Impressing guests with great wine at any function is not always easy. It is even harder if you are young and only just starting to take fermented grapes seriously. Fortunately, help is at hand.
Last week at a celebratory event that was held at Delheim Wine Estate in Stellenbosch, a new South African wine called uLutsha (the youth) by a young team of PYDA (Pinotage Youth Development Academy) graduates was unveiled - and it is the first of its kind.
Last year, Stellenbosch estate partnered with PYDA to enable their graduates to create their own wine product, start to finish. Commencing with that year’s harvest, the group of nine from the academy got a basic introduction from business plans to harvest, vinification, maturation, and eventual own-brand wine release. Lockdown resulted in less exposure to actual winemaking, so the concept was born to provide a comprehensive understanding of the wine value chain and to get graduates hands-on in the industry.
The project is part of a long-term initiative that will see the graduates create a commercial product from one barrel per year. The second group has come on board this month for their immersive learning experience. They then make the wine for the next group and will bottle the wine made by the previous group, bringing a legacy element to the process. Both intakes have also received input from award-winning winemaker Ntsiki Biyela, who has made Delheim Estate her home base for her Aslina brand and is part of the project.
One of the graduates, Ziyanda Njalo, who co-ordinated the project on a full-time basis, said choosing to continue with the uLutsha Wine Project has expanded her knowledge and skills of the wine business.
“My confidence has grown, and I have a deeper appreciation of the work and people it takes to produce a bottle of wine. In the uLutsha Wine Project, everyone that I have met has taught me that you must know your “whys” and always have a plan. Ulutsha is a wine brand that inspires young people who want to create their own brands and be employers of tomorrow,” said Njalo.
Delheim Executive Director Nora Thiel said the estate has always been involved in education programmes and has been a long-time employer of PYDA graduates since the training organisation’s establishment in 2012. Thiel said they have never been exposed to actual winemaking, so the concept was born to provide a comprehensive understanding of wine realisation.
“This project was launched as part of developing talent, and we will continue working on a model that can enhance the learning curve for the students. We aim to develop an all-inclusive structured learnership where students get to work across all departments in a company,” he said.
First to sip on this new Pinotage was a prestigious panel of wine experts including Delheim executive director, Victor Sperling, winemaker turned wine educator Nomonde Kubheka, vice-chairperson of the Black Cellar Club, Denzel Swarts, owner of the International Wine Education Centre, and wine educator, Cathy Marston, owner Aslina Wine, Ntsiki Biyela and owner of Zuri Wine tasting, Tuanni Price.
The initial 230 limited edition bottles of uLutsha Pinotage 2019 will be sold for R1000 per bottle, specifically as an investment into youth development within the wine industry, the uLutsha brand, and its next phase of business development.
Whether you are looking for a rose or something with more depth, here are other new wines to try this year.