Our History
The history of Natte Valleij dates back to 1715, when the land was granted to the ex-soldier Jurgiaan Hanekom from Germany. He would have built the first dwellings on the farm, and went on to own the land until 1748.
In 1770, Abraham De Villiers would purchase the land and build a gracious whitewashed homestead, which later burned down in 1839 when a wildfire swept through the area. In 1840 it was restored by Adriaan Jacobus van der Bijl, who replaced the gable with the present one.
Natte Valleij has a rich history of winemaking dating back to 1839. Adriaan Jacobus van der Bijl would have been the first to produce wine on the property, followed by Arnold Milne in 1920. It is said that Milne won many a prize for his wines. In 1941 Herman Brinkman bought Natte Valleij, and turned his hands to winemaking. He befriended Professor Perold, who was famous for Pinotage, and together they ran a successful winery. Natte Valleij was then bought by Mr D.H. Kiernander in 1951, who dreamt of producing high quality estate wines. In the 50s it was rare for a farm to bottle their own wine, choosing instead to sell bulk wine to large wine merchants. Kiernander would be the first to commercially bottle estate wine on Natte Valleij, achieving international success by winning the London Empire Wine Competition with his Riesling.
Natte Valleij was purchased as a run down wine farm by its current owners, the Milner family, in 1969. Sir Morduant Milner pulled out all the old vines and replaced them with grass paddocks, and for the next 27 years the farm served as a thoroughbred stud producing many classic winners, and was known as the Morduant Milner Stud. His wife, Lady Kate, was a passionate gardener and with the help of Dryfus, Headman, and Lindman (who still maintains the gardens today), they replanted the gardens at Natte Valleij. In 1980 Sir Morduant was joined on the farm by his son and daughter-in-law, Charles and Char.
In 1992, the stud was closed and some of the old dwellings converted into country accommodation. The barrels were once again rolled into the cellars and winemaking commenced. Today Alexander Milner, the son of Charles and Lady Char, is the winemaker on Natte Valleij and is known as the Cinsault Whisperer. Over the years the cellars have also been used to host unique country style weddings. Today, Lady Char still lives in the homestead, the heart of the family and farm. Her 3 sons live on the property, with their wives, children, and many dogs.
