Today on the podcast we have Peter-Allan Finlayson, winemaker and co-owner of the very successful Crystallum label, and now winemaker of his father-in-law’s Gabriëlskloof wines – both based in Bot River.

I first met Peter-Allan, or as most people know him, Fin, when he was pouring his wine at the same small booth as Chris and Suzaan Alheit at Cape Wine 2012. He was the first “young gun” winemaker from South Africa that I had come across that was specialising in Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Most others were using Chenin Blanc and Syrah.

One of the main purposes of this podcast is to produce a document of record, and not to talk about a single release too much, it is worth noting that this conversation took place in July 2020, almost exactly one year ago. Fin had just released his 2019 Crystallum wines, so that is the vintage we reference mostly throughout this episode. 

As you will hear, Fin and I are quite good friends, so we didn’t always keep it strictly professional throughout this conversation, and there are some nice little verbal jabs at each other along the way.

I wanted to chat to Peter-Allan for a few reasons: 1) Because he makes very good wine, 2) As already mentioned, because he is one of the few of the younger generation focusing on Burgundian varieties, and 3) Because he has a different perspective than many of his contemporaries in the way he approaches the business of wine.

I give you Peter-Allan Finlayson…

Peter-Allan Finlayson, Crystallum & Gabriëlskloof

Tickets to Wine SONA 2023: https://www.exanimo.co.za/product/wine-sona-2023-with-christian-eedes-one-ticket/

Today on the podcast we have updates from the winemakers we work with about harvest 2023. 

Early signs look really great for '23 as a vintage. John Seccombe was clearly having a bad day - 

Was great to hear Koen in his element after all the drama he had late last year. 

Some Pinot Blanc being harvested for the first time is exciting for one of the producers. 

And some haven't even started yet! :)

Cheers, David from Ex Animo.

Harvest 2023 Update

*A video version of this interview is available on YouTube*

Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. 

In this episode, David Clarke talks with Craig Hawkins of the groundbreaking natural wine label TESTALONGA. Loved for his relaxed approach to wine making, Craig is one of THE names in natural wine in South Africa, if not in the New World. 

Craig talks about his journey into winemaking, discovering natural wines for the first time, how he experimented with different methods and what he’s learnt along the way. 

Craig and David taste the full range of TESTALONGA wines (spoiler: it’s a lot!). This is a rare look at a hard-to-find collection of wines, tasted and described by the winemaker himself.

Craig Hawkins of TESTALONGA Wine talks with David Clarke | Swartland | South Africa

*A video version of this interview is available on YouTube*

Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. 

In this episode, David Clarke brings together four winemakers from the Upper Hemel-en-Aarde Valley who specialise in Pinot Noir. The microclimate of the valley makes this one of the finest sites in South Africa to grow Pinot Noir - producing globally recognised wines of excellence. 

David and the Upper Hemel-en-Aarde crew chat about what makes the valley unique, why Pinot Noir does so well here and how the oceans and soils play such an important role. A fascinating deep-dive into Pinot Noir in a South African context, as told by the people who have worked these vines for decades.

David speaks with: 
Craig Wessels of Restless River
Johannes Storm of Storm Wines
Nadia Newton Johnson of Hearth Wines 
Gordon Newton Johnson of Newton-Johnson Family Wines

More information on the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley can be found at https://www.hemelenaardewines.com/

Pinot Noir winemakers talk with David Clarke | Hemel-en-Aarde Valley | South Africa

Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. 

In this episode, David Clarke chats with Winemag.co.za Editor and Wine Reviewer, Christian Eedes. This is the third annual Wine SONA (State of the Nation) discussion.

In it, David poses questions to Christian about the state of SA wine in 2024, such as: 
What was the most surprising in the world of SA wine in 2023
What is Christian most looking forward to in 2024
What were Christian's 'finds' of 2023
What changed in 2023
Christian's current take on 2020, 2021 and 2022 vintages
What varieties or regions had a good year in 2023 (and who didn't
*A video version of this interview is available on YouTube*

Wine Sona 2024 | The state of wine in South Africa | Annual Discussion

Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine.

In this episode, David Clarke chats with Ex Animo producers across the Western Cape to check how their harvests are progressing. This podcast was recorded in February 2024.

