Kanonkop: From Burnt Rubber to 100-Point Wine and 4x World's Best

Named after the cannon on Simonsberg that signaled ships entering Table Bay in the 1600s, Kanonkop is South Africa's "First Growth." Beyers Truter's 1989 Pinotage won Best Winemaker in the World at the IWSC in 1991 -- redeeming a grape everyone had written off. His successor Abrie Beeslaar won the same trophy three more times (2008, 2015, 2017). No other estate on Earth has won IWSC Winemaker of the Year 4 times. The Paul Sauer 2015 scored 100 points. Four generations of the Sauer-Krige family. Estate-grown only. Red wine or nothing.

What to do there

4 things to do

1. 1 Find the Cannon Hill - Where Ships Were Signaled for 200 Years History · Free

   In the 17th century, a cannon sat on this hill. When merchant ships appeared in Table Bay harbor - 30+ kilometers away - someone would fire it. The boom would echo off the Simonsberg slopes. Farmers in Stellenbosch, Paarl, and the surrounding valleys would hear it. It meant one thing: trading opportunities. Load your wagon with fresh fruit, vegetables, and wine. Hitch your oxen. Ride to Cape Town to barter with sailors who'd spent months at sea on VOC ships plying the route between Europe and the Far East. That signal system connected the interior farms to global trade for over 200 years. The cannon is long gone - possibly discovered before WWII - but the hill remains. You're standing at a 17th-century communications hub. Kanonkop open Mon-Fri 09:00-17:00, Sat 09:00-14:00. Entry to grounds free. Ask staff: 'Where was the cannon that gave Kanonkop its name?' They know the story and can point you to the kopje or show historical information. If you can't access the exact kopje, look at the landscape. Imagine the sightlines from this elevation to Table Bay. The logistics alone are impressive - a single cannon shot coordinating an entire regional economy.

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2. 2 Taste the Pinotage That Changed the World's Mind Wine · Price: moderate

   In 1991, winemaker Beyers Truter won the International Wine & Spirit Competition's Robert Mondavi Trophy for Best Winemaker in the World with the 1989 Kanonkop Pinotage. A South African winemaker. With Pinotage. Best in the world. At a time when international critics dismissed Pinotage as a grape that smelled like burnt rubber and nail polish remover, Truter proved it could make wines that rivaled anything from Burgundy or Bordeaux. Then Abrie Beeslaar arrived in 2002 and won IWSC Winemaker of the Year three times (2008, 2015, 2017) - plus the first-ever Outstanding Wine Producer Trophy in 2019. Between the two of them: 4x IWSC Winemaker of the Year. More than any other estate on earth. The Pinotage you're tasting is the grape's redemption story in a glass. Complete Range Tasting R75 for 7 current vintage wines (fee waived on purchase). Pinotage Tasting R250 includes Kadette Pinotage Dry Rosé, Kadette Cape Blend, Kadette Pinotage, Kanonkop Pinotage, Kanonkop Pinotage 10 years old, and Black Label Pinotage. Booking recommended. Black Label comes from a single vineyard planted in 1953 - bush vines, dry-farmed, minuscule yields. If Black Label isn't available in the tasting (only 7,000-8,000 bottles per vintage), ask to purchase a bottle (~R2,500-3,000). Or taste the standard Kanonkop Pinotage - it's the wine that started the revolution.

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3. 3 Ask About the Estate That Won South Africa's First 100-Point Wine Wine · Price: moderate

   The Kanonkop Paul Sauer 2015 - a Bordeaux blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc - became the first South African wine in history to receive a perfect 100-point score from Tim Atkin MW. Not 99. Not 'close to perfect.' One hundred. The ceiling. Tim Atkin had been reviewing South African wines for decades and had never given any wine from the country a perfect score. The 2015 broke through. It was named after Paul Sauer, the patriarch who started Kanonkop and a politician who was among the first students enrolled at the Elsenburg Agricultural College in Stellenbosch in 1918. The estate's own history records the enrolment and no more: it names no graduation year and does not place Abraham Perold, the creator of Pinotage, in the room. Paul Sauer is part of the Complete Range Tasting (R75 for 7 wines, fee waived on purchase). The 2015 vintage is likely sold out - collectors bought it immediately. But taste whatever current vintage is available (2017 scored 97 points, 2016 scored 96 points). Ask: 'How did the 100-point score change things for Kanonkop?' Watch the pride in their answer. If the Paul Sauer isn't available for tasting, buy a bottle to take home (R500-800 depending on vintage). You're drinking South African wine history.

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4. 4 Learn the Transition - Two Legendary Winemakers, One Estate History · Free · Optional

   Beyers Truter (1981-2002): The man who made Pinotage respectable. IWSC Winemaker of Year 1991. Introduced new 225-liter French oak barrels for Pinotage at a time when most producers fermented it in concrete. Treated Pinotage like Grand Cru Burgundy. Then Abrie Beeslaar (2002-2024): Elevated Kanonkop to even greater heights. IWSC Winemaker of Year three times. First-ever Outstanding Wine Producer. Introduced optical sorting in 2016. Shifted Black Label from Bordeaux to Burgundian oak. Left in 2024 after 22 vintages to focus on his own Beeslaar Wines label. Two winemakers. One estate. Both world's best. No other estate has done this. Ask staff: 'What made both Beyers and Abrie so successful here?' The answer will be about terroir (Simonsberg slopes, False Bay influence), philosophy (estate-only fruit, no compromises), and obsession. This is a free conversation. The staff at Kanonkop are wine people, not salespeople. They know every vine, every barrel, every vintage. They've lived through the Truter-to-Beeslaar transition and can tell you what made it work. If staff are too busy, read the estate history panels in the tasting room. But the conversation is better - you'll get stories that aren't written down.

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