In 1984 Neil Ellis sourced grapes from vineyards not of his own and produced wine in rented cellar space. These grapes were sourced in the Stellenbosch district and meant a lot of nosing around the restrictive quota system prevalent at the time.

His vision, the pursuit of quality, extended out of the cellar and into the vineyards where varieties would excel and best express a particular style of wine reflective of their environment.

Today, the experience and knowledge of the past are applied to modern techniques and technologies for a new generation of winemaking.