From smuggling Burgundian plant material to pioneering the use of new oak in red winemaking, Jan Boland Coetzee’s legacy was defined by courage and a deep connection to the land.
‘Wine is a mirror of the environment. You need to listen to the voice of the land,’ Coetzee once said.
The voice of the land
Coetzee played flank for the Springboks from 1974 to 1976. The day after his passing, the team faced New Zealand, opening with a moment of silence in his honour. He must have been the extra fire in the team’s boots, because they handed the All Blacks their heaviest defeat in history.
Adi Badenhorst, the well-known wine producer behind his family label, had known Coetzee all his life through their fathers’ friendship, and says he had a profound influence on him.
‘Jan was one of those complete enigmas, a deep thinker behind a gruff exterior,’ said Badenhorst. ‘When he spoke, his knowledge of South African farming, wine, and his sense of humour kept us listening for hours, especially to stories of him growing up on the West Coast.’
Early roots in the Cape
The Coetzee lineage runs deep in the Cape, tracing back to 1679 when the family arrived in Table Bay.
From Stellenbosch’s Coetzenburg the family moved to the West Coast and was among the first to farm Grenache in Piekenierskloof.
Generations later Coetzee was born into humble circumstances. From modest beginnings he went on to Stellenbosch University, where he deepened his connection to wine and excelled on the rugby field, graduating with a degree in oenology.
He began his winemaking career at Kanonkop in 1967, and in 1973 produced the estate’s first vintage. Drawing on friendships with Bordeaux coopers he made during his rugby days in France, he introduced barriques to Kanonkop.
In 1980 he bought Vriesenhof on the slopes of Stellenbosch’s Paradyskloof, releasing the farm’s first vintage the following year. Here, he worked with Pinot Noir and Grenache long before they were fashionable.
Chardonnay, by any means necessary
During this time, white winemaking at the Cape was largely limited to Chenin Blanc and Colombard. Coetzee, a lover of Burgundy, was determined to change that.
He moved his family of five to Beaune. From there he began sending Chardonnay plant material back to South Africa, tucked into chocolate boxes, hidden in jacket linings, and even smuggled in nappies.
Illegal as it was, the rumours soon reached the bureaucrats. In 1986, Coetzee and his fellow conspirators were summoned before a Commission of Enquiry. Instead of prison time, the embargo was lifted and the case inspired the formation of the Vine Improvement Association (VIA).
Around this time his family grew, too; another son was born, bringing the total to four children.
Decades later, his grandchildren share in his legacy. Badenhorst recalled, ‘He was a wonderful grandfather to my children. I’m grateful he had the chance to know them. When a man like Jan leaves his mark, it burns deep, and you are never the same again.
‘I’ll miss sitting with him on the stoep, sipping Vriesenhof Chardonnay, talking about Burgundy, climate change and the great South African vintages. His knowledge was profound. He could recall the exact rainfall of February 1977.’
Badenhorst added, ‘A massive tree has fallen, whose roots have touched thousands of people, both inspiring and disrupting the status quo. That’s my Jan Boland Coetzee. I’ll miss him immensely.’
