Wijngaard Dassemus

The Netherlands

"At Wijngaard Dassemus we want to make organic Dutch wines, we just don't want to use chemicals."

Dassemus, an old hamlet in Brabant

Intrigued by the life story of this winemaker we headed towards the southern Dutch province of Brabant. Dassemus, the eponymous vineyard of Ron Langeveld, is named after a hamlet in the close surroundings of Chaam.The rich history of this village and its surroundings spans centuries, with Chaam likely making its literary debut as early as the 5th century.

Ron Langeveld and his not-so-average career

Winemaker Ron Langeveld studied Theoretical Mathematics at prestigious Leiden University. The idea of pursuing a PhD and locking himself up for a few years with a computer and a lot of formulas was not very tempting. Instead he decided to start working in ICT, writing software for a major telecom company. A good salary, a lease car, a laptop and actually creating something for a change.

He realized soon that he was still only creating a very small piece of a big puzzle. He quit the telecom business and went after his Olympic Dream as he had been canoeing already on quite a high level since his studies. Despite dedicating three full years to intensive training, he, unfortunately, fell short of making it to the Olympic Games.

Certified organic winemaking in The Netherlands

In 2004, the idea emerged to start a vineyard in the Netherlands. There are some obvious parallels between practicing topsport and winemaking. You let the grapes perform at their best all year and work towards the harvest and the final goal, the wine itself. Ron also likes to play fair and wants to approach his vineyard as ecological as possible. He manages the vineyard in harmony with nature. This means no artificial fertilizers are used, and there is no spraying, whether with fungicides, pesticides, or herbicides.

That’s why he made the choice for modern hybrid grape varieties like Johanniter, Solaris, Souvignier Gris and Muscaris for making white wines. His varieties to make red wines of are a.o. Rondo, Cabernet Cortis, Baron and Monarch. The vineyard now has grown to six hectares and is certified organic (Skal) and since August 2021 Demeter (bio-dynamic) certified. Starting from 2023, Monique, Ron Langeveld's wife, became a full-time participant in the business.

Distilled in-house is a grappa, or Eau de Vie, crafted from grape skins. In addition other fruits such as apples, raspberries, and cherries are distilled. There is also a whisky distillery housed in the wine cellar, Baronie Distillers.

Walking and tasting Dassemus wines

The vineyard of Wijngaard Dassemus borders a nature conservation area and there is a beautiful walking path right behind the vineyard. The area is full of small creeks, so don’t forget your boots!

Combine a good walk with a tour and tasting at the winery and enjoy some local cheese. Wines and distillates can be purchased in the bottle shop. And also apple cider that is produced by using apples that fall outside the size criteria set by supermarkets, deemed either too large or too small.

And a special treat is Dassemus Cecider, a crossover with grape skins. After the initial fermentation of the apples, a second fermentation occurred with grape skins.

Purchasing Dassemus wine? The store is essentially open every day for wine sales. Be sure to reach out to the winery in advance to ensure that someone will be available to assist you. Tours and tastings are available by appointment for groups of 10 or more.

Updated: 20-11-2024