SPIER LAUNCHES ITS FIRST FAIRTRADE WINES
21.10.2011 - Alfrieda and Niklaas Hanse joined Spier’s Nooitgedacht farm worker team eleven years ago. Little did this aspirant couple know that, over time, they would become respected team leaders, and that Spier’s first Fairtrade wine would be named after Alfrieda.
It was with evident pride that Spier owner Adrian Enthoven recently launched two new Fair Trade red and white blends, under Spier’s Savanha label, aptly christened Frieda’s Vine. Apt because great wine starts with great grapes and Fair Trade is all about taking care of the people who take care of the vines – and everyone at Spier agrees that nobody embodies this code better than Alfrieda who looks after both the workers and the vineyards with the utmost care.
On first coming to the Nooitgedacht farm, Niklaas and Alfrieda knew nothing about tending to grapes or winemaking. Led by farm manager, Heinrich Morkel, they were taught the ins and outs of the trade as they planted the first vines on Nooitgedacht. It soon became clear that Alfrieda had a natural aptitude, widely accepted and respected leadership abilities, and plenty of passion. Before long she started training others, and all concur that Alfrieda has an affectionately stern hand, born from her genuine love for the vines and local community. She is both the pillar and the thunderstorm – deeply rooted in the land but with her vision unfalteringly to the fore.
Spier’s Nooitgedacht Fairtrade Trust was created on the 11th of May 2010. The Trust uses Fairtrade, and any income derived from them, to promote the well-being and social upliftment of the employees of Nooitgedacht and their communities.
Created with palate rather than nose in mind, the blends are ideal for food pairings. The red is a Shiraz/Mourvèdre blend and the white, a Chenin Blanc/Viognier blend. Of these wines, Cellar Master Frans Smit says “It makes sense to blend; wines are much more resilient against vintage changes in this way and wine and food pairings become far more interesting.”
These wines are primarily bound for the Danish market but are also available at Spier Farm.
