Seven Springs is probably one of the most talked about wineries in 2010, with its sauvignon blanc generating mass debate on twitter and various wine and food blogs. The winery’s talented young winemaker, sales and marketing manager, Riana van der Merwe, describes her job as “living the dream”. We managed to lure her from the vineyards, in order to find out more about her love affair with wine and the winery that is expected to continue to make waves in 2011.
How did it all start?
I studied at Stellenbosch University and received my degree in Winemaking and Viticulture in 2006. After an internship at Seidelberg and a brief stint in the tasting room at Warwick, I packed my bags and jetted off to Sonoma, California, for a five-month period at Stonestreet Vineyards. In 2008, I was lucky enough to work with Louis Nel at Hidden Valley, which was an invaluable experience and one of my best harvests. The travel bug bit again shortly after and I headed off to the Northern Rhone valley in France, before returning to South Africa once more to work as the assistant winemaker at Backsberg in Paarl. I decided that it was time to settle down (with a winery, that is!) and started with Seven Springs at the end of 2009. During the second half of 2010, they sent me back to USA, this time to Oregon, for a vintage to learn more about the production of pinot noir.
That’s a lot of experience for someone who is only 26! Have you always wanted to be a winemaker?
Not at all. When I was younger, I was always drawn towards the arts and seriously considered a career in acting. I also toyed with the idea of interior design and architecture. I only decided to pursue winemaking when I was 17. My father has always worked in the agricultural sector, so I guess you could say that it’s been in my blood. I saw winemaking as the perfect marriage of art and agriculture and, after only a few months at university, realised that I was indeed studying towards my dream career.
What do you love most about wine?
It’s the way that the atmosphere changes when a good bottle of wine is opened. Everyone enjoys it and I love the conversations and memories that go with that bottle of wine. I like being social and wine likes being social, so we are a good match!
What are your favourite varietals?
I am lucky that I get to produce all my favourite varietals, which to me represent elegance, passion and romance: sauvignon blanc, chardonnay, syrah and pinot noir. Other varieties that I like are riesling (even a bad riesling can make your day better) and viognier.
Tell us a little about the wines that you are currently making?
Our sauvignon blanc is crisp with a tropical fruit nose. It is still shy, but will develop with age. It has a finish that never ends and it has flavours of passionfruit and limes. The lightly-wooded chardonnay was recently bottled, but already has a beautiful nose of banana, citrus and butter. The syrah is the only red we produced in 2010 and it is currently whiling it’s time away in the barrel. It has a fruit-forward nose of ripe berries, with coriander and pepper showing well. This is a very elegant and subtle wine.
What are your three favourite wine routes?
Durbanville, Constantia and Elim (Cape Agulhas). There are beautiful, elegant and complex wines to be found in these regions, each with a unique style that I enjoy.
Harvest season is fast approaching – what’s a typical harvest day like at Seven Springs?
We start really early to make sure that we pick the grapes (especially the white grapes) whilst it’s still cool. We then transport the grapes to Almenkerk, where we are currently producing our 2011 vintages. Our operation is small and we don’t work with more than 10 tons per day. In the afternoon, the grapes have been processed and are either undergoing a cold-soak or being pressed. We analyse the juice and then clean up and have an early night!
Apart from winemaking, do you have any other talents?
I like cooking and most of the books that you’ll find in my apartment are cooking books and recipes that I collect. In fact, I was given a journal for my favourite recipes at Christmas.
We hear you’ve have some interesting pets – are the rumours true?
Well, when I was 8 years old, I had a pet snail called Herbie. Everyone else had silkworms, but I absolutely can’t do worms, so I had a snail instead, swapping silk for snail trails. I now have an adorable black and white rat called Ozzie.
Which wine trends are worth noting for 2011/2012?
The sustainable farming initiative with Sustainable Wine South Africa (SWSA) at its heart, is something I am thoroughly glad to see gaining in popularity and interest. The environment is close to my heart, and living and farming responsibly has become an absolute must for us all. Then, how can we deny the existence of twitter? It puts wineries, big or small, on a world stage and in front of more people than you can hope to reach using traditional advertising and marketing methods. I believe that online marketing, using social networks intensively, is the future of wine advertising.
Follow Seven Springs on Twitter
here.
