“It’s that whole creative part of winemaking that excites me. Being able to take something in nature and then transform it into something beautiful.”
After matriculating in South Africa, Gottfried travelled to Germany where he found himself working at Weingut August Kesseler in Assmanshausen in the Rheingau. Realising that he’d found his passion, he apprenticed at a winery in Bingen, while also working part-time at Weingut Johanninger in Biebelsheim. Three years later, Gottfried took up an opportunity at Rex Hill Vineyards in Newberg, Oregon, US – a specialist in Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. In 1999, he returned to Germany to study viticulture and oenology at LVWO in Weinsber. Further travels within Europe found him working at Domaine de Trévallon in Saint-Etienne-du-Grès in Provence, France.
Gottfried returned to South Africa at the end of 2001 and assumed the position of winemaker at Chamonix Wine Farm in Franschhoek, a position he held for nearly 14 years. During 2015, he joined Boekenhoutskloof Winery in Franschhoek and is the chief winemaker for their operation. Within this set-up, a new exciting project has commenced with the acquisition of an untouched property within the Upper Hemel-en-Aarde Valley. Gottfried is spearheading this development which involves the clearing of alien growth and restoring the indigenous vegetation while sensibly planting contours of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir between the fynbos for the establishment of the Cap Maritime brand.