Find South African wine industry contacts

Chandré Davey

Winemaker - Fish Hoek & Dragon's Back Mountain

Chandré Davey was appointed as Accolade winemaker in 2019 and is responsible for the Fish Hoek, Dragon’s Back Mountain, Flagstone Poetry, and Own Label wine ranges.

De Wet Viljoen

Winemaker

Neethlingshof Wine Estate

+27.218838988

De Wet Viljoen was raised on a wine farm in the Breede River Valley and attended Stellenbosch University where studied oenology and viticulture after obtaining a BSc in microbiology. Before returning to South Africa, De Wet worked for two vintages at Kendall-Jacksons La Crema cellar in California.

Niel Bester

Cellarmaster

Plaisir De Merle

+27.218741071

Niel Bester - Cellarmaster Plaisir de Merle. As the first and only winemaker at Plaisir de Merle, Niel Bester has set a difficult precedent for future winemakers to follow.

Martin Moore

Cellarmaster

Durbanville Hills Cellar

+27.215581300

Known for his charismatic personality and storytelling, cellarmaster Martin Moore is as much part of the Durbanville Hills Winery as the contours of the hills surrounding the cellar. He joined Durbanville Hills in 1998 while the cellar was still under construction and since then has played a pivotal role in shaping the wines produced here.

Edmund Terblanche

Winemaker

La Motte

+27.218768000

2004 to date: Cellar Master at La Motte Wine Estate, Franschhoek, South Africa 2001-2003: Assistant winemaker at La Motte. 1999-2000: Assisted in winemaking at Eaglevlei Private Cellar, Paarl, South Africa 1992: Nature Conservation for the SA Navy Saldanha. 1993- 1997 : Assistant Head of Parks, Benoni Town Council, Gauteng, South Africa

Kobus Gerber

Winemaker - White

Durbanville Hills Cellar

+27.215581300

“I am a winemaker who believes good wine is made in the vineyard with minimal human intervention. I sincerely believe South Africa offers high quality wines to palates around the globe. My goal is to make an iconic South African white wine.”

RJ Botha

Cellar Master

Kleine Zalze Wines

+27.218800717

Although initially not from a winemaking background, RJ was always intrigued by the science of winemaking and thus studied BSc. Agric Viticulture and Oenology at the university of Stellenbosch.

Juan Slabbert

Winemaker - Kumala

Accolade Wines

Juan Slabbert was born in the small town of Robertson in the heart of the Cape Winelands. He studied Viticulture at Elsenburg Agricultural College and only after his first crush at Graham Beck Wines decided to become a winemaker.

Thornton Pillay

Winemaker

The Drift Estate

From humble beginnings, I was fortunate to have both my parents involved in the agricultural fruit and vegetable industry and this is what sparked an interest in me to pursue a career in agriculture.

David Nieuwoudt

Owner and winemaker

Cederberg Cellar

+27.274822827

In October 2005 the phone rang: David had been invited to become a member of the Cape Winemakers Guild, the 37th member since the Guild’s inception in 1982. What a rare honour this is for a winemaker fighting the odds three hours north of South Africa’s wine hub!

Bruce Jack

Chief Winemaker

The Drift Estate

I grew up in Cape Town, South Africa, the son of a visionary architect and a brilliant musician/writer. We first lived on Surfers’ Corner in Muizenberg, where, in big storms, the waves crashed onto the front windows of our small cottage. My father taught me how to surf when I was about 5 and I’ve been surfing at Muizenberg ever since.

Kobus Basson

Managing Director & Owner

Kleine Zalze Wines

+27.218800717

In 2013 Kobus Basson became the sole owner of Kleine Zalze and to this day he is actively involved in the day-to-day management of the business in his role as Managing Director of Kleine Zalze.

Josef Dreyer

Winemaker

Raka Wines

+27.283410676

I grew up on our family farm in the Overberg where we farmed soft citrus and livestock. During 1999, when I was 15, I helped to establish the first vineyards on the farm, and had to take my turn watering them. I was at boarding school during the first harvest, but came home as often as I could, and was there with our first bottling of wine in 2002.

Marco Ventrella

KWV Head Viticulturist

KWV Classic Collection

+27.218073414

Like a really good wine, Marco Ventrella matured into winemaking.

Izele van Blerk

Winemaker: Red Wines

KWV Classic Collection

KWV winemaker Izele van Blerk’s motto, “expect the unexpected”, both provides the stimulation she loves and keeps her on her toes in the winemaking business, where “no one wine will ever taste the same twice”.