Our Story

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Let’s go down to the whiskey bar for a dram.” This sounds like a wonderful idea, and it also sounds like a normal thing to do. Now, if we said, “Let’s go down to the brandy bar for a dop,” this would either get you strange looks or actually mean a brandy and Coke.

This is where 1672 comes in: we have taken the whiskey bar experience and made it local. What do we mean by local? Well, if you didn't know already, South Africa is the home of brandy, let us explain.

350 years ago, a ship called De Pijl (meaning "the arrow", not whatever else you were thinking) arrived in Table Bay harbour and did something truly amazing. An unnamed cook stilled about 1,000 litres of wine into brandy. We can't tell you why, but man  are we glad that cook cooked up this wonderful drink for us to enjoy as our national drink of choice. With Coke or soda, mixed with ginger ale, or enjoyed straight, this drink has fuelled many stories around a fire, a bar, a riverbed, and many sunsets all around beautiful South Africa. Not to forget four World Cups—yes, you read that right, four!

We wanted to celebrate this, and the best way we thought possible was to showcase as many brandies as possible: 115 and counting, and we are definitely adding many more. To further celebrate South Africa and its brandy culture, we needed food, not just any food, but food that shows the diversity and heritage of our country. So, we teamed up with Chef Devon to offer nostalgic, home-cooked food that not only pairs with the large variety of brandy we have, but also stands on its own to give you not just a “kroeg”, but a restaurant experience like no other.

Okay, with all the formalities done and a few pot-stilled brandies in, here is the truth: We like brandy and food. Our dads got tired of us stealing their premium brandy, and our moms said we were too old to not be able to cook for ourselves, so we had to grow up and buy and cook our own. But we hate drinking and eating alone, so we opened 1672. That's the truth. 

Come enjoy it with us!