Coming away from an evening of amazing wines and good food at the Stellenbosch Wine Show 2009 some months ago, my partner and I were unanimous in our agreement that the winery of the day for us, was Rust en Vrede Estate of the “Golden Triangle” area of Stellenbosch, and that there was almost a tie between the Estate Wine 2005, (a blend of cabernet sauvignon, merlot and shiraz) and the Cabernet Sauvignon 2006, but that the Cabernet Sauvignon came out tops. So impressed with it we were that I stashed away a bottle to celebrate the birthday of my significant other.

Thomas Jefferson, US President quotation

Rust en Vrede Cabernet Sauvignon 2006

Imagine my delight on hearing that Coenie Snyman, winemaker at Rust en Vrede since 2007, has just been named the 29th Diners Club Winemaker of the Year in this, the oldest and most prestigious wine competition in South Africa. It’s no surprise that the category this year is Cabernet Sauvignon and that Coenie’s winning wine is the 2007 vintage. After graduating from the University of Stellenbosch in 1994 with a degree in oenology and viticulture, Coenie gained practical experience at Cordoba, Stellenbosch as well as at Chalk Hill in Sanoma, California. He has also worked as cellar master at Distell in the Fleur Du Cap division. His core beliefs are that good grapes and wine are truly gifts from nature and he embraces the opportunity to work with the best grapes that nature and the human influence can produce.

Coenie Snyman, winemaker at Rust en Vrede