek Valley. It boasts vibrant organic vegetables gardens that supply fresh produce to the onsite restaurant, The Werf.

Your third stop takes you to Le Lude, the first winery in South Africa to produce wine in the Agrafe method – in which the second fermentation (that produces the bubbles) takes place while the wine bottle is still sealed with a cork instead of a crown cap. Winemaker Paul Gerber, a former math teacher, takes an analytical approach to making sparkling wine and believes that the three years the wine spends undergoing the second fermentation enables a richer texture, exhibiting savoury flavours that are only found in MCC's that have spent a significant amount of time sealed in the bottle. See if you can taste the difference for yourself!

End your day with a final tasting session at Môreson Family Winery, yet another family-owned wine estate. Apart from the already stellar selection of still wines, Clayton Reabow, the winemaker at Môreson, produces a superb range of excellent MCC and sparkling wines named after the estate’s friendly Weimaraner, Miss Molly.