By MIKE HALLS
The Stellenbosch Brewing Company, founded in 2013 by brewer Bruce Collins, and his wife, taproom manger Karen, is located in the tranquil setting of the Klein Joostenberg farm minutes off the N1.
“We focus on brewing beers utilizing fresh and natural ingredients which respect the heritage of traditional styles yet we creatively brew them to suit our South African taste buds, modern lifestyles, diverse cultures, beautiful landscapes and unbeatable climate.”
This family friendly venue is a favourite spot of mine to relax on a weekend with the wife and kids. Their picnic style food is great to share and there’s some good options for the little ones too. The food offers great value for money and is of exceptional quality. I particularly enjoy the Best of Boland Platter, which includes some local cheeses and charcuterie. The kids absolutley adore the Puppy Dog, bockwurst roll. Sitting out in the sun on picnic benches or on the immaculate lawns by the lake, while the kids run off and play on the Jungle Jims, or partake in pony rides reminds you why we love living in the paradise that is the Western Cape.
I love to order the beer flight every time I visit, to see what I fancy that day. Whilst all the beers are good, I always end up ordering a Mass Hoppiness. This double dry hopped IPA is a thing of legend. There’s a lots of good IPA’s around now, but this one is a firm favourite. It took home a silver medal at the 2017 South African National Beer Trophy. At the same awards their Hoenderhok Bock not only took home a gold medal, but won the accolade of Best Beer of the Show. I think it’s fair to say that Stellie are on the up and we can expect great things to come from this place in the near future.