A Helping Hand Across the Water (15 August)

 

Australia is known as the lucky country and those in the wine business are especially lucky to be in such an inspiring industry. The wine industry is renowned for its hospitality and generosity on many fronts, and this short snippet is about these two aspects coming together to help those less fortunate.

 

The last time I was in South Africa was in 1990. I say last time because I was born there and spent the first eight years growing up in Johannesburg. My parents were strongly anti apartheid and we left for political reasons in 1960. In fact, it was my grandfather’s legal firm that articled the first black man. His name was Nelson Mandela (the articled clerk, not my grandfather.) To this day, I still remember the appalling conditions and lack of opportunity that the black people had to endure.

 

After hundreds of years of oppression and lack of any real education, the government can’t wave a magic wand and make it all better overnight. It will take many decades, and education of the people is the key to the country increasing it standard of living, and developing beyond a third world country.

 

Many of you will have heard of Grant Dodd. The fella used to earn a buck by playing around with golf clubs. After he gave the game away due to injury (and finally realising how bloody stupid it is to chase a little white ball for miles every day), his new love just happens to be plonk. I say plonk and not fine wine, as the guy writes about wine now, for Australian Golf Digest and Gourmet Traveller Wine, and actually seems to enjoy the c-through stuff! Suppose someone has to!

 

In 2005 he started a business, in partnership with an American mate called Preston Haskell, exporting Oz wine to Russia of all places. They’ve sold a bit of wine to the Ruskies, met some good people and drunk lots of good wine (must’a been red.) Preston was busy running Colliers Russia, so he asked Grant if he wanted to become a partner in a winery (Dombeya Wines) he had recently purchased in Stellenbosch, South Africa. Grant accepted and now travels over there regularly and oversees the operation.

 

Grant must have a social heart, because he saw how bloody difficult it was for the black people of South Africa to get into the wine industry, (beyond manual labourers, pickers etc.) According to Grant, “Just getting to Uni is an achievement; graduating, a massive one. The conditions that many live in and under are very difficult, to say the least.” So Grant decided that he wanted to help in a small way and put together a plan. The plan led to the establishment of The Dombeya Scholarship.

 

Technical knowledge, academic record and performance in an interview before the scholarship board will determine the eventual winner. The approximate value is 70,000 rand. (Just as well they are not in Zimbabwe as it would be worth about 2.5 cents.) Once they pick a scholarship winner, they will assist them sort out things like passports and visa's. The winner will do some initial training at the winery prior to leaving for Australia, so they will have some idea of what they are in for when they hit vintage in Margaret River. The winner will need a fair bit of support and guidance through it all, but Grant has arranged for people to help.

 

First to volunteer was Voyager Estate. Given their connections to Cape architecture, they were a natural choice to approach. The chosen candidate will be employed during vintage for six weeks at Voyager Estate, beginning in February 2009. Following this, they will spend a week of research in the Oenology Department at the University of Adelaide, followed by a further week of practical experience at Kaesler Wines in the Barossa Valley. Reid Bosward was a winemaker at the Helderberg Co-Op, in Stellenbosch for two seasons in the 1990's, hence is connection in volunteering. Brian Croser has also been involved in supporting the project.

 

Grant sums it up by saying, “It is our hope that The Dombeya Scholarship will play a key role in unearthing future wine industry leaders from previously disadvantaged backgrounds.  The opportunity to work and study under some of Australia's most innovative winemakers and academics can only produce positive outcomes. The lessons learned in the process will provide an invaluable grounding for a career in the wine industry and will also hopefully inspire others to follow.”

 

If you would like to help with this project in any way, please contact Grant.

 

 

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