Domaine d'Heerstaayen

The Netherlands

"In France I was infected with the passion for all things vine and wine..."

One of the older Dutch vineyards

On a beautiful summer morning we headed for Domaine d’Heerstaayen in the south of the Netherlands, close to the city of Breda. This little paradise is situated in the valley of the river Mark, right on the border with Belgium.

As early as in 1979 the construction of a vineyard was started here by former French language teacher Peter de Wit. That makes it one of the oldest vineyards in the Netherlands. Much knowledge about viticulture was not available by then but Peter was not afraid to experiment.

Classic French grape varieties in a cool climate 

The hunger to experiment,with classic grape varieties in this cool climate was driven by his passion for French culture. In the end the Dutch weather turned out to be too harsh on varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Gamay. Except in the protected environment of the orangery where cabernet sauvignon still does surprisingly well.

Pinot Noir survived better but after thirty years of experimenting it was quite clear. The wine grapes of Domaine d’Heerstaayen that performed best were all white. So nowadays the selection is limited to Chardonnay, Riesling and Pinot Gris. In an exceptionally good year, Peter still sometimes likes to bottle a Cabernet Sauvignon as a curiosity.

Making money in the wine business

The small winery wasn’t exactly a money maker. To secure an income Peter also started to import wines from French wineries and later on even from an American winery in California. Nowadays he also works as a representative for a few French domaines and châteaux and looks after the export of their wines to various parts of the world, like Africa and China.

Romantic wedding venue in The Netherlands

Peter’s dream initially was to move to France, but his wife promised him she would create a little piece of France in the village of Strijbeek. Being a garden designer, she kept her promise.

The former piggery was turned into a greenhouse, an ‘orangery’ with an Italian Jasmine and old grapevines growing indoors. The surrounding garden also was transformed into quite an idyllic place with grape vines, Mimosa, Sycamore-, Fig- and Palm trees. It transformed over the years in a real popular wedding venue and we cannot but endorse this.