South African golfing icon David Frost has always had a passion for fine wine and the great game of golf. For him, the two pursuits creating wine and competing in golf are interlinked. They both present challenges, hurdles, excitements and reward. In fact, it was through picking grapes on his family’s wine farm near Stellenbosch that the young David had earned enough pocket money to play golf, and buy golf clubs and balls, launching him on his successful international career. Golfing has been good to David Frost. And the support and admiration he has received from the golfing fraternity have spurred him on to give something back.
In the summer of 1994, David and Michael Frost
bought a 300-acre wine farm at the foot of the Paardeberg mountain range near
Paarl. Paarl,
meaning Pearl in Afrikaans, is a relatively warm region, large, spread out with
wide valley floors and high mountains. The region is exactly on the same
latitude south as Spain's sherry region is north. Paarl accounts for about 20%
of South Africa's vineyard area. Paarl is approximately 30 miles NW of Cape
Town. South Africa is the 7th largest producer of world wines. The purchase of the farm was the realisation of
a lifelong dreams of producing fine wine from his own grapes. To
help them fulfil their dream, David employed Jason Fisher, a wine maker in the
Napa Valley, California - Jason studied biology and viticulture at U.C. Davis
and at Napa Valley's Napa College.
So in his bid to do something for the golfing community,
David Frost has launched the David Frost Signature Series range of wines. Aimed
at golfers and those who associate themselves with this game of skill and
precision, these wines represent fine quality at affordable prices. Through the
launch of his Signature Series range, David Frost has placed excellent wines
within reach of all who recognise the integrity behind the brand.
SAAM is Afrikaans for ‘together’. This captures the very essence of the SAAM Mountain Vineyards’ wine growing team at Eensaamheid Farm. Located at the foot of Perdeberg Mountain, SAAM Mountain Vineyards unites a group 40 South African growers who farm vineyards that span the premium growing areas from Paarl to the Durbanville Hills. SAAM Mountain Vineyards encompasses a number of farms belonging to third generation family growers, each with a deep commitment to the land. At SAAM, we plant our grapes according to their natural preferences, whether it's a high altitude view of Table Mountain, warm afternoon sunshine, or a shady slope with cool mountain breezes. Our grapes are sourced from specific areas within the farms, allowing us to make use of individual microclimates and their unique terroirs. The vineyards produce, on average, less than 7 tonnes per hectare - around half the average yields of other wineries of this scale, ensuring that quality of fruit and intensity of flavour is naturally at the heart of SAAM Mountain’s wines.