March 2022 Box

This month the theme is wines by women, but not just any women, these are true trailblazers who have been pioneers in their respective regions of the world.

 

Ntsiki Biyela, South Africa’s first female black winemaker, has a truly inspiring story. Coming from Mahlabathini, a rural village without electricity in KwaZulu-Natal, she had to learn Afrikaans at university in order to study viticulture and oenology. After working at several well-respected wineries she launched her own label, Aslina, in 2016 which has been recognized by critics the world over. 

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Susana Balbo – whose White Blend we tried in March 2021 box – in 1981 became the first woman in Argentina to receive a degree in enology. However she’s gone on to win countless accolades for her work and is considered Argentina’s best winemaker.

 

Judith Beck – another winemaker we have met over the past monthly themes – is part of the Pannobile wine group in Burgenland, a pioneer in biodynamic and natural winemaking, but above all makes consistently outstanding wines that has turned her region into a hot spot of cool wines.

 

Elena Brooks is the Chief Winemaker and CEO of Dandelion Vineyards, the wine company she created, controls and catapulted into critical acclaim worldwide in just 10 released vintages.

She emigrated from Bulgaria as a young girl and by the age of 12, she was interpreting barrel tastings with the winemakers. By the age of 15, she had the wine knowledge and vocabulary of a veteran, and by 16 she was making her first batches of Chardonnay.

 

Click through to read more about each wine and the woman who made it. 

 

In response to the devastating war in Ukraine, this month each recipe suggestion is from the Cook for Ukraine campaign (inspired by Olia Hercules). Please do try these delicious dishes and enjoy the truly international pairing as wine and food has always been the perfect inter-cultural bond. You can read more about this brilliant initiative and donate towards Humanitarian Aid in Ukraine via this link.