I remember being somewhat taken aback upon my arrival at Stellenbosch University in 1990 when the drink of choice of many of my peers was brandy and coke – mixed by empting at least half the contents of a 2 litre bottle of the soft drink and re-filling it with Klipdrift and then drunk from said container.

It would be a sad waste if Uitkyk 10 Year Grand Reserve Brandy went the same way and only partly because it costs R275 a bottle from the farm. Made from Cinsaut, Cabernet Sauvignon and Clairette Blanche, it’s double distilled in 2 000 litre pot stills before spending nine months in new 300 litre oak casks and then the rest of the decade as specified on the label in second fill casks.