Harvest Report 2024 | South Africa | Winemaker interviews

Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. 

In this episode, David Clarke chats with the powerhouse couple of South African Cap Classiques: Ann and Pieter Ferreira. The pair have been at the forefront of fine sparkling wine, and their knowledge and understanding of the style is unparalleled. 

*A video version of this interview is available on YouTube*

Ann & Pieter Ferreira | Winemaker interview | Cap Classique of South Africa

Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. 

In this episode, David Clarke talks with Chris Alheit about his multi-award-winning wines. Chris’ white wines, founded on an unmatched understanding of Chenin Blanc grapes. These wines are elegant, sophisticated and unsurprisingly - multi-award-winning.  

Chris tells us how he first started to appreciate wine as a young wine steward, and how that curiosity led him to study and master Chenin Blanc in the Western Cape. 
Wines such as Cartology and Magnetic North are served in the finest restaurants worldwide and critics agree - these wines are precise, focused, concentrated and “quite brilliant”. 

*A video version of this interview is available on YouTube*


Chris Alheit of Alheit Vineyards talks with David Clarke | Chenin Blanc | South Africa

Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. 

In this episode, David Clarke talks with ‘Poenie’ Lourens’ from Lourens Family Vineyards. Poenie grew up in Paarl, near Stellenbosch, but doesn’t come from a winemaking family. Poenie’s wines are catching some attention from the reviewers and it is clear that he is a winemaker with real natural talent. 
Watch the chat about his winemaking journey and the story behind the celebrated ‘Lindi Carien’ blended white wine. 

*A video version of this interview is available on YouTube*


Franco ‘Poenie’ Lourens of Lourens Family Wines talks with David Clarke | South Africa

Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. 

In this episode, David Clarke talks with respected wine farmer, Johan Reyneke speaks about his approach to regenerative wine farming. Johan speaks about how biodynamic methods have helped to grow top quality grapes while also nurturing the land, animals and people at Reyneke. 

Johan explains “The Reyneke vineyards are herbicide, pesticide and fungicide free. Just like any organic vineyard should be. Instead of spraying weeds with poison, we carefully select and grow companion plants amongst our vines to outcompete the weeds. These companion plants have the ability to fix nitrogen from the atmosphere, help break up compacted soil or even harbour a beneficial insect or two.” 

*A video version of this interview is available on YouTube*



Johan Reyneke of Reyneke Wines talks with David Clarke | South Africa

Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. 

In this episode, David Clarke chats with Winemag.co.za Editor and Wine Reviewer, Christian Eedes. This is the 4th annual Wine SONA (State of the Nation) discussion. 

In it, David poses questions to Christian about the state of SA wine in 2025, such as: 
- How do we get more South Africans to drink wine?
- Why vineyards are decreasing
- Foreign wines: why are they not necessarily better than South African wine? 


*A video version of this interview is available on YouTube*


Wine SONA 2025 | The state of the wine industry in South Africa

Part 2 of 3 of my chat with Tom Lubbe of Matassa on the morning of his presentation at the Swartland Heritage Festival in Paternoster on 02.Nov.2018..
I wanted principally to talk to him about his time in wine in South Africa and in particular setting up The Observatory. We touched many subjects and we chatted for longer than planned, so I have split it up. 
Tom is a mentor of some of the most exciting (young and old) producers in South Africa, worked under Charles Back along side Eben Sadie before setting up The Observatory in the Paardeberg in early 2000s. He then fell in love and moved to France and started Matassa

I was very hungover for this chat having enjoyed a dinner at Wolfgat in Paternoster the night before, so apologies if I sound a bit slow.

