The first Paserene wines came onto the market around 2013. The project was founded by winemaker Martin Smith and his business partner Ndabe Mareda. Smith comes from a South African wine-growing family, studied viticulture and cellar technology at Elsenburg Agricultural College and subsequently gained extensive international experience. After working in the Napa Valley, he returned to South Africa and spent several years at Vilafonté before devoting himself fully to his own wine brand.

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The name Paserene is derived from ‘Passeriformes’, the zoological order that includes swallows. The symbolism of the travelling bird reflects Martin Smith's own years abroad and his return to South Africa. The design of the tasting building in Franschhoek is likewise inspired by a swallow's nest. Birds, people and landscapes also shape the unusual wine labels and give the brand a high degree of recognition.

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The three regions of origin serve different purposes. Tulbagh is surrounded by mountains and combines warm days with cooling winds and pronounced differences between daytime and night-time temperatures. Paserene finds particularly suitable conditions there for Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. Elgin offers a distinctly cooler climate and is particularly important for the white wines, while Franschhoek, with its own soil structures and moderate valley climate, provides further components for the range.

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The Elements Range shows Paserene's more approachable and experimental side. The current range includes Rosie Rosé, Emerald Sauvignon Blanc, Bright Chardonnay, Dark Syrah and Midnight Cabernet Sauvignon. The wines can combine components from different vineyards and regions and place greater emphasis on immediate fruit, freshness and drinkability.

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The Paserene Range focuses more strongly on individual grape varieties and origins as well as longer ageing potential. The current range includes Paserene Chardonnay, The Union from Syrah and The Marathon from Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot. Depending on the wine, Martin Smith works with spontaneous fermentation, French oak barrels, open concrete tanks and varying proportions of new oak. Wines in the Paserene and Elements ranges are not filtered, preserving as many of the components developed during fermentation and maturation as possible.

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In the vineyard, Paserene is increasingly pursuing regenerative approaches. Cover crops protect the soils, organic material remains in the vineyard and animals are partly integrated into agricultural cycles. At the same time, the team seeks to reduce herbicides and other interventions. At Vin Africa you will find in Paserene an independent South African wine brand that does not focus on a single site but deliberately combines the different characters of Franschhoek, Tulbagh and Elgin.