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Historical Silkbush – Our Beginnings

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Please select from the thumbnails below to view the full size image and accompanying text discussions.

Enter our "gateway" to Silkbush Mountain Vineyards! The high mountain peak to the right of center is called the Sybasberg (Silkbush Mountain) and Silkbush is our "anglicized" vineyard namesake. The 2004 vineyards appear as brown fields above the white gate wall. We purchased the farm in 2000 so were thrilled things were coming along so well.

From this angle, you can see the planted blocks are nearing maturity, but the former 2.3 Ha of Ruby Cabernet (replanted to Pinotage in 2007) stands out, as does the final 1 Ha of open ground above our upper reservoir. (The last 1% of the vineyard was planted with Pinotage.) The higher, open land burned in a large wildfire in early 2006, but already had started to make a come back just one year later. In the right foreground is the General Manager's house, home to Anton and Franci Roos, and their three sons.

This pretty view greets visitors as they pass our front gate and behold Franci Roos' flower gardens. The gate slows down cars and trucks, important around a home with children, and reduces the road dust somewhat. Across the road, see the hillside vineyard and the old laborer house (since removed) which belonged to Franci's father, Francois Marais. Franci grew up on the farm immediately adjacent to where she and her family now live: SILKBUSH Mountain Vineyards!

In this early photo, the more mature plantings had taken the "construction project" look away but the now green fields were still very young. The brown land to the right (South) of the tree line going up the mountain is the neighboring property, unfortunately a poorly managed property owned for years by an uninvolved Bahamian resident. This photo was taken years before we constructed our guest cottage The building is sited to the far left, just above the NE corner of the planted Petit Verdot block and our lower dam.

This photo shows vineyards in several stages: in the foreground are our two year old Cabernet grapes; across the river is our 7 year old block of Shiraz; above our two equipment barns are the very old vineyards of Franci Roos' father, Francois Marais, and also, to the right a new block recently replanted. For some reason, Francois' young plantings on this block were struggling. (This at times happens to the best of farmers.)

Silkbush General Manager Anton Roos took this photo in late spring when everything was very green. We planted about 90% of our acreage by 2003, and that is all now mature. We then held off for two years to see what the markets were telling us and to see what seemed to produce the best quality. We are pleased we waited as we then planted the balance of the land to smaller blocks of more exotic vines such as Mouvedre, Grenache, and Viognier. Our terroir is closest to that of the Rhone Valley in France, and we are doing more Rhone varietels than Bordeaux.

All of the permanent crops from this photo have been removed! Because we could not physically plant and properly tend the entire property all at once, we had a program of phasing out the fruit trees and older, untrellised vines over five (2000-2004) years, which ultimately took til 2006. The swath of purple in the center of the photo was a block of nectarines that was just blooming in early October 2000. The last of the peaches were removed after the 2003 harvest was completed. A bittersweet day: those were great peaches and our best crop ever! But we will not miss the old and very low bush vines; 100% of our planted vines are now trellised.

Chronologically, Founder Dave Jefferson may not be a kid anymore, but on this beautiful May day in 2000 he felt like one; he had actually purchased a farm in South Africa! That the Wabooms River (more a strong, year-round creek) was still flowing strongly behind him in late fall was very encouraging. The Wabooms rages in the winter and then becomes tame for the rest of the year. But it's always comforting to farmers to see running water year round. Dave Jefferson is Silkbush co-founder and its Managing Director; he is a US citizen and lives in Sonoma County, California where he has been in the grape growing business for 45 years.

This early spring photo captures 80% or more of Silkbush's plantable acreage. It is easier to describe what is not our land: everything to the right of the almost straight tree line, including the two blue water reservoirs on the Alfonso Bowe property to the south; most of the dark green land at the top of the photo (to the east) which borders our reservoirs near the top of the photo. The dark green blocks on our land at this time were fruit orchards we removed over the years to come, as well as breaking many new acres which had only been bush for decades.