Tom and I covered many topics in the chat – some of them (and the mm:ss) are below:

00.02	More on Louise at Welgemeend
00.49	Henri Jayer, Cros Parantoux
02.13	Lalou Bize-Leroy
03.44	Tom hates most Burgundy
04.07	Tom rather drinks…
04.44	Honest wine vs natural wine
05.53	Georges Descombes
06.26	Henri Jayer’s winemaking
06.47	Denis Mortet
07.42	Inheritance Law
07.54	Premature oxidation in Burgundy
08.29	Claude and Lydia Bourguignon
09.45	Ending up at Domaine Gauby
10.18	Going further with organic farming
10.42	What Tom found at Domaine Gauby
11.44	Meeting Eben Sadie in 1999
13.06	Charles Back and Spice Route
15.16	First vintage of Observatory (2000)
17.21	Old vines
18.14	Converting old vines to organics
19.27	Brilliant wines from young vines (1961 Chateau Palmer)
21.28	Matassa Rouge (100+yo vines)
22.10	Working with old vines
22.41	Elevage vessels and journalists and worms
23.26	Organic matter levels in soils – a visit to Alsace, Domaine Julien Meyer & Domaine Ostertag
26.28	Domaine Leon Barral in Faugeres
27.24	Cover cropping
28.03	Picking early at Observatory
28.34	Buying the farm in Swartland (2003)
29.19	Why the Paardeberg?
30.17	Shoot thinning, leaf plucking and malic acid levels
31.54	Lowering pH through farming – reducing the need for SO2
32.39	Oidium (Powdery Mildew)
35.44	More on Observatory
37.55	What is a winemaker? What is a vigneron?
39.16	Working in the Matassa vineyards
40.46	Importance of organics outside the vineyard
41.42	Tom is a dirty, lazy foreigner
42.37	Local cooperatives
43.17	Challenges of a dry climate (water and organic matter in soil)
44.05	Why aren’t more farmers increasing the organic matter in their soil?
45.20	Entropy and rain
46.26	Presence of the farmer
47.34	Philosophy of Antoine de Saint-Exupery
48.04	Respect for Didier Barral and Patrick Meyer
48.26	Patrick Meyer should be shot – dinner in Stockholm
50.36	Respect your neighbour
51.16	Physical challenges of farming
52.19	Farming equipment manufacturers
53.20	The end of The Observatory
54.05	The market for natural wines in early 2000s
54.50	Tom on his 2002 Carignan/Syrah
55.19	Problems with storage vs badly made wine – a case study.

Tom Lubbe 2

3rd and final part of my chat with Tom Lubbe of Matassa on the morning of his presentation at the Swartland Heritage Festival in Paternoster on 02.Nov.2018..
I wanted principally to talk to him about his time in wine in South Africa and in particular setting up The Observatory. We touched many subjects and we chatted for longer than planned, so I have split it up. 
Tom is a mentor of some of the most exciting (young and old) producers in South Africa, worked under Charles Back along side Eben Sadie before setting up The Observatory in the Paardeberg in early 2000s. He then fell in love and moved to France and started Matassa

I was very hungover for this chat having enjoyed a dinner at Wolfgat in Paternoster the night before, so apologies if I sound a bit slow.

Tom and I covered many topics in the chat – some of them (and the mm:ss) are below:

0.00	Support by other winemakers in making natural in South Africa in early 2000s
1.01	What are the biggest markets for Matassa?
1.35	South African wine more welcomed in London than Roussillon wine
2.24	Didn’t realise I had to sell the stuff as well as make it. Importance of repeat customers.
3.36	The shift of consciousness started in 2007-2008
3.57	Noma/Nordic cuisine and natural wine
4.20	The Japanese market
5.44	Kenjiro Kagami, Domaine des Miroirs (Jura)
7.48	Rise of concern about production of food in Japan and China
8.48	More on Japan
9.32	If I never moved to France…
9.51	You can’t farm via proxy
10.19	Comparing The Observatory and Matassa
10.40	What is the best compost?
11.02	Bosgaasfontein (farm where The Observatory was based)
11.20	Jurgen Gouws at Bosgaasfontein
11.36	Tom chats about South African winemakers
12.07	Craig Hawkins, TESTALONGA (Swartland)
12.45	Eben warned me…
13.17	The effects of working with others
13.27	Orange wine – first one made in 2008
12.13	White vs Orange wine
14.24	Filtering and sulphuring orange wine
14.53	Jancis and Cuvee Marguerite
15.41	Comparison to Radikon (Fruili), not competition
17.21	Are you bound to the traditional wine styles of your area?
17.42	Benefits of a skin contact fermentation for muscat d’alexandrie (Hanepoot)
18.18	Pricing philosophy
18.37	La Revue du Vin de France orange wine tasting
19.51	Matassa and Noma – serve it by the glass
21.11	I don’t want to fuck a boudin
21.39	Serious business and natural wine.

