Another exciting event with Ntsiki Biyela, a leading black, female winemaker from South Africa, a country where the wine industry is dominated by white males. This time I met her at Unwined, a wine store in Alexandria, USA, following an event organized by the Wine Concierge with her in Washington DC downtown, a few days ago.
It is now 15 years ago that I met Ntsiki for the first time and wrote about her. This was at Stellekaya in Stellenbosch in South Africa, shortly after she had started her amazing wine journey.
She is now owner and winemaker of @Aslina Wines in Stellenbosch.
Invitation
Ntsiki Biyela is the owner and winemaker of Aslina Wines in South Africa. She grew up in a rural village in KwaZulu-Natal and went on to become the first Black woman winemaker in the country — a huge deal, and one she carries with a lot of humility. After years of working in the wine industry, she started Aslina, naming the winery after her grandmother. Her wines are thoughtful, expressive, and deeply connected to place, blending tradition with her own personal story. They’re honest, beautifully made wines with a lot of heart behind them.
Join us Wednesday, February 18, from 7:15pm - 9:00pm at Unwined as Ntsiki Biyela, herself, takes us through a selection of six wines from Aslina. You won't want to miss this! Chef Madeline will prepare perfectly paired light bites to keep us focused as we sip and learn.
Unwined After Hours with Ntsiki Biyela, Owner & Winemaker of Aslina Wines
Arriving
The Wines
Presentation
Snacks
Pictures: Christian G.E.Schiller with Ntsiki Biyela at Stellekaya in StellenboschI had a chance to spend a couple of hours with a very special person - Ntsiki Biyela, winemaker at Stellekaya Winery in Stellenbosch. Ntsiki is a South African, a winemaker, a woman and a Zulu – in the South African wine industry, which is dominated by white males.
South Africa Yesterday and Today
When traveling in South Africa today, it quickly becomes evident that apartheid is resting in the dustbin of history. South Africa’s current President is the Zulu Jakob Zuma, who is mired in personal and political controversy. The Txosa Nelson Mandela, who had spent more than 25 years in prison during apartheid, was President in the 1990s and is now a revered elder called "Madiba" ("Papa"). South Africa successfully hosted the Soccer World Cup. The Soccer World Cup was hoped to provide a boost to the tourism industry; but indications are that the expected boost did not materialize, at least not fully. The gap between the haves and have-nots continues to be wide, but is narrowing and a black middle class is emerging. This, however, is not so much evident in the wine region, which continues to be dominated by the whites; Cape Town even has a white mayor. 99% of the vineyard area is in the hands of whites. The AIDS pandemic is taking a huge toll with the HIV infection rate at about 20 percent.
Over the course of the years, I have detected an increasing openness, pride and camaraderie among all the South Africans – white, colored or black, Boers or Brits; Indians, Jews, Zulus, Txosas or Vendas, I met. Nevertheless, this rainbow society with a share of 75% of blacks, has huge challenges to cope with.
The Stellekaya Winery
The Stellekaya Winery is located in Stellenbosch’s historical brandy manufacturing precinct. Stellekaya means home of the stars, a combination of the Italian word for stars, Stella and Kaya, an African word for skies. That’s how owner Dave Lello sees his winery - an African winery that makes wines in the European tradition. Dave is a keen follower of the stars and an amateur astronomer, hence the stars theme at the winery.
Pictures: Christian G.E.Schiller at Stellekaya with wine maker Ntsiki BiyelaThe project started in 1999; after 2 experimental seasons, a decision was made to establish a commercial winery in the center of Stellenbosch. The first crush in the new winery was in 2003. Stellekaya has been buying in grapes, but 2009 saw the first harvest of own grapes from Stellekaya’s 24 hectares site along Blaauwklippen Road in Stellenbosch.
The winery is designed to produce about 120,000 bottles of wine. Production is planned not to exceed 20,000 bottles per wine in any one vintage. 40 percent of production is currently exported, but the export share is planned to eventually increase to 60%.
Winemaking Philosophy
Stellekaya produces mainly premium quality red wines, but it has just started to also make a Chenin Blanc. Stellekaya allows its grapes time to cool after harvest and then lets them go through a cold maceration for 3 to 4 days. The grapes go into open fermenters and the cap is punched down in a traditional method. Stellekaya uses a wooden basket press and matures its wines in French oak barriques. Most of the wines are matured for 12 to 22 months and then spend an extra few months in the bottle before being released into the market. The winery has been designed in a way that no little or no mechanical pumping is necessary, and that the maximum fruit and flavour are extracted early in the fermentation process. The process is labor intensive but this ensures the quality. It also helps in terms of involving local labor.
The Wine Maker: Ntsiki Biyela’s Story
I was very thrilled to meet Ntsiki Biyela in person. I had heard so much about here and had seen the video clip on CNN. She was crowned South African Woman Winemaker of the Year 2009.
Nontsikelelo, or Ntsiki as she is fondly known, told me during the course of our tasting that she was born and raised in the rural village of Ulundi in Zululand. Her village got electricity only in 2004. She matriculated from Mahlabathini High School in 1996 where she excelled in science. Ntsiki had high hopes to study engineering, but did not have the funding for full-time study. Luckily, her uncle introduced her to winemaker Jabulani Ntshangase, who assisted Ntsiki in applying for an SAA scholarship. Ntsiki was chosen as one of ten black students to pursue a bursary program to study winemaking at Stellenbosch.
In 2003 Ntsiki graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture, specialising in Viticulture and Oenology, at the University of Stellenbosch. She found work at Stellekaya in 2004, which rapidly turned into a full winemaker's job. Initially, Ntsiki was assisted by Peet Le Roux. Since 2005 she has been making the wines on her own; at times she works with consultant Michael Carmichael Green. Her 2004 Cape Cross won a Gold medal at the Michelangelo Awards. It was the first gold medal won by a black winemaker in South Africa and it was her first vintage.
Pictures: Ntsiki in front of Nelson Mandela pictures and behind Stellekaya wine bottlesIt was great fun to spend a couple of hours with Ntsiki, a fascinating black, female winemaker. “When I was given a scholarship by South African airlines in Stellenbosch, I moved 1000 miles away from home, from my grandmother who raised me as if I was her daughter and from everything I knew. I had never drunk a glass of wine in my life” Ntsiki said.
One can imagine, what courage and determination it took to attend classes largely filled with Afrikaans-speaking white males. "You feel like you have invaded their space" said Ntsiki. And just about everything was done in Afrikaans, which Ntsiki did not understand when she arrived in Stellenbosch. “There was little overt hostility” Ntsiki said, “but little support, and I was very scared at first. I really only started getting on easily with my fellow-students in the last year. There have been many changes in Stellenbosch over the last years, however. Many more black people now attend the University.”
Ntsiki has a clear idea of her own wine preferences. “I like full and ripe wines” Ntsiki said. She is unperturbed by high alcohols as long as they are in balance.
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