French revolution

WORDS Malibongwe Tyilo

Located in the Simonsberg mountains, less than an hour’s drive from Cape Town, you’ll find the picturesque Marianne Wine Estate and Guesthouse.  Named after the most common name for girls at the time of the French Revolution (the fictional ‘Marianne’ in fact became a symbol of the revolution’s ideals), the estate promises to produce French-style wines that honour both the South African terroir, and the 2000 year-old heritage of Bordeaux winemaking.

Late last year they launched a new tasting room, designed by architect Ivan McCarthy-Peens. The space offers a panoramic view of the world-famous Cape Winelands. “We sit quite high up on the Simonsberg, so it was very important to us that whatever happens with the interior of the tasting room does not distract us from the beautiful views,” says Jana Brodbeck, the estate’s marketing and PR manager. “At the same time we wanted to make sure that this very large space doesn’t feel hollow.” 

The furniture that fills the interior of the tasting room was all selected by the estate’s director, Alex Brodbeck, and the abundance of wooden detail brings warmth to the space. The bar and the welcome desk are made from French oak barrel staves that were carefully cut into small pieces, giving the bar an impression of being built one wooden brick at a time. The wood motif continues through to wall paneling, which was made over two months along with the ba

The room’s focal centre is a long wooden table that was custom made by Cape Town-based designers and manufactures, Livision. A tufted leather couch from Weylandts further enhances the warmth, simultaneously introducing a more traditional touch that contrasts paradoxically with the adjoining yellow and grey barstools from Chair Crazy. All of this is offset by the endless greenery visible through the tasting room’s large windows.

For a rather unusual (but locally authentic) wine tasting experience, make a booking for their famous biltong and wine pairing. Here, five select estate wines are paired with three different types of biltong: Kudu, Springbok and beef. The public tasting room is one of the only ones in Cape Town that is open 365 days a year until 5pm everyday, Christmas included. Thank heavens!

To make a booking, visit www.mariannewines.com
Email: info@mariannewinefarm.co.za
Tel: +27 (0) 218755040