Winetech workshops for senior cellar assistants remain relevant
· 2 min read

Winetech annually hosts workshops for senior cellar assistants in four participating regions. Participants must be bilingual and have successfully completed the Wine Training South Africa SKOP 3 certificate.
During 2020, workshops were presented in Wellington, Stellenbosch, Vredendal and Robertson to senior cellar assistants by experienced winemakers, representative of each region. The topic for the 2020 workshops was relevant and the influence of production costs, winemaking faults, product losses and spoilage on cellar profits required participants’ full concentration.
Aspects such as the calculation of product and production costs, the calculation of profit and the selling price, cost of packaging material, as well as the various levies to be paid by cellars, were discussed.
Sparkling wines are the subject for the 2021 workshops and senior cellar assistants can look forward to learning more about the history of sparkling wines, sparkling wines of the world and the different styles. South African sparkling wines will be discussed in detail and aspects such as the legal requirements and the production of South African sparkling wines will receive attention.
During the tasting participants will have the opportunity to compare different styles.
For more information, contact Santi Basson on 072 298 8186 or [email protected].

De Wet Viljoen of Neethlingshof facilitated the senior workshop in Stellenbosch.

Rupert & Rothschild Vignerons: Leverne Arendse, Charlene Carelse and Ursula Arrison.

Dico du Toit facilitated the senior workshop in Wellington.

Denise Owies, Namaqua Wines.

Richard Phillips Vriesenhof Vineyards.

Eldo Swarts and Riccardo Fortuin, Riebeek Valley Wine Company.

Gerrie Grootboom (Roodezandt Cellar), Bernard Louw (Alvi’s Drift), Benna Smal, Johannes Pieterse and Marius Stevens (all from Graham Beck Wines).
More from
Vineyard, cellar and production

Cellar hygiene
Maintaining a spotless wine cellar requires a comprehensive management plan, which includes structural design, equipment sanitation, environmental controls and routine microbial monitoring.

Making wine in Cape Town's Philadelphia ward
Havana Hills overlooks Table Mountain and the Atlantic Seaboard from its perch atop one of the region’s smallest wards, Philadelphia. Piet Kleinhans recently took over the reins as winemaker.

What's so special about wine globes?
Diemersdal places a strong focus on innovation, and there’s always something new up their sleeve. Wineglobes represent a new way of telling a story that’s centuries old.
