The social side of wine is often as important to me as what’s in the glass. I’d prefer to split an awe-inspiring bottle with company that might equally appreciate what the wine is showing (talking a whole load of rubbish), and drink the good value stuff by myself as I seat in front of the computer.

The Verburgs that produce the famed Luddite wines are living examples of where genuine personalities resonate wholly with their philosophy of wine. Having been invited into their hallowed slice of God’s country to not only help make the 2014 vintage, but break bread, share in wine and spend a night; I have come to taste a little bit of their souls in each bottle of Luddite I open (it didn’t sound as creepy in my head).

Penny, the viticulturist, a vibrant duchess, is hysterically entertaining and direct, clinically organised and capable of unmatched kindness all the while being a breath-taking chef: while Neils, the wine maker, a towering rock of a man, is stupendously experienced, laid back and a blatant technophobe, with an attention to detail second to none. Together, they have shown resilience and consistency churning out phenomenal wines from the Bot River locale.

Their approach to wine seems rather simple: start off with great quality fruit followed by minimalist intervention with as little technology as possible in the cellar. This is echoed in the name they chose, “Luddite“, which was drawn from the 19th century British workers that, opposing the industrial revolution over fears of losing their jobs, vandalised various machinery to ensure their continued relevance. Through this approach, the resultant limited range of wines they offer exhibit titillating purity of fruit and personality, affected gravely by the prevailing climatic conditions of that year (known as vintage variation).

Their Shiraz has become an industry wide bench mark with the grapes increasingly being sourced from their own vineyards. In an attempt not to obliterate the fruit, the wines are aged in no more than 30% new oak, majority of which is French…