Glenelly was a dream realised by the incredibly resourceful visionary May de Lencquesaing. In 2003, at the tender age of 78, she decided to buy the farm on the slopes of the Simonsberg in Stellenbosch and planted all the vineyards afresh then. Her vision was to establish Glenelly as a world-class estate, producing award-winning wines with power, elegance and balance.She was then the owner of the famous Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, a Grand Cru Classé from Pauillac, Bordeaux, in France. The Glenelly Estate forms part of the original Ida’s Valley farm, granted in 1682 by Simon van der Stel, with a nod to the French Huguenot settlers 300 years before, Fast forward to 2026, and she still manages the farm from afar, now living in Europe, at the age of 101. I remember attending the opening of the Glass Museum in 2018 and then was blown away by the pieces she had collected throughout her life, including wedding presents and pieces dating back 2000 years! Quite extraordinary. I had never been in to the cellar before and it really is a massive gravity inspired space, with efficiencies built in. We even got to see how the barrels get moved around, which I had not actually seen before. The Vine Bistro still has French chef patron Christophe Dehosseis at the helm, and the view from the tasting room is just sublime. So, do yourself a favour, plan a visit and take some time out to enjoy the peace and quiet of the Simonsberg slopes.