Jo and Tessa Neser became the custodians of their 46 hectare farm on the Van der Stel Pass in December 2012. Both commercial lawyers by trade, they each have special childhood links to farms, flowers and the veld. Jo in particular has a passion for wine that was refined during his student years, while living on the farm L'Avenir in Stellenbosch and driving grapes to Nederburg in a bloupens Bedford truck, in exchange for a stipend, free student accommodation and wine. They decided to name their farm Waterleliefontein after discovering a dam on the farm filled with indigenous blue water lilies.

The making of premium quality extra virgin olive oil from the olives grown in their 10 hectare olive grove is a key focus at Waterleliefontein. The extra virgin olive oil is packaged in a striking Mediterranean blue tin, and is sold via their website, by contacting them directly or in select delis in the Overberg, Cape Town and Johannesburg.

They planted a vineyard with 2 hectares of Syrah and 1 hectare of Grenache Noir in 2017. A surprise first vintage in 2019 is showing much promise. There is great excitement about the vineyard yielding a superb Rhone blend in the not too distant future.