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c.1770CLOUDSKRAAL
Rooibos

The farm

A working farm first

Rooibos, vineyards and Dohne Merinos, each with its own rhythm. Between rooibos plantings, cover crops feed the flock and rest the soil.

An overhead view of farm buildings, sheds and tracks between planted lands
A bird's-eye view of Cloudskraal and the neighbouring farm, Elandsvoetpad. 9 January 2026
A track between tall green rows of rooibos bushes under a pale evening sky
Rows of rooibos ready for harvest, 16 February 2026.
Freshly cut green rooibos bundles tied with white cord, stacked in low sun
A tractor with a rotovator working a long low heap of red rooibos on the tea court

Rooibos

Rooibos grows in the sandy soils of the Cederberg and Bokkeveld, and the Nel family have farmed it at Cloudskraal for generations. The bushes are cut by hand, chopped and left to ferment overnight, then turned on the tea court until they take on the deep red that gives the tea its name, and dried. It is slow, seasonal work in a landscape that rewards patience.

Enquire about rooibos

The rooibos rotation

Between rooibos plantings the lands rest under cover crops of oats and lupins. The rotation feeds the flock, fixes nitrogen and lets the thin soils recover before the next planting. The photographs show the planter at work in May 2021 and the land being prepared for the next rooibos planting in July 2026.

A tractor pulling a planter across a dusty land at sunset, two people aboard
Planting the cover crops at dusk, 13 May 2021.
A close view of a planter's tines and discs raising dust in low sun
Jan Martin standing in front of a green tractor in a field of yellow flowers

Vineyard

Cloudskraal is the only wine estate in the Nieuwoudtville Wine of Origin. At 820 metres above sea level, cool nights and warm days give the Sauvignon Blanc its crisp acidity and refined structure, while ancient dolerite, Tankwa shale and soft sandstone lend the soils a complexity you can taste in the glass. Chenin Blanc grows on Garsland beside the guesthouse.

Stay on the farm
Yellow flowers along vineyard trellises under a blue sky
Yellow flowers among the Chenin Blanc on Garsland, next to the guesthouse, 20 August 2021.
Japie Nel walking between rows of dormant, bare vines in winter sun
Vineyard rows seen straight from above, filled with yellow flowers between the vines
Dohne Merino ewes and lambs among red-brown veld, two lambs stretching
Dohne Merino lambs stretching after a nap, 27 May 2021.
A Dohne Merino ewe with her lamb in the Knersvlakte
A lamb mid-step with the flock behind under an overcast sky

Dohne Merino

The Dohne Merino flock grazes the veld between the lands, a dual-purpose breed raised for wool and meat that does well on the plateau's aromatic Karoo bushes. Sheep have been part of Cloudskraal for as long as the family has, and the winter lambing season still sets the rhythm of the farming year.

Dohne Merino sales
Wool sales

Discuss the flock or wool requirements with us. Availability and the details of each sale are confirmed directly.

An aerial approach to a dam among lands at sunrise
Cloudskraal's dam, used to irrigate the vineyards and alfalfa fields, at sunrise.9 January 2026

Keep going

The people, the photographs and the trade

Farm lifeNature & the veldRooibos for tradeThe wine