Thank you very much to Tom Lubbe.

Tom Lubbe Part 3 - Final

Recorded 21st March 2019

Craig Hawkins, owner with wife Carla and winemaker TESTALONGA – leading proponent of natural wine in SA. 

Craig as he and his wife Carla are to my knowledge the first people to build a very successful independent business making exclusively natural wine in South Africa. Many other winemakers have used them (and continue to use them) as inspiration to start their own journey. From making 2 barrels of skin contact Chenin Blanc to owning a farm and planting vineyards in 10 years.

We recorded this on their farm, Bandits Kloof near Eendekuil in the northern Swartland in the evening after tasting through the very young 2019 wines in cask. We were forced to sit outside as it was during loadshedding, which is a series of planned power outages lasting 2-3 hours to ease pressure on the grid and is needed due to reduced capacity caused by mismanagement (read: corruption) of the state power utility here in South Africa, Eskom. So please excuse the wind noise … you will also hear their dogs Bruce, Daisy and Ruby in the background - and sometimes in the foreground – as they were playing nearby.

I first met Craig and Carla in 2012 at Cape Wine the triennial South African wine fair in Cape Town before I moved to SA – and fell immediately in love with the Lammershoek wines he was making at the time, they had a most wonderful natural acid line which gave the wines tension and excitement – weren’t ambitiously luxurious wines based on richness, or looking for “stuffing” which so many others were going for at the time.

My company Ex Animo Wine Co has distributed TESTALONGA in South Africa since 2014. 

As always – covered a range of topics – how he got started in wine, his years working for Eben Sadie, how his wine philosophy was formed, helping grape growers work organically on their land, his trials and tribulations with the wine and spirit board which certifies South African wine for sale and for export (we incorrectly called it SAWIS in the podcast which is the South African Wine Industry Information and Systems – which is a separate but related entity focused on the collection, processing and dissemination of industry information), and how playing competitive sport help shape his wine career among other things.

The first few times I met Craig, I got the sense that he was trying to “work me out” when he was talking to me. But as I got to know him better, I realised he is just introverted, and it was just his way of interacting with people – he lets the other person open up before deciding whether he will do the same. He is a very passionate, caring person with a sharp intellect competitive spirit, and makes some of my favourite wine on the planet. 

Enjoy.

Craig Hawkins TESTALONGA

On farming grapes in the Swartland, Franziska Wickens of Waterval Farm

A chat with winemag.co.za editor and leading wine commentator in South Africa, Christian Eedes.

Christian takes us through a (very) brief modern history of South African wine, and then gives his take on what is happening in the fine wine industry in South Africa currently. A State of the Nation of Wine if you will.

A list of plantings by variety in South Africa can be found here: https://www.instagram.com/p/B80cETYp-uA/ - it seems I owe Christian a bottle of wine :)

I hope you enjoy. :)

Where are we? and How did we get here? A SONA of wine with Christian Eedes

A zoom chat with Jurgen Gouws of Intellego Wines.

Specialising in Swartland Chenin Blanc and Syrah (although Cinsaut, Mourvedre and Viognier are also used), Jurgen is one of only a handful of people making natural wines in South Africa. 

We don't really talk about each wine specifically, it was more of a chat about his philosophies, approaches, and opinions. We also chat about the wine he makes for us, a "semi-carbonically macerated" pinotage.

We love Jurgen's wines, and think he is a little bit of a genius. 

I hope you enjoy our chat.

NB. Please note that the last few (and many of the next) episodes were recorded via zoom and rely on a stable internet connection and this isn't always the case. Apologies for any audio issues, we are doing our best :) 

Please share if you enjoy it.

The Philosophy and Wine Styles of Jurgen Gouws - INTELLEGO WINES

***A quick note on the quality of the audio, we are in lockdown at the moment in South Africa and we are relying on the internet to record these podcasts, and they don’t always behave. We have done what we can to make it listenable as possible.***

Kalmoesfontein: vines, vermouth, parrots, rooibos, agave and Abruzzo with Adi Badenhorst

Today on the podcast we have Adi Badenhorst, one of the Swartland Revolutionaries –he is the main force and winemaker behind Badenhorst Family Vineyards where they make some fantastic wine.

