AA Badenhorst Family Wines, Grensloos Chenin Blanc

Neal Martin describes Adi Badenhorst as someone who “epitomises the carefree spirit that pervades the [Swartland] region”, a phrase that still doesn’t do justice to a man whose personality is as characterful as the wines he makes. Founding A.A. Badenhorst Family Wines in the Paardeberg with his cousin Hein in 2008, Adi champions attentive farming and minimal intervention winemaking to convey an authentic expression of the Swartland in his wines.

Adi grew up on a wine farm in Constantia and made his first wine at thirteen. After studying oenology at Elsenberg, he worked harvests at Château Angelus and Alain Graillot, before returning to South Africa. Following nine years as winemaker at the Rustenburg Estate in Stellenbosch, Adi was captivated by a rundown farm on the northern side of the Swartland’s Paardeberg Mountain. “The mountain has texture and slopes. You know those grapes can make interesting wines”, he explains. Today, that old farm forms Kalmoesfontein, where A.A. Badenhorst are based.

Set within a natural amphitheatre, the Kalmoesfontein farm is home to exceptional parcels of old bush vine Chenin Blanc, Cinsault and Grenache, planted on north, east, and south-facing slopes between the 1950s and 1970s. The vines’ age and various exposures bring further variety and depth to the fruit. The Paardeberg’s soils, which comprise decomposed granite, quartz and iron-rich ‘koffieklip’ (ferricrete), are also central to the character of A.A. Badenhorst’s wines. Over 500 million years old, the soil’s top layer has a sandy texture, allowing the vines to root deep into the ground, resulting in remarkably fragrant wines.

A.A. Badenhorst’s approach to viticulture is simple and hands-on: The better you know your vines, the less work is needed to get the best from them. The team farms the vines sensitively, with composting, cover crops and mulching and avoiding herbicides to enrich the soil and preserve the character of each site. They continue to replant and work with around 70 different cultivars across Kalmoesfontein and Jakkalsfontein, the neighbouring farm purchased in 2021.

Adi is a farmer first, with much of the ‘winemaking’ carried out in the vineyard rather than the cellar. The ‘Kalmoesfontein’ White and Red are field blends and authentic expressions of the farm, with the grapes harvested on the same day. The white co-ferments old bush vine Chenin Blanc with Grenache Blanc, Viognier, Palomino, Verdelho, Muscat of Alexandria, Roussanne, Marsanne and Sauvignon Blanc. Aged for about 20 months in old French oak foudres and 500L barriques, it is layered and complex, showing jasmine, quince and salted almond. The ‘Kalmoesfontein’ Red blends Syrah, Grenache and Cinsault with Tinta Barocca, and small amounts of Mataro, Cabernet Sauvignon and Touriga Nacional. Co-fermented in concrete with extended maceration, it is perfumed and focused, offering notes of fynbos and white pepper.

The ‘Secateurs’ Chenin Blanc and Red blend are Badenhorst’s calling card wines and punch well above their weight. The Chenin Blanc, fermented in 40hL foudres, concrete, stainless steel tanks and old French barriques, has impressive texture and well-defined notes of honey, orange blossom and white peach. The Secateurs Red blends 80% Shiraz with Cabernet Sauvignon and Cinsault. It is spicy and supple, with a hint of grip. The skin-fermented ‘Riviera’, a blend of Chenin Blanc, Grenache Blanc, Roussanne and Viognier, is refreshing with hints of lemongrass and a pleasing, sappy texture.

The ‘Grensloos’ Chenin Blanc, described by Adi as “the cream of the crop”, is sourced from bush vines planted between 1966 and 1978 on decomposed granite. These yield around two tonnes per hectare, resulting in a granitic intensity and layers of beeswax, green apple and wet stone.The ‘Raaigras’ Grenache (cheekily rhyming with Rayas) hails from the oldest planting of Grenachein South Africa, established in 1950. The grapes are destemmed and fermented in conical concrete tanks to preserve the purity of fruit. It is a fragrant, singular expression of this historic site with notes of fynbos, rose petal and crunchy red fruit. The ‘Papegaai’ Red blends 70% white and 30% red varieties, featuring over twenty varieties from across the farm. It is a juicy and fruit-forward expression of Kalmoesfontein.

Their Caperitif is made in small batches. Fortified Chenin Blanc is infused with over 40 botanicals, including native fynbos and garden herbs, to produce an aromatic and moreish revival of South Africa's once famous vermouth.