Summer in the valley: how to handle the heat

Riebeek Kasteel has a Mediterranean climate: hot, dry summers and cool, wet winters. From December to March, afternoons in the high twenties or thirties are normal.

Live the way the locals do. Walk and cycle early, before nine if you can. Do your tastings and errands in the morning, have a long lunch in the shade, and spend the hottest hours by the pool or indoors.

Evenings are the reward. The heat breaks, the mountain turns pink, and the stoep or the terrace becomes the best seat in the house.

Practical notes: carry water on any walk, use sun cream even on cloudy days, and book dinner tables early on summer weekends.