We return to our InterVIEW segment this month to introduce you to Thabo Ntuthu, who is one of our Senior Sommeliers at The Tasting Room. Thabo was also recently named as one of WineLand Magazine’s 30 Under 30 – a prestigious list of promising young talent in the South African wine industry.
Thabo grew up not too far from the winelands, hailing from the Strand/Somerset West area. He matriculated at Strand High and during his gap year started dipping his toes in hospitality by working in a local restaurant and bar as a sculler, then went on to work as a bartender and eventually became involved in events.
From there he worked at a small Italian family restaurant, started his studies in Hospitality and Catering at Northlink College and made his way to Vergenoegd, where he worked in the restaurant and the tasting room, completed his studies and moved to work at Indochine at Delaire Graff.
By now his interest in wine had been thoroughly piqued. His wine education continued with completion of his South African Wine Course and WSET Level 2. His next stop was Tokara in 2019, where he had an unusual opportunity – as the Covid-19 pandemic shut down global travel, the cellar was without their usual international interns, and Thabo was able to gain valuable winemaking knowledge by assisting in their stead. In turn this led him to complete the Learnership Programme at Elsenburg, with a focus on winemaking (while also doing the Certificate Course at Cape Wine Academy and he also attempted his WSET 3 – in the same year).
That is quite the journey, and his experience on the winemaking side gives Thabo a unique perspective on not only the wines, but how they are produced. He tells us that Oldenburg has really opened his eyes to what is possible in terms of quality, both working with red and white wines. Spending time with Nic, he’s also discovered the levels of quality possible without additives or chemicals, as well as the fascinating practice of natural fermentation (and how to manage them).
It is clear that Thabo has always been serious about upskilling himself, and staying on a learning path – and that is something that resonated with him about the Oldenburg team: everyone is upskilling themselves, and there is always more to learn – from sales, to trade, to marketing, and the wines themselves. Even certain topics are brought to life differently – he admits that at Elsenburg, viticulture was not quite his favourite subject, but at Oldenburg everything starts in the vineyard – and then everything clicked.
White wine is his preference, and Chardonnay is his favourite cultivar. According to Thabo, Chardonnay is a neutral varietal that really showcases the winemaker, his techniques and his style – that the winemaker really needs to put in the work to bring out the flavour profile, but not overpower it. That said, his favourite Oldenburg Vineyards wine is the Rhodium, which really excites him.
An unusual fact about Thabo? He is very serious about his fitness and bodybuilding as an extension of self-discipline and spends most of his spare time in the gym or hiking in the outdoors, because life is all about balance.