But I didn’t really want to talk about the wine per se on this episode with Adi. Which is a bit strange, given this is a wine podcast I understand. I wanted to talk to Adi about Kalmoesfontein, the farm he lives and works on and all the “other” projects he is undertaking on the property. 

Adi is an extremely good-natured person, he will laugh at your jokes just as hard as he laughs at his own. He cares deeply about people and will, if given the time and permission, seek to understand the person he is talking to beyond the usual social graces. But there is an enigmatic side to Adi, underneath the exterior, which on first impression can seem very spontaneous and even reckless, and at the very least, disorganised lies a very driven, passionate and focussed human being. 

He’s very thoughtful and is constantly requesting other’s opinions, especially when they don’t align with his. 

He is certainly one of the people I most like talking to – he is, as they say, one of the good ones.

I give you Adi Badenhorst.

Vines, vermouth, parrots, rooibos, agave and Abruzzo with ADI BADENHORST

***NB*** We are in the middle of a government enforced lockdown here in South Africa where the sale and movement of wine is, at least for now, forbidden. So to keep ourselves busy we have decided to release a new podcast episode every day during lockdown.

Today on the podcast we have Tegan Passalacqua who is based in California and is the director of winemaking at Turley Wine Cellars, a producer specialising in old vine wines, with zinfandel being a particular focus. He is also the owner/winemaker of Sandlands, his own project, which looks to highlight interesting and unique vineyards. 

My wife, Jeannette, first met Tegan in 2003 when they were both interns at Craggy Range in New Zealand – they have remained friends ever since. I first met Tegan in 2008 when Jeannette and I visited him at Turley in California and was immediately impressed by his passion, knowledge and polite curiosity. I remember fondly a bottle of Turley Hayne Vineyard Zinfandel he gave us on that visit. We drank it within a few hours at dinner that night and I have no regrets.

Tegan worked for Eben Sadie in the Swartland for almost the entirety of vintage 2011, and as you will hear, has a real fondness for South Africa. He is an unabashed champion of the New South Africa and her wines – we are lucky to have such a respected voice as Tegan’s acting as an unofficial ambassador in California.

It’s all about vineyards for Tegan, and he has a vast well of experience and knowledge upon which to draw. He is a fascinating conversation partner and we have a far-reaching discussion – I truly hope you enjoy listening as much as I did participating.

A couple of notes on the podcast: it was recorded on April 5th, we mention that South African wine exports were banned as part of the nation-wide lockdown due to covid19 – thankfully those bans were lifted 2 days later, on the 7th April. When talking about acre to hectare conversion, we get it very wrong (!) – 2.9 hectares is a little over 7 acres.

Just a quick note on the quality of the audio – as we are in lockdown at the moment in South Africa and we are relying on the internet to record these podcasts, and it doesn’t always behave. We have done what we can to make it listenable as possible. Tegan and I talk over each other a few times in this podcast, mostly due to the delay, but sometimes I just can’t wait to interrupt. 

I give you Tegan Passalacqua.

Talking South African Wine and Old Vineyards with TEGAN PASSALACQUA, Turley & Sandlands

Today on the podcast we have Julien Schaal, winemaker and owner of Julien Schaal wines. 

He is based in Alsace and exclusively works with Grand Cru Rieslings there. He first visited South Africa in the early 2000s when he worked as a cellar hand for Bouchard Finlayson. During that time a friendship developed with Gordon Newton-Johnson and an opportunity to produce his own South African wine was proposed. Julien has been coming to South Africa to make his Chardonnay and Syrah wines ever since. 

I wanted to chat to Julien about the similarities and differences in making wine in Alsace and South Africa. They seemed, to me at least, to be very different climates, and obviously working with different varieties, so I wondered if there was much crossover.

We also chat about the current state of Alsace wine in the world market, Julien exports 100% of his Alsace production, so he has quite a good perspective on that side of the business.

