Best new South African wine writer announced

Thursday, 12 December, 2024

Veritas Awards

The country’s best new wine writer for 2024 is Skye Nolan, assistant-winemaker and compliance manager at Bellevue Wine Estate.

From left to right: Bennie Howard, vice-chairman SANWSA; Alisa Knoblauch; Skye Nolan; Mika Engelbrecht; Ingerese Schoeman of WineLand Media; and Christo Pienaar, chairman of SANWSA.

The country’s best new wine writer for 2024 is Skye Nolan from Brackenfell near Cape Town, assistant-winemaker and compliance manager at Bellevue Wine Estate, Stellenbosch, who also had work stints at four other Cape wineries, as well as doing wine educational and business courses at a youthful age. Earlier this year, she was featured in WineLand Magazine's annual 30 Under 30 list that highlights young movers in the wine industry.

The runner-up is Alisa Knoblauch from Somerset West, marketing manager at L'Avenir and Le Bonheur, who also took second place in this competition of the SA National Wine Show Association (SANWSA) in collaboration with WineLand in 2019.

The winner of the blogs division of this 12 year-old competition is another winemaker: Mika Engelbrecht, who handles the Iwayini Wines at Neethlingshof, also in Stellenbosch. She also featured in WineLand's annual 30 Under 30 list this year.

The results were announced at a function at the SANWSA’s offices at the Simonsvlei Business Hub outside Paarl, where Skye Nolan received R15 000 for her winning article, Alisa Knoblauch R7 500 as runner-up, and Mika Engelbrecht R3,000 for the best blog.

The SA New Wine Writer of the Year competition is open to writers 35 years old or younger and presented by SANWSA, a fully representative industry organisation – which runs the SA Young Wine Show, Veritas Awards and SA Terroir Competition – aiming to identify smart new talent in the wine industry.

The competition was judged in two categories, one for wine-related magazine print articles and one for web blogs, dealing with one of four prescribed subjects.

Skye Nolan’s overall winning entry was a print article titled "The Rise, Pause and Reversal of Premiumisation: Where Does South Africa Stand?" She concluded that: "The future of South African wine lies in its ability to adapt to the realities of reverse premiumisation and recognise it as a significant development within the industry. As global and local markets continue to evolve, South Africa has the opportunity to lead by example, showcasing how innovation and authenticity can shape the future of wine."

Runner-up Alisa Knoblauch, also in a magazine print article, dealt with the subject of Reverse Premiumisation, stating, "With rising economic pressures and a global cost-of-living crisis, reliable data suggests that premium wine consumption is slowing as consumers tighten their budgets – signalling that the wine industry must rethink ‘premium’ by moving beyond luxury pricing to embrace values like authenticity, sustainability, and craftsmanship."

Mika Engelbrecht's blog looked at "Five ways for wine to appeal to the GenZ consumer". "By understanding GenZ's unique preferences and priorities, we can create engaging experiences, promote sustainable practices and foster a more inclusive wine culture," she wrote.

The 2024 judging panel comprised seasoned wine journalists Wanda Augustyn, Cassie du Plessis, Danie Keet, Neil Pendock, and Maryke Roberts, who agreed that the 2024 entries were showing the enthusiasm of knowledgeable younger people in the wine business to enter the fields of writing articles and blogs. The judges said it is good to see that after 12 years of the competition, several new writers enter the competition every year – for whom it should be gratifying to see the winning entries published in WineLand, that has been the media partner from the onset.

Wanda Augustyn, editor of WineLand, congratulated the winners, saying, "Your achievement reflects the talent and the growing significance of new voices in shaping the narrative of our dynamic industry. I believe that the perspectives of emerging writers are essential in inspiring a new generation of wine enthusiasts and pushing the boundaries of how we think, talk, and write about wine. Your passion and creativity are the heart of the industry’s future, and we look forward to seeing how your journey will continue to enrich the world of wine."

SANWSA chairperson Christo Pienaar added, "We are excited to see the interest in this competition from numerous new writers to tell the many interesting stories and join the debate about our industry. They are the new voices to speak to the next generation of consumers and wine lovers."