Vergelegen and Rolland – a love story

If anyone ever doubted Michel Rolland’s charm factor, consider this: South African wine’s bad boy, André ‘I don’t spit’ van Rensburg of Vergelegen, is mad about him. Two years ago, inspired by a bottle of the 2009 vintage of the Pomerol he calls ‘Bon Pasteer’, he asked his deep-pocketed bosses at the mining company Anglo American if he could hire the ubiquitous Bordeaux-based wine consultant ‘to finesse the last five to eight per cent out of these amazing vineyards. Sixteen years on a property can be dangerous – you get set in your ways. I felt we could be...