Swartland · South Africa · Since 2010
Authentic wines, handmade for geeks.
Paardeberg graniteRiebeek schistConcrete egg & old oak
“My top three Swartland Syrahs in order: 2016 Terracura; 2016 Porseleinberg; 2015 Mullineux Schist.”Tim Atkin MW
“Crunchy and bright but fluid and floral, with lovely tannins under the sleek black cherry fruit. So good.”Jamie Goode, Terracura Syrah 2025, 96 points
“The purity of the fruit is impressive… Not for the uninitiated!”Christian Eedes, Winemag, Silwervis Chenin Blanc 2015, 93 points
The wines
The range comes down to two wines, from the two grapes the Swartland does best. Everything else in the cellar is a back vintage or a one-off, and you can find it all in the library below.
Syrah from schist and granite sites across the Swartland and surrounds, fermented with a large share of whole bunches and raised in old oak. From 2024 our best Syrah vineyard is The Quarries, an organically farmed site in the Durbanville Hills. Our reference has always been the Northern Rhône: savoury, peppery and built to age.
Old bush-vine Chenin from the Sky vineyard, an exposed ridge on the Paardeberg’s decomposed granite. First released in 2017 as Terracura White, when it was whole-bunch pressed to old French oak and fermented with its own yeasts. The 2024 and 2025 vintages come from the same vineyard and will be released under our Silwervis label. Terracura Chenin Blanc returns with the 2027 vintage, raised in Stockinger foudres.
The library
From the first Silwervis to the next Syrah. Open a wine for its tech sheet and what the critics said, then add it to your enquiry. We’ll come back to you with availability and prices.
Scores are out of 100. JG: Jamie Goode, Wine Anorak. GS: Greg Sherwood MW. WM: Winemag (winemag.co.za). Library wines are kept in professional storage. Availability changes week to week, so we confirm it when you enquire.
The story
Terracura started in 2010 as a simple passion project with a concrete egg bought at the Swartland Revolution. A wine from good grapes, made with help from winemakers I respected, to share with friends and family. A year later I bought another concrete egg at the Swartland Revolution auction. There was no business plan attached to it.
Over the next fifteen years the project grew into a real business, with importers, certifications and spreadsheets. Inspired by edgy old-world wines from places like the Jura, Jerez and Slovenia, we experimented freely. Our Smiley blends had parts raised under flor, parts on the skins and parts left to maderise in demijohns on the roof. It made for a fascinating wine, and one your bank manager would advise against unless you are a charity.
We had tremendous fun and learnt a great deal. Now we have come full circle: fewer wines, from the best vineyards we can find, made simply. A Terracura Syrah and a Terracura Chenin Blanc, with the occasional Silwervis when the vintage asks for one. The back vintages are resting in the cellar, and this is where you can find them.
Michael Roets, founder
Along the way
Reference points
The Northern Rhône for Syrah: whole bunches, stems, pepper, and wines that close up young and age gracefully. White Burgundy and the Jura for Chenin: texture, some reduction, and time on the lees.
Find the wines
We are small and sell through a few people we trust. If you can’t find a wine, write to us and we’ll point you to the nearest bottle.
In South Africa
Restaurants, retailers & collectors
Outside South Africa
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Wines in your enquiry
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