Bon Courage Estate’s flagship vintage Cap Classique enters its next chapter as Cellar Master Jacques Bruwer hands custodianship to his daughter, winemaker Inge Bruwer-Malan.
Every bottle of Jacques Bruére Vintage Cap Classique spends more than seven years maturing in the Bon Courage cellar before release and, for decades, Cellar Master Jacques Bruwer has overseen this process with patience. On Thursday, 29 October, at ‘A Toast to Tradition’, an intimate dinner at Fairlawns Boutique Hotel & Spa in Sandton, he passed the baton to his daughter, winemaker Inge Bruwer-Malan.
‘It is an honour to be entrusted with such a prestigious brand. My father taught me patience and precision, which matter most in Cap Classique, where one mistake can cost more than seven years of work on a vintage. I hope to bring my own touch while carrying the legacy forward, with consistency and quality always our goals,’ says Inge.
Generations in the making
Jacques Bruére pays tribute to the Bruwer family’s French Huguenot ancestors, the Bruères, who farmed vines in the Loire Valley before settling in South Africa. The family has farmed Goedemoed since 1927. In 1983, the farm was registered as an estate and renamed Bon Courage.
The family’s journey with traditional-method sparkling wine began with Inge’s grandfather, André Bruwer. A three-time South African Champion Estate Winemaker and a pioneer in the Robertson Valley, André embraced the French tradition of making sparkling wine, a decision that would shape the estate for generations.
While studying winemaking at Elsenburg, Jacques was selected as one of the top 10 students in the Cellar Technology course. As part of his studies, he was allocated a block of Chardonnay and chose to make Méthode Cap Classique (MCC), a decision that marked the beginning of his journey into the world of bubbles that would become part of Bon Courage’s story.
‘My father always said that the ultimate in winemaking was to produce a champagne in the traditional way,’ Jacques recalls. ‘So, when I was given my block of Chardonnay, that is exactly what I decided to do.’
After completing his studies, Jacques gained cellar experience in Germany and France before returning to Bon Courage in 1990. Cap Classique became a lifelong passion that eventually resulted in a range bearing his name.
‘Welcoming the fourth generation of the Bruwer family to the farm is a special milestone, all the more so with Inge being my eldest child and our first female winemaker. She brings energy and passion for Bon Courage, along with fresh ideas to carry the legacy forward. As a father, I couldn’t be prouder to see her take up the reins,’ says Jacques.
From the tasting room to the world, and home again
For Inge, taking on the range brings her career full circle: her first cellar experience was in Cap Classique at Graham Beck where she worked with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir for traditional-method sparkling wine, gaining an early grounding in the same craft to which her father has devoted much of his career.
That experience became the starting point for almost a decade of harvests across four countries. Inge worked vintages in Marlborough, New Zealand; Oregon, USA; and Weingut Schloss Gobelsburg in Austria’s Kamptal region. Closer to home, she worked at Cederberg Private Cellar and became Assistant Winemaker at Saxenburg, before taking on senior vintage roles at Babich Wines in Marlborough. In 2021, Wineland Media named her one of its 30 Under 30.
Her relationship with Bon Courage, however, began much earlier. While still at school, she worked in the estate’s tasting room, sharing her family’s wines with visitors. In September this year, she returned to Robertson to join the winemaking team, the fourth generation of the Bruwer family to shape Bon Courage’s wines.
More than seven years in the making
The Jacques Bruére Vintage Cap Classique range comprises three vintage Cap Classiques, including a Brut Reserve 2018, a Blanc de Blancs 2015 and a Cuvée Rosé Brut 2018, each undergoing a second fermentation in the bottle before spending 90 to 100 months on the lees. The Brut Reserve 2018 has earned 94 points from Tim Atkin, a place in the National Wine Challenge Top 100 and a National Winner title at the Terroir Wine Awards, with all three wines scoring 90+ points from Atkin.
At ‘A Toast to Tradition’, the range took centre stage throughout the evening. Guests were welcomed with Jacques Bruére and canapés before a menu created by Fairlawns Boutique Hotel & Spa, with each course paired with one of the three Cap Classiques. The occasion marked the continuation of an approach to Cap Classique passed from grandfather to father to daughter.