Collection: Restless River

Beginning as a hobby for self-taught winemaker, Craig Wessels, Restless River is now a world-renowned producer of cool climate Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay described by Neal Martin as having “real Burgundian allure”.

In 2004, Craig and his wife Anne bought a run-down sheep farm in the Upper Hemel-en-Aarde Valley, with a view to raise their family away from the city. By chance, the farm was also home to the area’s oldest remaining Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon vines, planted in 1998. Farming these vines became a serious passion, leading Craig to start making wine in a small, converted garage on the estate. In 2012 the Restless River wines were officially launched and have continued to impress ever since.

The Upper Hemel-en-Aarde Valley is one of three sub-appellations of the Hemel-en-Aarde. Here, proximity to the Atlantic Ocean, coastal breezes, regular cloud cover and high elevations, result in some of South Africa’s coolest daytime temperatures. Combined with duplex soils of decomposed granite over heavy clay subsoil, this marginal climate makes the area perfectly suited to create elegant wines with a distinctive sense of place.

The estate is named after the Onrus River (Afrikaans for Restless River). As this name suggests, Craig is never one to sit still. He has more than doubled their plantings since 2013 and continues to fine-tune an organic approach to farming. Biodiversity is encouraged to manage pests naturally, and mulching is used to suppress weed growth without the need for herbicides. Invasive plants are also converted into biochar and recycled into the soil. Craig sees himself first and foremost as a farmer, explaining “we spend 80% to 90% of our time in the vines”. This informs his winemaking process, in which site expression and authenticity are his guiding principles. Each variety is estate grown and fermented using indigenous yeasts and matured in its own cellar. Extended bottle ageing (between nine and 21 months) prior to release is also indicative of their unwavering commitment to quality.