Across the Berg River, under the imposing Drakenstein Mountains, Brookdale Estate offers a salve for your ills, if those ills need country air, good food and fine wine.
Vineyards, manor house, bistro and tasting room are stitched together to create a rather special place to spend some time. Before we go on, you might be interested in this guide to the wine routes of South Africa.
Also read: Your ultimate guide to a truly tantalising trip to Paarl
The elegant Brookdale Manor House opened in mid-2021. There are five ensuite bedrooms in the main house, and a sixth in the adjacent building, meaning it’s a great place to book out for a weekend with friends or family. Or even both.
There’s plenty of room – living room, library, entertainment room, study, dining room, breakfast room, kitchen.

The outside is enticing, too, with top-shelf views of the mountains and vineyards from the several terraces, pool, pool house and gardens.

The rooms are spacious, comfortable and mod-cons at your fingertips. In fact, this rather describes the entire manor house. It is a new build, originally the family home of the Rudds.

The family bought the 67-hectare estate, once overgrown and underused, in 2015.
Despite its newness, it has all the markings of an old home that has stood on this spot for generations – the Cape Dutch architecture is the vernacular of old Paarl, there are the sash windows, the high ceilings, the wood panelling and the architraves.

Just what you’d expect really, and it adds more than a touch of the luxury.
Here, at your disposal, is a butler and a private chef, cooking up lush feats – dinner in the bespoke dining room, breakfast taken in the sunny breakfast room. It is quite the thing, from fruit to cereal to cold meats and cheese, and an inspiring array of cooked offerings.

Eat your fill, but keep space for later.
A morning stroll through the vineyards is probably in order, just to work off some of that breakfast, you understand. Followed by a laze by the pool.

And then it is time for a wine tasting at the Tasting Room on the opposite hill. It was opened in March this year, with tastings offered indoors or on the wide terrace, overlooking the vineyards.

Young winemaker Kiara Scott Farmer is doing a fine turn in creating some exceptional and unusual wines.

Her Provence-style Syrah, Grenache Noir and Cinsault rosé, Serendipity 2022, is a fine expression of her craft. Pale salmon pink in colour, there is hibiscus, fynbos-spice and wild strawberries on the nose. Red fruit and watermelon strike a balance with a lemony acidity.
It is infinitely drinkable, particularly on a summer’s day.
Her Mason Road GSM 2022 is another excellent wine, a blend of Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault and Petit Syrah.
Cape {town} Etc discount: Indulge in a unique wine-tasting and safari game viewer experience for two with a wine safari tour, courtesy of Wines of Paarl for R450 (valued at R900). Get it here.
When it comes to eating, Chef Gary Coetzee is at the helm at The Bistro. He has a few tricks up his sleeve. And so he should; with his wife Yvonne – the Brookdale GM – he spent a decade at Singita in Sabi Sand, followed by ten years as Sol Kerzner’s private chef.

The Bistro serves a small menu of delicious food. So delicious, in fact, that patrons keep returning. Often for the same dish.

‘The seasonal menu was created to offer something for every taste,’ says the chef, who describes the style of the food as ‘chic bistro’. Produce is sourced locally to provide a conscious balance of choice for meat lovers and vegetarians.

Try the char-grilled gem lettuce with pickled red onion, avocado, croutons, capers, wakame and cashew dressing for an unusual way to eat your greens.
Perhaps springbok tartare and mieliepap crisps or Beluga lentils? Cauliflower risotto or aubergine biltong anyone?
On the sweet side, there’s Stroh rum gelato, grapefruit compote or poached plum and vine leaf gelato.

The whole Brookdale package – Bistro, Tasting Room, Manor House – is pretty wonderful.
The Tasting Room is open daily except Monday.
The Bistro is open for lunch from Tuesdays to Sundays, and dinner on Friday and Saturday evenings.
There is a Hibernation Season special for South Africans at the Manor House valid until the end of September 2023: A stay in a Manor Suite for R3 450 per room per night, including breakfast and a complimentary wine tasting for two at the Tasting Room.
Explore Cape Town and its surroundings with these incredible deals on cars for under 100k. Find car listings here.
Also read:
Noop bistro is a tasty gem in Paarl’s Main Road you simply must visit
Picture: Brookdale Estate / Facebook