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Devon Valley wine farms

A small valley just north-west of Stellenbosch town.

Read the story: About the Devon Valley

At a glance

Closest to Cape Town
Meinert, about 47 min by car
Highest rated
Aaldering (4.0)
Open on Sundays
1 of 3
Serve lunch
2 of 3
Have somewhere to stay
2 of 3

3 wineries

New wave

Aaldering

Pinotage, Shiraz and a Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot blend lead the range at this Devon Valley estate, which has a tasting room and lodges for overnight stays. Dutch couple Marianne and Fons Aaldering bought the farm with its vineyards already planted, and the family still runs it, with their daughter Jacqueline and her husband Gert-Jan Posthuma managing the winery.

Mon – SatLunchStay
Wines
4.0
Visit
4.7

Bubbles on the list

Clos Malverne

Pinotage and Cape blends lead here, with the flagship Auret blending Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinotage. The Devon Valley farm has a restaurant serving comfort food and wood-fired pizzas, plus accommodation. The Pritchard family still own it and still use traditional basket presses.

Tue – SunLunchStay
Wines
3.8
Visit
4.5

Merlot

Meinert

Visits are by appointment only at this small Devon Valley winery, where Merlot leads the range. The flagship Synchronicity blends Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Pinotage, and is only made in selected vintages. Martin Meinert bought the land in the late eighties.

Mon – Fri
Wines
3.8
Visit
few reviews yet

Plan

A day in the Devon Valley

Three estates close together, with lunch in the middle. All three list Tuesday to Friday as opening days.

  1. MorningMeinertKnown for Merlot and Pinotage.
  2. LunchAalderingKnown for Pinotage and Chardonnay, serves lunch, about 2.5 km from the last stop.
  3. AfternoonClos MalverneKnown for Pinotage and Sauvignon Blanc, about 1.6 km from the last stop.
Open this day

From there you can pick a date, see who is open, reorder stops, add more and open the route in Google Maps.

The story

About the Devon Valley

Clos Malverne, in this small valley, was among the first estates to bottle a Cape Blend, in 1995.

Devon Valley is a small Wine of Origin ward of the Stellenbosch district, a few minutes' drive west of town. It is red-wine ground: Pinotage and Merlot are signature grapes at all three estates on our list.

What the ward name means

South Africa's Wine of Origin scheme nests areas inside each other: the Coastal Region contains the Stellenbosch district, and the district contains eight wards. Devon Valley is one of them, alongside Banghoek, Bottelary, Jonkershoek Valley, Papegaaiberg, Polkadraai Hills, Simonsberg-Stellenbosch and Vlottenburg.

So a bottle can say Stellenbosch or, more narrowly, Devon Valley. The Wine of Origin seal on the neck is what certifies that origin, along with the vintage and grape.

About the Devon Valley

Three estates, three ways in

Meinert is the long view. Martin Meinert bought the Devon Crest farm in 1987, when it was planted to Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinotage, and replanted it block by block between 1989 and 2008 after leafroll virus. The wine names borrow from the family's printing history in Namibia. Visits are by appointment.

Clos Malverne started with 800 bottles of Cabernet Sauvignon, and in 1995 was among the first to bottle a Cape Blend, a red with 30 to 70% Pinotage. Its flagship, Auret, is one. There is a restaurant on the estate.

Aaldering is the newest of the three: a Dutch couple, Marianne and Fons Aaldering, bought it in 2004. Pinotage leads here too, next to Chardonnay, Merlot and Shiraz, and there are lodges and a winemaker's penthouse if you would rather not drive back.

About the Devon Valley

Questions people ask

Is Devon Valley an official wine ward?
Yes. Devon Valley is one of eight Wine of Origin wards in the Stellenbosch district, so wines from there can carry Devon Valley as their origin on the label instead of the broader Stellenbosch.
What wine is Devon Valley known for?
Red wine, mostly. Pinotage and Merlot are signature grapes at all three Devon Valley estates on our list, and Clos Malverne's Auret is a Cape Blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinotage.
How do I get to Clos Malverne?
Use Devon Valley Road. The estate says it cannot be reached via Blumberg Drive, the road that runs past the Devonvale Golf Course.

Updated October 2026.

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