Big changes from six years earlier when we purchased the farm: the lower reservoir was cleaned out and greatly expanded, and some 200 new acres planted. Remaining to be planted at that time were the open fields above our two resevoirs, planted in 2006 and 2007, completing our redevelopment and tripling of the farm. Behind schedule, sure, but very few mistakes were made, and we are very happy with our crop mix and the quality of the grapes coming off the mountain. The four tan, open plots in the lower left hand corner are where a neighbor was trying to establish a buchu production, an effort set back by the wildfires of early 2006 and then finally abandoned.

The efforts of the previous years are quite clear in this '06 photo. Fruit orchards removed, more land cleared and planted, many new blocks nearing maturity, the roofs of the equipment barns painted green, and, in the lower left, a grape trailer ramp is being built. The grapes are picked by hand into trailers drawn by tractors; the trailers will then dump their loads into trucks which take the grapes to at least four different wineries.

While by October 2008, 99% of our vineyards had been planted and were 95% mature for the harvest of 2009, even the mature vineyards looked quite bleak and desolate during the winter and very early spring. That winter in South Africa was especially wet, cold, and very long, and the resulting harvest dropped back about 20% of the prior year. Well, that's farming!

Subsequent to purchase of the property in February 2000, Anton Roos, our vineyard General Manager, had some old vines and peach trees removed and 16 Ha (about 40 acres) deep ripped for planting in the spring. The heavy Italian track-laying equipment (similar to a Caterpillar D-9) was rented from a local contractor only for the soil preparation period. Virtually each year this process was repeated until we were 99% planted in 2007. By 2008, we were nearing maturity on most of the vine yields.

Here we are preparing new fields for planting. This is the sort of powerful equipment we need to rent to break new ground so young plants can get a good start.

General Manager Anton Roos keeps discovering springs on the property, which require trenching, so as the artesian water does not "over-water" our vines. In the process, we discover boulders, such as the one here, that have to be moved out of the fields or buried very deeply. Without heavy equipment, this work would be nearly impossible to accomplish.

Anton determined that our old tractor needed a quick fix so he turned into a machinist for an hour, manufacturing a replacement bolt to put the machine back into action for the harvest. He is a very talented, hands-on farm manager.

Caught in a rare moment when he is not smiling, Anton Roos searches for the right words to explain what has taken place over the past four years since we had purchased the farm. While in early 2004 we were just about through planting, we had years ahead of us growing all the vines to maturity; throughout we must determine the exact viticultural procedures to maximize the quality of what we are producing. The efforts never stop and the entire undertaking can be daunting.

Franci Roos plays a larger role on Silkbush Mountain Vineyards every vintage. Besides being a wonderful mother of three boys, and a terrific cook and gardener, she is de facto the Assistant Farm Manager to her husband, Anton. She also runs the small store for the workers, gets the weekly payrolls from the bank, and compiles many of the computerized reports we must file with the authorities for VAT and other required items. Franci is exceptional.

Anton Roos, Silkbush Co-founder and GM, watches his first born son, Johan, affectionately strangle their cat on the steps of their home. Bismark, one of the pair of German Shepards that provides serious security to the farm family, looks on in utter dog amazement. Johan and the dogs are all over our farm daily with Anton, and may represent long term managerial succession!

Here are Anton and Franci Roos, with sons Johan and Francois in 2003. The harvest had been completed, and the Roos family was shortly headed for a 4-Wheeling and hiking vacation in the Eastern Cape with several other farming families. Their boys were still small enough to be carried on their backs for reasonable distances, and both parents stayed very fit.

Antonie, son number three, was born in January 2005, and was named after his dad. By early 2006, he was walking very well and developing into a wonderful young character.

In this photo, Antonie is just over 15 months, walking like a champ, and developing a grand little personality. Whatta family!

At ages 8 and 6, these two young fellows have truly happy souls and are very well mannered young boys to boot. It is a joy to be around them. Their first language is Afrikaans but they did learn English as well.

Virtually everyone who has seen this picture has had the same reaction: what fun it would be to grow up on SILKBUSH Vineyard! Francois is enjoying life with Laska, the Malamute, on this warm South African day.

