A few years ago, Darling's major claim to fame was that it was the home of satirist Pieter Dirk Uys.

He can still be seen lunching at The Marmalade Cat bistro in the main road, and his colourful theatre, Evita Se Perron, is still flourishing.

But Darling, established in 1853 and barely an hour up the West Coast from Cape Town, is now reaching a greater audience, not least because of its wine industry, which has mushroomed in the past three years, and its spectacular wildflower displays each spring.

The Darling Wine Experience highlights five estates nestled in the hills and wheat fields around the dusty little town, which is cooled by southerly sea breezes.

It's a trek along a dirt road, but it's worth the effort to get to Groote Post, the most attractive - and upmarket - of the wineries. Its historic Cape Dutch buildings meet modern winemaking styles and a great attraction is an acclaimed fine dining venue, Hilda's Kitchen, named after Hildagonda Duckitt, the author of two of South Africa's earliest cookbooks.

The cellar's range includes an appealing sauvignon blanc-chenin blanc mix, The Old Man's Blend, the most affordable of the whites at R35, and a stunning limited release merlot magnum at R150.

As you reach the tarred road to drive back into town swivel your head over your shoulder for a view of Table Mountain, rising suddenly behind a hill, sometimes with its lower reaches obscured by the Atlantic fog. Then head out on another side road to Darling Cellars, which offers four ranges: the award-winning Onyx (named after the dark granite bedrock in the vineyards), medium-priced DC, everyday Flamingo Bay and low-alcohol Zantsi sweet rose and white. We came away with boxes of Quercus Gold Chardonnay and Bush Vine Sauvignon Blanc, which soon had boot companions from a vineyard almost in the centre of Darling - Ormonde, best known for its Alexanderfontein range.

The estate was established in 1970 by pioneering Nico Basson, long before the area was noted for winemaking, and the original wheat and dairy farm house is close to the cellar, surrounded by colourful gardens.

Alexanderfontein also produces a selection of bottled olives, tapenades and chutneys which are available for tasting at the cellar.

The other two estates are Tukulu, which can be visited by appointment only, and Cloof, which holds gourmet barbecues from September to May - in which month all the producers hold wine evenings.

In September the area comes alive with wild flowers, and the local Wildflower Society has held a show almost every year since 1917 - now accompanied by Duckitt Nurseries' orchid show. (A visit to the local cemetery shows that the Duckitts were one of the original families in the town, along with the Bassons.)

Darling also offers craft and antique shops, a museum, a number of comfortable guesthouses, some in Victorian buildings, and a couple of restaurants, but Uys's theatre at the old train station, launched in 1995, is about as exciting as night life gets in this area.

Capetonians religiously make the drive to see shows such as Tannie Evita Praat Kaktus and The End is Naai. The restaurant and bar serve traditional boerekos and Evita's favourite dishes, served with wines from the area. A museum ("Nauseum", says Uys) in the original station building depicts the apartheid years through pictures and displays "volk kitsch".

Evita Se Perron's motto is "The gravy train does not stop here anymore", but Uys gives Darling pensioners a discount for shows and they speak with affection of their first citizen, lamenting as one when one of his precious cats passed on.

When you've exhausted what Darling has to offer - which will, in all honesty, take a couple of days - head 23km to the coast, to the wide, windswept beaches of Yzerfontein. Or, even better head a little further up the R27 to the magical fishing town of Paternoster - supposedly named after the Lord's Prayer intoned by stranded Portuguese sailors.

With its crystal water, rocky beaches and white buildings with blue shutters, it's like being in Greece - albeit a much colder version of the Aegean featuring a cast of whales, dolphins and seals.

The style of architecture has been limited to Cape fisherman's cottages, so that even new developments blend in with the surroundings.

Nearby is the Cape Columbine lighthouse and nature reserve - named after the Barque Columbine which was wrecked there in 1829 on a voyage from London to New South Wales. It's not the only wreck in the area: in 1899 the British troopship SS Ismore ran aground near Kraletjies Bay; in 1910 the SS Malmesburg was wrecked near Jacobs Reef on her maiden voyage.

Paternoster still bustles with fishing boats coming in on to the beach all afternoon, offloading their catch of geelbek, galjoen, white steenbras and hottentot.

There are white and black mussels for sale at the waterfront and locals stand by the side of the road wriggling their fingers at passing motorists. It took a while to work out that they were offering fresh crayfish.

At the quaint, much-photographed village store old scales stand next to bags of nougat, strings of bokkoms (dried fish) next to packets of ostrich biltong.

In similar contrast, self-catering cottages the length and breadth of Paternoster offer modern accommodation in traditional surrounds.

We sat on the veranda of the new Paternoster Lodge overlooking the long, curving bay and lunched on locally caught snoek and anchovy salad.

At dinner that night, we sat virtually on the sand at Voorstrandt Restaurant, in a 114-year-old fisherman's cottage, and had more snoek - this time in samoosas - and the crispest of fish and chips. A squall came in from the sea, but failed to dampen the brazier burning on the beach.

Or our spirits.