I give you Julien Schaal…

Alsace and Africa with JULIEN SCHAAL

Today on the podcast we have Eben Sadie of Sadie Family Wines, based in the Swartland. It is difficult to overstate how important Eben is to the modern reputation of South African wine. Put simply, he is among the most influential people in South African wine, ever.  

I wanted to talk to Eben about his journey in wine, from his days at Elsenberg, through the Spice Route experience and making those first vintages of Columella and Palladius in the very early 2000s.

As you will hear, Eben is a deep thinker and takes wine extremely seriously. It was a great conversation.

I give you Eben Sadie…

Eben Sadie, Sadie Family Wines

Today on the podcast we have Richard Kelley MW. Richard currently runs Dreyfus Ashby, an importer based in the UK specialising in South Africa and regional France, with a particular bias towards the Loire.

After Richard earnt his Master of Wine, he spent many years in the South African wine industry in the mid and late nighties working for Vinimark. He returned to the UK in the 2000s and has continued to champion South Africa in his home market and has worked with some of the most important producers of the last 20 years.

 I wanted to chat to Richard about South African wine in the UK market – and ask his advice for producers wanting to get into that market.

Richard is a hugely respected authority on South African wine, and I think you’ll understand why once you listen to our conversation.

I give you Richard Kelley…

Richard Kelley MW, Dreyfus Ashby

Today on the podcast we have Dom Nocerino of Vinifera Imports, based in New York. 

A bit of a change of pace for the podcast today. Dom isn't professionally involved with South African wine, but he has been involved with wine his whole life as his family has been importing Italian wine into the US since the 1970s. 

As you will hear Dom is an articulate, knowledgeable wine lover – and can also grow a mean moustache – check out our Instagram feed for a photo of Dom holding a bottle of Cartology and sporting an excellent soup strainer.

We chat about selling wine to trade, the importance (or not) of journalist points, what has been happening in Italian wine over the last 5-10 years including the issue of climate change (there is some super interesting info on Italian wine in this podcast if that is your thing), Dom's experiences in South Africa including a hilarious story about our mutual friend Peter-Allan Finlayson and more. A bit of fun for a Friday. :)

I give you Dom Nocerino…

Dom Nocerino, Vinifera Imports

Today on the podcast we have Marc Kent, the Managing Partner and Technical Director of Boekenhoutskloof in Franschhoek. 

Boekenhoutskloof is one of the huge success stories of the new South Africa – it not only has the Boekenhoutskloof range, it also has Wolftrap, Porcupine Ridge, Porseleinberg and there is a new project in the Hemel-en-Aarde. I would think that virtually everyone interested in South African wine would have had at least some contact with one of these brands in the last 20 years.

Marc is a fascinating guy, an original thinker, deeply influenced by the late Tim Rands (of Vinimark), and few people know, was one of the original instigators of the Swartland Revolution. By his own admission, Marc is much more interested in the business of wine than farming and making it. This was mainly what I wanted to speak to him about: how Boekenhoutskloof got started, how he got involved, and how he expanded the business to where it is today. We also touch on other subjects like fine wine post-COVID19, thoughts on brand South Africa and his love of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc.

I give you Marc Kent…

Marc Kent, Boekenhoutskloof

Today on the podcast we have Maho Tamai of Société Raffiné, a Japanese-based wine importer, specialising in South Africa.

Maho is based in Cape Town as Raffiné’s local representative and acts as a producer liaison. Japan has quickly become an important market for South African wine over the last few years and this is what I wanted to talk to him about. 

We discuss how the business first entered into South African wine and how they grew to having 33 agencies in the space of a few years. 

Maho is an active member of the wine community here in Cape Town, a proper gentleman and deeply committed to South African wine. We are lucky to have him here.

I give you Maho-san…

Maho Tamai, Société Raffiné

Today on the podcast we have Michael Fridjhon. 

With his wine career now entering its sixth decade, Michael is one of the true doyens of the South African wine industry. 

His current interests are the Reciprocal Wine Company, an importer and retailer of fine wines; WineX, the biggest wine show in South Africa; the Old Mutual Trophy, one of the key wine competitions in South Africa; he writes on wine for numerous publications around the globe and has been the international voice of South African wine for a generation.