The personalities of the three Roos brothers is captured by this photo. The driver is Francois, the most mechanically inclined of the group; Johann, his older brother, is the light-hearted one, and his bare feet just ignore how cold a day it was. Antonie, the youngest, may prove to be the most cerebral and philosophical of the team. Only time will tell.

This is a typical pre-sunrise, as seen from the Manager's House. In the middle distance are our two equipment barns. Vineyards on the east side of the valley, like ours, receive late afternoon sun, but a delayed sunrise. Farms to the west get early morning sunlight, but lose the sunlight much earlier in the afternoon. Accordingly, in this valley, white grapes do better on the cooler western side, and red grapes, who need the heat for maturity, do better on the eastern slopes.

Here is the Manager's House at Silkbush. The Roos Family lives here on property. From this angle, we are looking at the Voorkamer (living room), kitchen and pantry. You can see Franci's flower gardens, shrubs, and trees, and, over the fuller tree, the highest plantings on SILKBUSH Mountain Vineyards. This is the view the Roos family enjoys most days, and why Anton Roos says "we are living our dreams."

While not really big, the Manager's house had been a very comfortable home for the the Roos family. Since acquiring the property, more bedrooms and bathrooms were needed for their expanding family. Accordingly, in 2012, we competed a major renovation of the home.

Here is the patio area in front of the Manager's house which can seat quite a large group. Besides a colossal view of the mountains and our vineyards, meals are cooked over the outside braai (fireplace) during all kinds of weather. We frequently entertain representatives of wineries considering the purchase of our crops in this charming area here or above at the Kingsbury Cottage. While Silkbush is not open for drop-in wine tastings, you may certainly call and reserve a tasting on our patio and we will be happy to entertain you on your next visit to South Africa.

The original house was a prefabricated structure, and was quite small, inefficient, and depressing. The renovation effort, while relatively inexpensive, really dolled the place up. The Roos family is now quite pleased with their accommodations. Further, having Anton and Franci live on the farm intensified the management attention they provide our Silkbush vineyard development.

The huge sandstone boulders that flank the Roos' lawn and gardens were just a very few we had to remove to plant our land closest to the Wabooms river. Rocky soil is famous for producing high quality wine, and we certainly have some very rocky blocks to our vineyard. When prospective grape buyers come to Silkbush Mountain Vineyards, their first impression from the willow tree setting will be very well cared for vines, gardens, and an inkling of what we had to do to build a modern hillside vineyard.

We built this bridge in April 2002, just before the winter rains hit. The previous bridge did not have the vertical side concrete rails we have now, and its footings were quite eroded. In a word, it was becoming dangerous. We will have still higher guard rails drilled into the bridge before we open the Manor house for visitors and because every visitor going up into the mountains along the River Road easement must cross this bridge.

The two former fruit packing sheds now chiefly serve as equipment storage and maintenance barns. Naturally, they are especially useful during rainy winter days and very hot summer periods because there is always something needing repair on a farm. Further, all permanent farm employees are paid weekly salaries, come rain or shine, so we have also built a small office in one barn and everybody keeps on working.

This large steel barn was part of our purchase of the property back in 2000. While not very glamorous, this shot of two sprayers, our "excavator," and a large truck, is indicative of modern farming. For example, if grape vines are not sprayed with sulphur regularly, powdery or downy mildew or rot can take off and devastate a crop in short order. (Because it was harvest time, all our tractors and gondolas were out in the fields working.)

Here we look at five of our six worker cottages and a portion of the large rocks that required excavation before we could plant our fields closest to the river. About 75% of our permanent employees live in free housing with provided utilities. Some have satellite television service as well.

We don't contend our worker housing is glamorous but we try to improve it annually. The workers are also proud of their quarters and are making their grounds nicer as well. Today the landscaping is just lovely. There are flower and vegetable gardens for workers to enjoy now.

This building is located on the other side of the river, closer to the General Manager's house and the front gate. Unfortunately, the workers had a fire in 2011 but we were able to rebuild the building and put on a new roof in a few months time.

The housing, including the utilities, is provided at no cost to our permanent employees, and is much higher quality than most farm labor housing in any grape growing country.

