History

Feiteiras Wine Cellar, located at the bottom of the Howehoek Mountains next to the village of Bot River, Western Cape S.A. is nestled between the long established wine estates of Beaumont and Widekraans. Started from scratch by the Andrade family, and is named after the borough "Feiteiras" where their Manuel Snr has his home and cellar from where Snr has been making wine before the children were born in the same valley which is located in the town of Sao Vicente, Madeira, Portugal.

With Sao Vicente being the patron saint of Wine & winemakers and their family background it was a natural step to, after more than 20 years in the restaurant, hotel and retail liquor trade, for the brothers to start the wine farm. Now after two years the farm boasts 4.5 hectares planted to reds including Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Merlot, Mourvedre & Petit Verdot. It was also decided to maintain some Portuguese connection by planting 0.5 hectare of Verdelho.

One of the unique features on the farm is a working pole basket press. Known as a"lagar" in Portugal the wooden press is housed in a 3m x 3m open fermentation tank with pressure supplied via a 7 m wooden pole with a diameter of 700 mm and driven by a wooden screw worm which was hand carved in Madeira and sent over by Manuel Snr who came to S.A. to design the lagar" and supervise the installation.

Viticulture

Area
The Bot River ward is the gateway to Walker Bay and encompasses the Bot River village and valley, stretching from the Bot River lagoon up into the foothills of the Groenlandberg and Babylonstoren mountain ranges, and bordering the Kogelberg Biosphere.

Climate
The area is renowned for its cool maritime microclimate, which is influenced by its proximity to the lagoon and Walker Bay – cooling afternoon winds blow up the valley off the sea.

Soil
Soils are mainly homogenous Bokkeveld shale (predominantly Glen Rosa and Klapmuts) and Table Mountain sandstone.

Cultivars
Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinotage, Shiraz and other Rhône varietals fare particularly well here. Bot River is home to an eclectic mix of handcrafted wineries and its rustic charm lies in its quirky character.

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