Boschendal Wine Estate

Although the title deed for ‘Bossendaal’ dates back to 1685, evidence of the earliest inhabitants of the Franschhoek valley date back to the stone ages some 700,000 years ago. But it is with the first official owner, French Huguenot Jean le Long that our heritage unfolds in the annals of time.

From the early days under ownership of the De Villiers family who laid the farming foundations and built the historic Manor House to the later custodianship of powerful mining magnate Cecil John Rhodes and the formidable era of the Rhodes Fruit Farms, the common thread in these fascinating chronicles is the distinct sense of place that shaped the dream that we are living today.

After Rhodes's death in 1902, the De Beers mining company continued to manage the farms for forty years before the estate was sold to Sir Abe Bailey and afterwards to a syndicate. When Anglo-American Corporation took over the farms in 1969 a massive redevelopment program was initiated. The finest plant material improved the vineyards, the homestead restored and renovated reopening as a national monument, and substantial investment in the wine cellars elevated the quality and image of the Boschendal Estate establishing it as a popular fine wine and food destination.

The new millennium saw the latest changing of the guard as a carefully appointed consortium took the reins from Anglo American in 2003. This Consortium has a deep dedication and understanding of the gravitas of history under their care, with a firm commitment to the environment and social upliftment for the conservation and sustainable progress of Boschendal into this century and beyond.