Freedom to pig out
2005-10-20
Malané Bosman
IT is not only vines that are free to grow and be turned into award-winning wine on a hill in Wemmershoek. Animals also have the freedom to pig out there.
So says Freedom Hill’s Dr Doolittle, a handsome twenties-something man to whom animals come a close second to his love of winemaking.
Ryan Wyness is viticulturist and winemaker on the young estate which overlooks the prison from which Nelson Mandela took his first steps to freedom.
Ryan learnt the art of making Shiraz from the legendary Hempies du Toit at Annandale.
What makes experiencing Freedom Hill’s wine an even more unique
experience is the attendance of Ryan’s three pet pigs, two rather overweight Vietnamese potbellies and a black and white piglet named Sam.
They love lounging in the vicinity of the cellar, scrounging for acorns under the old oak trees.
Soentjie and her brother Amen (the veterinary surgeon made him kiss his prospect of offspring goodbye) were the first to arrive at Ryan’s log cabin on the mountain slope.
His four ducks, 15 chickens, two cats, a pond filled with Koi fish and two dogs soon joined the pigs.
Strays
Not to forget the dog belonging to a neighbour, but who, as Ryan put it, “prefers to chill out there, because it’s so ‘lekker’ here”.
He says: “This is enough for now, but my fianceé is also crazy about animals, and she is sure to add to the circus.
“I like animals, also for the amusement factor. Apart from the Labrador, they are all strays and presents.”
Ryan, born and bred in Somerset West, learnt his winemaking at Elsenburg. He has worked on several wine estates and then headed to England where he worked as a wine advisor, getting to taste the best from all over the world.
The animals do not deter him from making excellent wines.
The 2002 Merlot received a Gold Medal at the Swiss International Airlines Wine Awards. It was also voted Best Red Wine retailing under R50 a bottle.
Freedom Hill is a boutique cellar, aiming for a maximum production of 6000 cases. The main focus will be on Shiraz, which will be Freedom Hill’s icon wine.
And no, neither Soentjie nor Amen or the other members of the zoo are allowed to pig out on the fruits of Freedom Hill’s vines.
Visitors however, are most welcome to taste the wines and picnic under the trees, or cool off in a sparkling reservoir (without Kois).
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