Peter Bayly’s first attempt at producing wine was an utter failure. He and his wife Yvonne had first planted their vineyard in 2000, expecting to harvest it three years later. After returning to the vineyard from their home in Cape Town, they found their fields ravaged and their hopes of a 2003 vintage dashed. Hundreds of baboons had descended through the mountain passes surrounding Bayly’s plot, picking the vines clean.

“Not even a single grape was left,” Bayly said.

To make a real go at winemaking, the former hotelier realized he had to move to his farm and make do with what he had there. Bayly’s vineyard sits about five miles from the nearest electrical grid, a burden the would-be vintner eventually turned into a blessing.