We are very proud of providing electrical service to all our labor housing beginning the second year after we acquired the property. None of these cottages had previously been electrified. If people cannot read at night, it is unrealistic to expect a high degree of literacy to be attained. The winter subsequent to this photo, we extensively landscaped each of the labor houses, and the workers families now are also maintaining flower and vegetable gardens.

The water was glassy smooth, and mirrored the mountain peaks behind. The blue drums serve to float our water intake hose. We always pump from the top of our dams, not the bottom, as we get the cleanest water that way. We have sophisticated filtration systems in our irrigation systems to keep the drip emitters from clogging, but it still helps to start with the cleanest water possible.

This reservoir (usually called a dam in the Cape winelands) has been enlarged since this 2000 photo. It looked quite scenic and idyllic when the photo was taken. However, we wanted the water used for grapes, not for growing these water-hungry "weeds," so the reeds were cleared out, and the Eucalyptus (Blue Gum) and Black Wattle trees removed.

Here is what our largest dam looks like after a couple years of work: greatly enlarged, and far more efficient, with all the water-sucking trees gone. Admittedly not as charming as before, but once we get all the new vines planted, we'll get around to landscaping the dam with some shrubs and perhaps a swimming raft. But only after we raise the wall at least another 2 meters and double its capacity.

This photo documents late fall when the harvest was nearing completion. The Wabooms river bisects the center of the photo at the tree line. All the vineyards and property above the river at this point belong to the Marais family and other neighbors.

Adjacent to the water weir, a stand of mature trees in the center is a very cool and shady spot where a small campsite has been developed. To the lower left is the water weir, which divides water (draining from an uphill kloof) between our lower dam and other farms further below Silkbush. In the heat of the summer, the Roos family frequently invites friends over for an evening braai around a large campfire, and then the families often stay overnight in tents. The stars at night in this area are crystal clear and bright. Lovely, just lovely.

In military lingo, "Ablution" refers to a structure that houses both shower and flush toilet facilities; and that is exactly what this little log cabin, with sky for a roof, has for Silkbush campers. Behind the little building is a wading pond for children and then our upper dam rises toward the hillside plantings.

SILKBUSH is blessed with more water than it needs, as long as it can be efficiently captured in dams. However, a system has been developed to share water with neighboring farms farther away from the mountains. A water weir was built years ago to divide water flows between a ditch to lower farms and the balance to our lower dam. Water flows strongly into the weir 12 months a year.

In 2014, after years of Anton's advocacy, the open ditch from the water weir to the lower farms was replaced with these two blue pipes. There will be much less water lost to evaporation and continuous seepage into our adjacent vineyards with the updated system. (Subsequently, the ditch with the pipes was filled with soil. The entire cost to Silkbush was very modest.)

The last of the winter's snow was still melting in this photo, and the runoff was coming down the Wabooms River at a terrific pace. During and after a major rainstorm, this river goes crazy, frequently exceeding its banks, and it has occasionally done damage to our lower vines.

Catherine Moylan (now Catherine Jefferson, Silkbush founder Dave Jefferson's wife) and the Roos' Malamute Laska relax in the South African sunshine. Both appear engrossed in the "Beginning Afrikaans" primer!

From left to right: Wiwe Pretorius, a former guide from Paarl, Catherine Moylan (Jefferson), Kenwood, California, and Franci Roos. Franci was regaling them with the story of a woman's organization from nearby Wolseley that had come by for lunch a few weeks earlier. The professional gardeners in the group were highly impressed and a lengthy story with photos resulted in one of the Cape's largest Afrikaans language newspapers.

When Catherine decided to visit Silkbush in November 2003 with Dave Jefferson, Silkbush owner and co-founder, she did not want to come empty-handed so she brought a handmade quilt to give away. This beautiful quilt was awarded to Keke by means of a fair drawing, and it is very apparent that he and his mother were both pleased.

