Durbanville Hills is inviting guests into the creative heart of winemaking with the launch of Unfiltered Thursdaze, a new weekly after-hours Thursday experience that offers rare access to wines still in progress, paired with curated music, food and authentic connection.
Designed as a relaxed and immersive evening ritual, Unfiltered Thursdaze gives guests the opportunity to taste wines before they are finalised, from barrel cuts and tank samples to experimental trial blends still finding their final expression.
Set beneath the estate’s olive trees, the experience begins with a welcome pour and three paired bites, followed by a short informal welcome. From there, guests get to explore barrel tastings, enjoy pizza and additional wines (for the guest’s own account), engage with the winemaking team, or simply settle into the soundtrack of deep and melodic house as the evening unfolds.
A standout feature of the experience is Guess the Barrel, an interactive weekly challenge where guests attempt to identify the varietal and life stage of a featured barrel. Correct entries are placed into a draw to win tickets to a future edition.
“There’s a kind of honesty to tasting wine at this stage,” says cellarmaster Pieter-Niel Rossouw. “It’s not polished yet, and that’s what makes it exciting. You taste the possibilities, the decisions still being made, even the surprises that come out of a barrel you thought you knew. We wanted people to feel part of that journey. Less like guests at a tasting and more like friends around the cellar table.”
Throughout the evening, members of the Durbanville Hills winemaking team move between tables, sharing the kinds of stories usually reserved for cellar conversations, from debates around particular barrels to unexpected moments in a batch and the instinctive decisions behind trial blends.
Music is central to the atmosphere, with a curated house music soundtrack that begins warm and unhurried before gently lifting in energy as the evening progresses, always complementing the mood rather than competing with it.
Selected evenings will also feature a photo booth, capturing candid and unfiltered moments that reflect the spontaneity of the night.
“People don’t always want formality,” adds destination manager, Stephanie Timm. “Sometimes they just want a really good glass of wine, something delicious to eat, great music and the freedom to enjoy it in their own way. That’s what makes this feel special – it’s relaxed, social and genuinely easy to step into.”
Tickets are limited and available exclusively via Dineplan (https://www.dineplan.com/restaurants/durbanville-hills-tasting-room-and-olive-grove-bistro), with no walk-ins permitted.
Unfiltered Thursdaze takes place every Thursday evening at Durbanville Hills, situated 30 minutes from Cape Town. Tickets cost R150 per head. No under-18s allowed.
