A census done in 1692, shows that Nicolaas Cleef had been settled on a farm known as de Groote Zalze, just outside Stellenbosch on the banks of the Blaauwklippen river since 1683. Cleef was born in Grosszalze, Germany and married Barbara Lefevre, a Huguenot refugee of Fleurbaix, Belgium in 1684. By 1692, they had a family with a daughter and a son and had planted 7 000 vines on de Groote Zalze. In 1695, Simon van der Stel granted Cleef ownership (freehold title) of the 57 morgen of land that he had cleared and cultivated for 12 years.

Today, 18 morgen of this grant is within the boundaries of the subdivided section known as Kleine Zalze, adjoining another section taken from a subsequent (1818) grant to de Groote Zalze’s owners.

Nicolaas Cleef died in 1708 and his widow Barbara and their children Anna Catherina and Jochem, continued farming. Anna Catherina married Hans Jacob Conterman, whose family name was Grundermann (until his arrival in the Cape in 1796). Conterman, arrived at the Cape as a soldier but was soon freed from his obligations and registered as a burger.

More recently, Kobus Basson and his family acquired the property in 1996 and proceeded to renovate the cellar and replant the vineyards to build the modern-day Kleine Zalze.

In September 2022 ownership passed to AdVini, a world renowned French wine company, starting a new chapter for Kleine Zalze Wines.