Taken close to the top of our plantings on a fairly clear day, we wanted to show the extent of the windbreaks planted on the farms of neighbors on the valley floor. The usual windbreak is made from Beefwood trees, and they are needed to diminish the force of strong winds that can blow through the valley any month of the year. Fortunately, most (but not all) of our grapevines are protected from the wind by a sharp rise on the neighbor's property directly to the south of us. (Our other problem periodically comes from baboons that live in the rough brush in the kloof bordering our farm; they like to eat sweet grapes, especially Pinotage.)

Virtually all the hillside land above our barns and the Manager's House in this photo belong to the Marais family; however, the scorched section of brush on the right is part of Vredehoek, another landowner above us. The double rows of Pinotage can be easily picked out on Silkbush at the bottom. In this picture, from north to the left is our front gate and the Manager's home.

The SILKBUSH property line is defined by the Manager's House (green roof, to left) and equipment barns (to right). The dark green trees were our peaches, removed after the 2003 harvest and planted to Cabernet Franc, Viognier, and Petit Verdot grapes. All the hillside land above is owned by Francois Marais, Anton Roos's father-in-law. Francois is a noted grape and fruit farmer. He and his wife, Isabelle, support and advise Anton and Franci in many aspects of running the Silkbush farm.

With great amusement, Francois and Isabelle Marais, (Franci's parents and our Silkbush neighbors), discuss this "Beginning Afrikaans" primer. It appears as if they disagree with a contention of the author. Since this is the language they have spoken at home since childhood, they know of what they speak. Francois and Isabelle are a constant support system for Anton, Franci, and the boys.

By fall 2005, we had 90% of our land planted and most of the vines fairly well established. Every year, however, the plants are older and generally carry an increasing crop until they hit plant maturity in about the fifth year. Besides top viticultural practices all along the line, we also have developed an exceptional irrigation system that allows us to water the vines throughout the growing season, including the critical weeks just before harvest.

Viewed from a hillside north of the property just after acquisition, we see much of the SILKBUSH plantable land. The brown, open land was planted to red grapevines in August 2000. Over the next five years, all the fruit orchards and most of the then existing vines were replanted to red grapes. As of December 2003, we were 95% there with 82.9 Ha planted and growing well. (We ultimately retained 4.3 Ha of existing vines and planted about 83 Ha of new vines, for a total of over 87 Ha.)

The "double" rows of 1997 Pinotage are in the front of the Manager's House, and are the only grapes planted in this fashion on the vineyard. These vines are irrigated with micro-jet spray emitters; all others are single row, vertical shoot positioned and irrigated with drip hose emitters, a far more efficient system.

While we have not had any fruit trees on our property since 2003, the neighboring small farm, Vredehoek, has a beautiful stand of pear trees immediately adjacent. Here we are able to admire them in full bloom even though there was still snow on the adjacent mountain peaks. (It makes you think you are in Switzerland!)

In this historical photo, see Wilhelm Basson, Architect, and Anne Thistleton, a former Silkbush Director from Stellenbosch, reviewing the proposed Manor House site in 2001. (We subsequently moved the site 100 meters to avoid a winter wet-spot.)

While it may be a bit difficult to see, we had staked out the actual outside and inside walls of the what would be the Manor House so we could be sure it "felt right" as we walked around with the plans. Not much you can say about a rough graded homesite, other than "what a view!" A 5,167 square foot, four bedroom/four bath house will occupy the foreground. We started the design effort in 2000, and completed the plan two years later. The building site was graded in 2002 (about when this photo was taken) and the road to the site completed and decorative trees along the road planted in 2003. While the Manor House has yet to be built do to unforseen other projects taking precedence, it will one day be looking down upon mature Petit Verdot vineyards and our lower reservoir.

It was early October 2008 and the snow stayed late into a chilly and wet spring. The vineyards seen in this photo are not ours but belong to a neighbor about 2- 3 miles to the north. Our land is chiefly below the Sybasberg peak to the right.

Construction of our guest cottage continued throughout 2007 even into the wet South African winter. The winter rains had slowed construction somewhat but the guest cottage was closing in on completion. The site had also been filled and graded to nearly level in front of the cottage, but the final landscaping would wait until summer, 2008. In the Western Cape, winter is much akin to Northern California- heavy rains for a few days, and then spectacular blue skies. On this day, the snows in the mountains to the east are apparent and our reservoirs are as full as we want them from storm runoff.

