Adi Badenhorst

Co-Owner of A.A. Badenhorst Family Wines

Adi grew up between the vineyards and spent his time picking (stealing) grapes. “It all started when Jean Daneel, then winemaker at Buitenverwachting, let me make my first wine when I was thirteen,” Adi recalls.

After completing his studies at Elsenburg, Adi worked a few harvests in France and New Zealand and did stints at local cellars Simonsig, Steenberg, Groote Post and nine years as winemaker at Rustenberg wines.

In 2008 he packed it all in and bought a 60-hectare piece of land in the Paardeberg with his cousin Hein, who was also born and bred in the Constantia Valley. They now proudly farm together as owners of A.A. Badenhorst Family Wines where they practice baie-dynamic farming and make wines in a traditional manner.

And a family business it sure is; wife Cornelia’s unadulterated creativity is noticeable in every photogenic corner on the property; his mom Judy lives on the neighbouring property and can often be found in the veggie gardens or kitchen; in 2018 his brother Charl and wife Semma joined the team, taking the accommodation and events on the farm to a next level; Cornelia’s brother Hannes is the farm’s Mr Fixit and her cousin Helena has worked with them on the “marketing and web stuff” since 2010.

Over the years the team at Kalmoesfontein also started to try their hands at new ventures such as a Cape Vermouth, Caperitif; a hand crafted tonic water, Swaan; Mezcal made from Karoo Agave and growing Swartland capers.

Every vintage Adi seeks out and nurtures another “three golden tears” vineyard to bottle under the Single Vineyard label while also planting new vines on almost every available slope on the ever expanding property.

Adi Badenhorst is a (wine drinkers’) household name, a founding member of the Swartland Revolution and Swartland Independent, proud dad to Samuel Sunnyskies and Ana Kalander and ever evolving Vigneron. “