Die Bergkelder is a Stellenbosch mountain cellar linked to Fleur du Cap, with underground maturation and a Pinotage wine.
The producer
Die Bergkelder is a mountain cellar cut deep into Papegaaiberg in Stellenbosch. Dr Anton Rupert built it as the first underground bottle maturation cellar of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere. Fleur du Cap is the commercial label associated with the cellar, and its range is tied to a team approach at The Bergkelder. A Fleur du Cap Pinotage is made entirely from Pinotage and matured in French and American oak. Underground maturation uses controlled temperature and humidity before a separate bottle stage lets the wine mellow and develop bouquet.
Known for
Underground Stellenbosch bottle maturation
Notable facts
Die Bergkelder was founded in 1967.
Its official opening was on 7 November 1968.
Dr Julius Laszlo served as cellarmaster from 1978 to 1992.
In 1979, Die Bergkelder introduced maturation in small casks of new French oak.
The story
New French Oak In 1979
In 1979, Die Bergkelder took the lead by introducing maturation of wine in small casks of new French oak. The casks changed the ageing environment: oak can add toast and spice, while gradual oxygen contact can soften texture over time. The choice placed French oak inside the cellar's production work before later bottle maturation. Cask maturation and bottle maturation perform different jobs, with wood shaping the wine before time in glass. Die Bergkelder's 1979 decision began with a small new French oak cask.
From the atlas
Die Bergkelder
A Stellenbosch mountain cellar linked to Fleur du Cap, with underground bottle maturation and a Pinotage wine.
At A Glance
Field
Detail
Place
Papegaaiberg in Stellenbosch
Label
Fleur du Cap
Main grape
Pinotage
Cellar distinction
Underground bottle maturation
The Producer
Die Bergkelder is a mountain cellar cut deep into Papegaaiberg in Stellenbosch. Dr Anton Rupert built it as the first underground bottle maturation cellar of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere. Underground maturation keeps temperature and humidity controlled. The wines then move to a separate bottle maturation cellar, where controlled conditions allow the wine to smooth and mellow while its bouquet develops.
Fleur du Cap is the commercial label associated with Die Bergkelder. Its range is tied to a team approach at The Bergkelder.
Place
Papegaaiberg is the mountain in Stellenbosch into which Die Bergkelder is cut. The physical setting gives the producer a cellar built inside a named mountain site, with maturation conditions shaped by the underground location.
Wines
Fleur du Cap is the label associated with Die Bergkelder, and its red range includes a varietal Pinotage made entirely from that grape. The wine sits as a single variety red rather than a multi grape blend. The range is therefore defined here by the Fleur du Cap name, the Pinotage grape and the cellar work carried out at The Bergkelder.
In The Glass
The Pinotage is full bodied, led by ripe plum and berry fruit. The palate is well balanced, and the aftertaste lingers.
A Bottle To Understand It
Choose the 2020 Fleur du Cap Pinotage. It is made from 100% Pinotage and matured for 12 months in second and third fill French and American oak barrels. The label names one grape and one maturation method in a single bottle.
Final Word
Die Bergkelder is a Stellenbosch mountain cellar associated with Fleur du Cap. Its Pinotage wine brings the cellar's grape and maturation work together under one label.