The sleepy village of Koringberg may be the best-kept secret in the Cape countryside, but this spring in South Africa all eyes will be on this scenic corner of the Swartland as Marrian George welcomes its first guests.
Amid a sea of self-catering options, Marrian George will be the first full-service small luxury hotel in the area, promising a characterful country escape combining considered lifestyle with a colourful celebration of cuisine, wine and fine living.
Marrian George is the creation of Joanne Hurst – née Marrian – who has lived in Koringberg for the past twenty-one years. Together with her late-husband Chris she founded Wildehurst Wines in the village, growing their family-owned cellar into one of the Swartland’s most successful small-scale wineries.
After the production of Wildehurst wines moved to Org de Rac organic winery in nearby Piketberg, Joanne decided that her cellar needed a new lease on life, with a reimagination as a sustainable lifestyle hotel in her home village.
Beginning with a garage-full of reclaimed Oregon window frames and doors, Joanne began a two-year journey of creativity and construction transforming the original winery into an airy restaurant and bar, while adding a striking new wing to create five captivating ensuite guest rooms.
“Marrian George is my legacy,” says Joanne. “It’s my life story. If I were an artist I’d paint a canvas. If I were an author I’d write a book. But I’m not. I’m a designer, and I create spaces that people feel relaxed and at peace in. That’s what Marrian George is. A place for people to come together.”
Marrian George offers four luxurious rooms and one splendid suite; an intimate country bolthole that is as perfect for weekend escape artists, lovers and travellers as it is for small parties of friends and families.
Each room is individually decorated with wallpapers and fabrics, hand-picked from storied British collections including York, Clarke & Clarke, Harlequin and Sanderson.
Every room recalls a chapter of Joanne’s life, from the Marrian celebrating her English and Scottish heritage to the riotous flora of Natal, evoking the abundant greenery of the province where she was born. The bountiful wallpaper of Botanicals celebrates childhood days spent in Durban’s abundant Botanical Gardens.
While the trio of rooms upstairs celebrate Joanne’s early life, the pair of ground-floor rooms tell a more contemporary tale. Avon is named after the corner of England where she and Chris spent many happy years. It is also the hotel’s only suite, with a glorious private sitting room overlooking the pool deck and distant wheatfields. Next door, the wallpaper and upholstery of George offers a playful tribute to Joanne’s English Pointer and the hotel’s other namesake who is known as the Keeper of the Keys.
While the rooms each revel in their own aesthetic, what’s common to all is a sense of considered luxury, a modern opulence where guests will immediately feel at home. Amid the classic tropes, there are contemporary flourishes: fast Wi-Fi, king-size extra-length beds swathed in bespoke linens, and thoroughly modern en-suite bathrooms fitted with matte-steel LED-enhanced showers.
Throughout the property, the walls are hung with works by notable South African artists including André Van Vuuren, while a clutter of clocks – none set to the right time – subtly remind guests to switch off.
“This isn’t a place to watch the clock and worry about the time,” says Joanne with a chuckle. “It’s a place to switch off and relax. Talk to people. Have a nap. Read a book. Gaze out the window. Take a break from the everyday!”
And with a dearth of good restaurants in the area, Marrian George is set to become a culinary magnet, with MG Canteen – hosted in what was the original Wildehurst wine cellar – welcoming both hotel residents and day visitors.
“We are certainly not fine dining,” says Joanne. “I want refined cuisine without frippery and fuss. It’s uncomplicated but considered, with an honest focus on fresh, seasonal produce.”
“There is so much fantastic produce in the region,” enthuses Joanne. “The Swartland is famous for its lamb, and we’ll be working with a local butchery, but there are also fantastic small producers in the Bo-Piketberg region.”
Fresh eggs will come from the hotel’s own flock of chickens, while the hotel’s vegetable garden will supply much of what the kitchen requires. And while retaining the sense of upscale refinement, fireside cooking on an outdoor grill will be a signature element of the menu, with dishes created around a spirit of generosity, sharing and celebration.
MG Canteen will also celebrate South Africa’s premium potstill brandy producers with a selection of aged brandies offered alongside a couple of brandy-inspired signature cocktails, including ‘The George’!
Adjoining MG Canteen, the Ivy offers a light-filled space of banquettes and upholstered antique occasional chairs, creating a space for morning coffee, Afternoon Tea in the afternoon and a G&T in-between. Above MG Canteen, a mezzanine space – the Play Lounge is a convivial entertainment room where hotel guests can enjoy board games, read or start a game of cards. A flat-screen TV is available here too (there are no televisions in the rooms), and the room may also be converted for small corporate strategy meetings.
Between wining, dining and relaxing, there is also no shortage of ways to spend your days at Marrian George. In the hotel’s fynbos gardens flagstone pathways wind their way towards the sparkling lap pool, framed by expansive views of wheatfields and mountain. Across from the sheltered pool deck, a croquet lawn has been laid out to enjoy an epic game in the afternoon and alongside is the hotel’s vegetable garden where guests are welcome to pick their own produce for dinner. Walking trails lead up the nearby Koringberg, while sunset cruises are planned for the Misverstand dam.. Want to explore further? The West Coast’s dramatic coastline and spring flower reserves are less than an hour’s drive from the hotel.
“People often say that we’re in the middle of nowhere,” says Joanne. “That’s not the case. We’re actually in the middle of everywhere!”
That’s true, and it’s what has long made Koringberg a jealously guarded secret. But with Marrian George set to draw luxury-loving travellers from near and far this winter in South Africa, this corner of the Swartland is now firmly on the map.
Accommodation rates are priced from R4250,00 per room per night inclusive of Full English Breakfast. Favourable mid-week rates are available too. Marrian George is also available for exclusive-use bookings, making it an ideal address for a celebration that is only 1-hour’s drive along the scenic N7 from Cape Town.
Marrian George. Opening Sunday, 18 August 2024. Where time stands still. Come for lunch. Stay for dinner.
1 Main Road, Koringberg, Western Cape, South Africa. For best available accommodation rates, email stay@marriangeorge.co.za, call +27 66 3015 825 or book online via www.marriangeorge.co.za.
For MG Canteen table reservations, email dine@marriangeorge.co.za or call +27 663 015 825. Open for lunch and dinner between Wednesdays and Sundays. The Ivy is available to hotel guests between Mondays and Sundays.