Listening to Michael’s experiences during the last 50 or so years was very beneficial for me. He references some key moments in  South African history: the Sharpeville massacre of 1960 where police shot dead 60 protesters, injuring many more; the Rivonia Trial of 1963-64 which resulted in the life sentences of Nelson Mandala and others who were convicted of sabotage; and then President P. W. Botha’s Rubicon speech of 1985 which doubled down on the Governments Apartheid policies and led to the collapse of the Rand. Michael is not a historian, and his recollections of these events are drawn from his own experiences.

We had a fascinating chat, and I feel that we only scratched the surface of his knowledge and experience. 

While I wouldn’t go as far as to say that Michael is a controversial figure, he certainly holds unpopular opinions at times. These are usually very well-thought-out positions, whether you agree with them or not, so it makes for good conversation.

Unfortunately, the medium we are using to record these podcasts, Zoom, for all its benefits, makes a fast-paced, interactive discussion very difficult. We talk across each other on the discussion about brands and pricing a little bit, and I’d like to explore that with him in more detail at a later date. Perhaps when we can meet face-to-face.

In the meantime, I give you Michael Fridjhon….

50 Years of South African Wine with Michael Fridjhon

Today on the podcast we have Higgo Jacobs. Higgo has been a key figure in the South African wine industry for a decade. A certified sommelier, he was part of the founding board of the South African Sommelier Association (SASA). He was also the Chairperson for SASA for 4 years, standing down in early 2019.

Higgo no longer works as a sommelier and has been a consultant for hire to the industry for a decade. In that time he has done work for various restaurants, WOSA (the export lobby group of the South African wine industry), the Nederburg Auction, numerous international publications and journalists, he also is one of South Africa’s representative palates at the Decanter World Wine Awards.

If you’ve ever been to South Africa on official wine business, you’ve probably met Higgo.

Most recently he has been instrumental (along with Roland Peens of Wine Cellar) in trying to create a formal secondary market for wine in South Africa. They have been working with auction house Strauss & Co, who specialise in art, to achieve this. A week or two prior to our chat the live auction held on the Strauss & Co yielded some amazing results with 6 bottles of the Kanonkop Paul Sauer 2015 vintage selling for just over R5,000 a bottle. The retail price on release in 2018 was R375 per bottle.
 
I wanted to chat to Higgo about his time at SASA – and his opinion on what next for the sommelier profession in South Africa – and the recent auction result and to find out a bit more about the inner mechanics of how the auctions are put together. 

During the podcast, you will notice that Higgo calls me “Davey”, and is the only person outside my immediate family to do so. Higgo and I are friends, we served for 6 years on the board of SASA, and have a lot of respect for each other. It is always great chatting to him. 

This was recorded late in May 2020 – when we were still in hard lockdown, so I had to rely on our good friend Zoom. Unfortunately it kept cutting out and we had to re-record some sections more than once. This, combined with some pretty average interviewing ability from yours truly resulted in a raw recording that jumped around a lot. I apologise – I have done the best I can to edit it to make it play as it would have occurred had the technology and skills been up to standard. 

As with all of these home recordings, there is some background noise. If you concentrate, you can hear Higgo’s young daughter, Sadie in some parts.

Even though there were some challenges in this episode, I believe it to be well worth listening to. Higgo is a unique voice in the South African wine industry and brings fresh insights to many parts of it.

I give you Higgo Jacobs…

Higgo Jacobs

Today on the podcast we have Kurt Moore, CEO of SALBA – the South African Liquor Brand owners Association. According to their website, their sole objective is to represent their members, who are manufacturers and distributors of liquor products in the liquor industry of South Africa, on issues of common interest.

Their members include an extensive list of heavy-hitting liquor industry stalwarts: DGB, Meridian, Vinimark, Distell, Pernod Ricard, Diageo, Stellenbosch Vineyards, KWV, Origin, Spier - - - the list goes on.

When I contacted Kurt and asked him to be on the podcast, he needed very little convincing. We quickly arranged a date and time (there was only a very short window of time in which to conduct this interview) and I sent him a list of questions that would be asked. These questions were primarily concerned with SALBA’s current and future responses to the government’s current regulations around the sale and movement of liquor. 