The closer you approach the guest cottage, the more one must admire the builders and the landscapers. Very heavy equipment was utilized to move the boulders into place before the shrubs and flowers which were planted. The last step was the curved, brick-paved driveway that winds up to the cottage. Simply marvelous. Check more photos by going to the Kingsbury Cottage guest lodging section of the Silkbush website.

The purpose of this photo is not to highlight our guest cottage as much as it is to stress its spectacular setting. The cottage beholds most of our vineyards spread out below and to the left (from the perspective of one enjoying the view from the veranda). We built it chiefly for our partners and ourselves, but we do rent it out to lucky vacationers as well.

In October 2008, the red flowers were in full bloom yet the vineyards in the background were still dormant, as a result of a long, cold, and very wet winter continuing well into spring. All the decorative rocks were a small portion of those that had been removed from our vineyard land years earlier.

It is such a striking contrast: the manicured grounds of the Kingsbury, the uniformity of the vineyards, and the the wild mountain veld from which it all has been carved and nurtured.

Former Silkbush partner Tom Kingsbury, along with mutual hometown high-school chum Lorry Wendland, came to visit the farm in December 2001. Tom, Lorry, and Co-founder, Dave Jefferson, were all originally from Rochester, Minnesota, and had been friends since puberty (John Marshall HS, Class of 1961!). Lorry was a cheerleader and brilliant to boot; now she is a grandmother and runs class reunions with panache! Both she and Tom came to South Africa to visit Dave and see what was shaping up at Silkbush Mountain Vineyards. To say the least, they were very impressed.

Tragically, Tom was taken from us in August 2007 by pancreatic cancer at age 64. We decided to name our upcoming guest cottage the "Kingsbury Cottage" after this remarkable and enthusiastic man; we informed Tom of our decision shortly before he died and he said he would be honored. Likewise, old friend; you honored us with your manifold contributions during your altogether too brief a stay.

There is an annual mountain bike race which crosses our vineyards; we offer a water stop for thirsty riders. This photo helps put the Kingsbury Cottage in perspective of the impressive surroundings.

SILKBUSH Mountain Vineyards has all sorts of wildlife on and around its lands. Leopards, baboons, snakes, birds, turtles: perhaps not many of each, but it's a regular Noah's ark over the course of a year.

From the vineyard below, the metal beacon can only be seen through high powered binoculars. But when you are in a glider 100 feet below, it is a different story. Perhaps the next time our neighbor Rico Suter takes us flying, the winds will be stronger and we'll get to see the other side of the mountain.

These mountains are very old, sedimentary, decomposed sandstone that have snow on them every winter, and are impacted by the odd earthquake every few decades.

If the Silkbush mountain view is the "front door," this is the view out the "back door," looking west. Late November in the Cape is the equivalent of late May in North America. Late spring weather, with frequent spring showers, and even if it does not rain, clouds pop up almost every day. And they help to make outstanding Western sunsets at nightfall.

Not every day is sunny and without rain. A strong wind and rain storm was moving off the south Atlantic and coming up the valley as the sun went down in this photo. Virtually all our crop was still unharvested so it made for a nervous night, but the light rain settled the dust, and the harvest went on for weeks more without any damage to our red grapes.

Quite striking, eh! Certainly the setting is beautiful but that was only one of many reasons for buying the hillside land. While grapes and fruit trees are also cultivated on the valley floor, the highest quality grapes come from the soils higher on the mountain slopes. Also vineyards such as ours have the first opportunity to capture winter runoff to fill their dams. But once you have experienced the sunsets, it is impossible not to love our land!

SOUTH AFRICA VINEYARD OFFICE: PO Box 91, Breerivier 685, Western Cape, RSA
Tel: (27) 083-629-1735 or email: [email protected]
Kingsbury Cottage Guest House Rental Information: Tel: (27) 083-629-1710 or email: [email protected]
USA OFFICE: Public Relations, Social Media & Marketing: Lisa O’Connor Email: [email protected]