Wine Tasting on the Franschhoek Wine Tram | Grande Provence, Haute Cabrière & Holden Manz

#Franschhoek #WineTram #WineTastingSouthAfrica

South Africa is renowned for its wine, with multiple regions and lots of vineyards. We were based in Cape Town so the closest options were either Stellenbosch or Franschhoek. We went for Franschhoek because we had heard that it was more picturesque (and slightly 'higher end').

We only had a day in Franschhoek and only arrived out our hotel (Le Petit Paris) at around midday....which was a mistake. Essentially we only had half a day to explore the vineyards!

One of the main attractions of Franschhoek is the wine tram (and buses) that ferry you between vineyards. There are multiple lines that run on different days so if you have a preference on which vineyard you'd like to visit then it's worth checking this before you visit Franschhoek. It's R270 Rand for a hop-on hop-off pass for the day.

Tickets can be bought here: https://winetram.co.za/hop-on-hop-off/

We ended up visiting 3 vineyards:

1. Grande Provence (https://www.grandeprovence.co.za)
2. Haute Cabrière (https://cabriere.co.za)
3. Holden Manz (https://holdenmanz.com)

There are other vineyards on the grey line (like Rickety Bridge and Franschhoek Cellar) but unfortunately we had to skip these because we simply didn't have the time.

Overall, Holden Manz was our favourite. Not only is it incredibly peaceful and the wine is great, the food is incredible. The wagyu beef burger is one of the best burgers I've ever had!

Grande Provence comes in a close second. The garden at Grande Provence is a great place for lunch and the tractor that takes you from the wine tram to the vineyard is a nice touch. The issue we had here is that the wine tasting consists of between 5 and 6 wines.....which we had 45 minutes to get through before the wine tram then left for its next destination. The Moscat dessert wine (Angels Tears) was one of the nicest wines I've ever had so I think Grande Provence wins purely from a wine perspective.

Coming in third was Haute Cabrière. It's a well known vineyard because it's on the hillside and offers really nice views of Franschhoek. However, for the wine tasting they site you inside, which is strange considering the main selling point is the view. Also, there is a bigger restaurant there which makes it feel a little crowded. Apparently it's known for its Chardonnay, but the Chardonnay at Haute Cabrière was preferred by Farrah.

If you're going to make the trip to Franschhoek - here's a few tips.

1. Franschhoek pass is a really nice drive, so enjoy it.
2. Spend a couple of days there, or at least get there the night before. We simply didn't leave ourselves enough time. As such, we felt quite rushed at each vineyard because the tram leaves at set times.
3. Don't be afraid to order some food and snack along the way. I didn't eat until the end, by which point my stomach was feeling very acidic due to all the white and red wine!

0:00 - Franschhoek Pass, Baboons and Le Petit Paris
0:51 - Franschhoek Wine Tram (Grey Line)
1:56 - Grande Provence
4:50 - The best desert wine: Angels Tears
6:22 - Wine Bus
6:44 - Haute Cabrière
11:19 - Holden Manz

Shot on:

- GoPro Hero 9 Black (with media mod)
- Sony RX10 IV

Edited on Da Vinci Resolve 17.