The narrative in all previous communications I had seen from SALBA on this issue had been one of wishing to partner with government - wanting to work with government. In their latest press release, they stated that they had not been contacted or consulted by government in the run up to the latest regulations coming into effect, nor had any of SALBA’s requests for an audience or communications from government been responded to.

I wanted to know at what point would their plan of action change. When does litigation or protest become more effective options?

Kurt Moore, CEO SALBA

Today on the podcast we have Johan Malan, Director of Wine at the historic Simonsig Estate in Stellenbosch. As you will hear in this episode, Johan is very easy to talk to, humble, and has a rather infections giggle. While he is justifiably proud of what Simonsig has achieved over the years, he is very far from resting on his laurels – as exhibited by The Grapesmith wines we reference.

Simonsig is one of the grand old names in Stellenbosch whose reputation was set in motion by Johan’s father, Frans. An incredibly important person in the development of Stellenbosch as a premium wine area, the Estate system, and wine tourism in South Africa.

I asked Johan on the podcast because both Cathy van Zyl MW and Michael Fridjhon on previous podcasts referenced Simonsig’s (and especially Frans’) work in setting up the Stellenbosch Wine Route, the first of its kind in South Africa, and helped pave the way for quality-minded producers that has eventually led to the fine wine revolution the country has experienced over the last 10-15 years.

While Simonsig is probably best known to most domestic wine consumers as the pioneers of traditional method sparkling wine with their wine Kaapse Vonkel, they also produce important Chenin Blanc and Pinotage wines.

I think this is one of the most important podcast episodes I have done so far. Simonsig may no longer command the column inches it once did, but it is and will forever remain one of the most important wine Estates in South Africa. Frans and Johan Malan have positively affected the reputation of Stellenbosch, helping shift the focus from the volume producers based in Paarl. Virtually every single top wine producer in South Africa today has the Malan’s of Simonsig to thank for the route to market they helped envision, create and curate from the 1970s to the 1990s.

I give you Johan Malan…

Johan Malan - Simonsig

Today on the podcast we have Duncan Savage – owner and winemaker of Savage Wines. He made his name through the first decade or so of the 2000s as the winemaker of Cape Point Vineyards.

Duncan’s production facility (originally set up by Tim Martin) is in the industrial Cape Town suburb of Salt River – I interviewed him there, in the now vacant warehouse above his winery. Note: there is an echo and some street noise, but not too much.

Duncan is one of the “good guys” of the industry, very jovial and easy going. I don’t think there are many people with anything negative to say about him, other than his wines sell out too quickly. 

As you will hear, Duncan has been making wines almost 20 years, and has built one of the stronger brands of the South African “new wave” – I wanted to talk to Duncan about this journey and about his new 2019 wines about to be released.

It is a long one, as Duncan is a great story-teller and has some very well thought out insights into wine making, marketing and life in general.

Strap yourselves in, I give you Duncan Savage…

Duncan Savage, Savage Wines

Today on the podcast, we have a bit of a change – instead of me talking to a guest, this time I was in the guest’s seat of The Vincast podcast based in Melbourne, hosted by The Intrepid Wino – a.k.a. James Scarcebrook, and is all about wine, wine culture and wine people. Each episode he chats with someone from a different field in the wine industry, to gain some insight into their experiences, philosophies, practices and personality as it relates to wine and what they do. 

Sound familiar?

James had asked me on previously, but we had never managed to make our diaries match up while I had been in Melbourne on my (until now) annual trips. Very glad we finally managed to make it happen. 

We talk about my journey in wine that started with a glass of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc while working for the Victorian government in the late nighties, and we race through the next twenty plus years to how I ended up in Cape Town today.

A few listeners have been asking for an episode on my story, so I am glad to be able to oblige.

A big thank you to James for the conversation – you can find his podcast at intrepidwino.com/the-vincast/ and if you have an interest in the Australian wine scene I highly suggest you check it out.

I give you my story so far…

The Vincast - a wine podcast with The Intrepid Wino

David Clarke from Ex Animo Wine Co. via The Vincast

Ex Animo Wine Co. is a wine distributor based in Cape Town. We are all about flavour, integrity, and having a good time.

Ex Animo Wine Co.

Pinned to spotlight

Popular tracks