Adi Badenhorst is known for bringing beautiful, expressive wines of South Africa and of his own Swartland region to new levels. He is one of those rare humans who is brilliant and talented, with great sensitivity to land, vine and the human family and who disarms us with a casual manner and self-deprecating sense of humor. Having been raised in the world of wine (his grandfather held the vineyards of Groot Constantia for 46 years), Adi has also gained experience at wineries in France and New Zealand. His adventurous spirit and love of Swartland made him one of the pioneers of the revival of this wine region. In 2008 he and his cousin purchased a largely neglected winery in the Swartland region of South Africa, north of Cape Town. At the time, the area was better known for mountains and rugged natural beauty than for wine. However, what they saw was a treasure trove of old vines, waiting to be re-discovered. Since then, they have nurtured these old vines as well as planted new vineyards. All their vineyards are dry farmed (no irrigation) and planted to bush vines, well suited to this arid region. His winemaking philosophy mirrors this approach: low intervention is the theme. Grapes are handpicked, and then fermentation with indigenous yeasts proceed; sulfur additions are kept to a minimum. Adi strives to produce wines that are that are authentic and delicious, and they are always amazingly complex.