Pax Aut
BELLUM
ELGIN • SOUTH AFRICA
Contact
- Judy Goddard Gunn
- judy@paxautbellum.co.za
- Tel: 072 830 866
- Richard Gunn
- richard@paxautbellum.co.za
- Tel: 082 225 832
- Farm 87, Highlands Road Elgin, Grabouw
ELGIN • SOUTH AFRICA
From Viking bloodlines to cool-climate vineyards,
this is our story in bubbles.
High in the misty valleys of Elgin, where cold oceans meet ancient mountains, the Gunn family crafts Cap Classique wines that honour both lineage and land. Rooted in centuries of Scottish and Viking heritage, our wines are shaped by resilience, exploration, and the eternal pursuit of beauty.
Each bottle is an expression of balance – of peace and strength, delicacy and power. A tribute to where we come from, and the bold journey that brought us here.
Pax aut Bellum - Peace or War.
This ancient motto of Clan Gunn reminds us that harmony is earned through courage, and that greatness is born from adversity. It is this philosophy that defines our wines.
Welcome to Gunn Wines
Our Philosophy
We believe that great MCC is not made,
it is discovered.
Discovered in the soil. In the slope of a vineyard. In the patience of long ageing. In the quiet resolve of a family willing to take risks.
Our Cap Classique wines are crafted using the traditional Method Champenoise, combining time-honoured techniques with Elgin’s extraordinary cool-climate terroir. This marriage allows us to produce wines of finesse, complexity, tension and purity – sparkling wines that speak softly, yet leave a lasting impression.
Every bottle is a reflection of balance
Strength & elegance
Structure & softness
Precision & emotion
CAP CLASSIQUE
The Wines
Iona Bellum
Pinot Noir Rosé 2022
A tribute to resilience.
Bellum, meaning war, celebrates the fire forged in struggle and the triumph that follows adversity. Crafted entirely from Pinot Noir, this Rosé Cap Classique expresses both vibrancy and depth, combining delicacy with inner strength.
Expect lifted aromas of wild strawberry, raspberry and rose petal, layered over subtle brioche and almond notes from extended lees ageing. On the palate, Bellum delivers precision, freshness and fine, persistent mousse – finishing with remarkable elegance and poise.
Bellum is a wine of courage, conviction and celebration.
Wine
Pinot Noir Rosé Cap Classique
Vintage
2022
Style
Brut
Variety
100% Pinot Noir
Origion
Elgin, Western Cape, South Africa
Alcohol
12.5%
Producer
Gunn Family Wines
Winemaker
Werner Muller
R 349.90 incl VAT
per bottle (sold in cases of 6)
The Gunn Clan
Our Ancestral Legacy
Long before vineyards, barrels and bottles, there was the sea.
The Gunn family lineage traces back to Viking settlers who stormed the northern shores of Scotland over a thousand years ago. Fierce, fearless and restless, these Norse warriors forged a legacy of exploration, endurance and independence – values that still define the Gunn spirit today.
From these Viking roots emerged Clan Gunn, one of Scotland’s oldest Highland clans, renowned for loyalty, courage and honour. Our clan crest bears the sword and the dove – powerful symbols of life’s duality: conflict and peace, strength and mercy, resilience and renewal.
Guardians of Scotland’s Most Sacred Relic
Among the many legends of Clan Gunn lies one of Scotland’s greatest mysteries – the Stone of Scone.
While history records that King Edward I of England seized the Stone in 1296, persistent Highland folklore tells a different tale: that the true stone was secretly removed and hidden by trusted clans before the English invasion. According to legend, Clan Gunn were entrusted as guardians of the original Stone, protecting it deep within the Highlands, while a substitute was surrendered.
To this day, the whereabouts of the true Stone of Scone remain unknown – an enduring symbol of secrecy, loyalty, and defiance.
The Viking Knight & The New World
Even more remarkable is the record of a Gunn Viking Knight landing in North America around 1398, nearly a century before Christopher Columbus.
Historical accounts describe a Norse expedition led by Henry Sinclair, Earl of Orkney, accompanied by elite Viking knights – among them a warrior of Clan Gunn – who crossed the Atlantic and reached the shores of modern-day Canada. Their voyage stands as one of the earliest documented European landings in the New World, offering extraordinary evidence of Viking exploration far beyond conventional history.
It is this pioneering spirit – bold, curious, and unafraid of the unknown – that ultimately carried the Gunn family across oceans once more.
From Highland Clans to Elgin Vineyards
Centuries later, that same instinct for exploration led us to the southern tip of Africa.
Drawn by Elgin’s extraordinary terroir – cool maritime breezes, ancient soils, and dramatic elevation – we planted roots where few dared, establishing a family farm devoted to crafting world-class Cap Classique.
Here, among rolling orchards, mountain mists and ocean-cooled vineyards, we found a landscape worthy of our heritage.
Each harvest is a continuation of that ancient journey.
Each bottle carries the spirit of the Gunn clan – courage, resilience, discovery and grace.
Our Promise
- We craft wines with patience, humility and precision.
- No shortcuts. No compromise.
- Only honest expression of place, tradition, and time.
Pax aut Bellum - Peace or War.
Choose
Strength. Courage. Pax Aut BELLUM