Jakkalsvlei — Attraction in George

In short, you...MUST...go...TRY...them! We visited Jakkalsvlei a few weeks ago when we were down in Mossel Bay for a short break and decided to take the drive out and give them a try. Our bakkie (truck for foreigners) broke down about 10km away from their wine farm. We phoned ahead and let them know we couldn't make it as we needed to arrange to be towed. The next thing you know, we get a phone call back from the general Manager, Annaleen, asking us what our choice of wine was, and advising that SHE was on her way to pick us up...we were gobsmacked! Sure enough, 20 minutes later the Jakkalsvlei kombi (bus) arrived to pick us up! We were stunned! Obviously this is probably somethign they cant always do, but on this particular day, we were super blessed! The team had a table and some wine ready, and made us feel right at home...a great turn of events to what we thought was going to be a terrible day! Even more surprising was their menu, wine, AND macaron pairing/tasting! I've tried a few macron pairings in Cape Town, and this was by FAR the best! To give you an idea...I dont like macron's...THESE however are in a different league! In terms of the property, if you've got kids...there's ample (safe) room for them to play. Their mains are amazing...we had each ordered a different dish, and every single one was cooked to perfection! The waitresses are great...extremely attentive to customers needs! The premises is immaculate...rolling green lawns, picture perfect views, an indoor fireplace for winter, beautiful leather couches, a little curio shop etc. You can obviously buy their wine (which we did). The place is wheelchair friendly, there are TV's to watch the sport (we watched the F1 qualifying :)) ...what more can we say, except huge kudo's to Annaleen, the Chef, and the team supporting them, unforgettable and HIGHLY recommended! From Garry, Mary-Anne, Darren and Cairyn, we want to extend a heartfelt thank you,...

On a previous visit to Jakkalsvlei we sat in their restaurant, but this time around we visited in peak holiday season during which they open up their casual dining option which has more of a picnic style. Here they only do "build your own pizza" and they also stock the farms' beers and wines. As there are no waiters you place your order at the counter and collect once done. Infront of the restaurant they have a big, beautiful lawn that overlooks the valley and vineyards where we could sit and relax at picnic tables covered by 2 big tents. There were also live performances while we visited and the kids had a play area and a jumping castle to entertain them. Their beers include a Lager and a Pale Ale of which I enjoyed both and we also enjoyed our pizzas although we felt that they were on the pricier side. Although they are a bit in the middle of nowhere, I rate it is worth a try if you haven't been there before. The picnic area however does not take bookings so arrive early if you are a big group and want shade throughout the entire day. If you are going to the restaurant you definitely need to make a booking during peak season as they are very popular. Overall everyone had a fun time and as the farm is very beautiful you could easily spend the entire day there. Note: If you are planning on drinking wine at the picnic area you also need to buy...

If you do nothing else before you die go and visit the Jakkalsvlei Winery and restaurant in Herbertsville.

We traveled on the dirt road from Vanwyksdorp so we were totally spoilt for awesome scenery but quite unprepared for what was to follow once we reached Jakkalsvlei!

We had five dogs in our group so couldn't, for good reasons, eat in the restaurant. That was not a problem at all. The absolutely awesome manageress of the restaurant sorted out our take-away pizza order and helped us with our wine section and just made us feel so especially welcome. We left there after browsing through the very interesting little shop with our delicious pizzas, our selection of wines, our Jakkalsvlei coffee beans and a feeling that this very special place 8km outside of Herbertsville is the closest one will ever get to heaven and still have one's feet firmly planted in this beautiful part of the Little Karoo. If you have never been there - go there. Once you have been there once you will certainly want to return again and again.

Such is the soul uplifting magic of this very special place with its very special people.

Our dusty road trip through the mountains was brilliant but the Jakkalsvlei Winery and its charm was just the cherry on top! Magical with a capital M!

The chilled Merlot we had was great as was the brie, fig and...