Aslina “Skin Contact”
Stellenbosch , South Africa| 2022
When it comes to the vast world of wine it can be mind-boggling how many great wines are being made every day. While choosing these wines to sell at Le Midi we have the rough job of tasting through loads of them and finding our favorites that make their way into our inventory to share with our customers. Aside from finding wines that are delicious, we have a few other parameters we use when looking for those perfect fits, and backstory is one of our favorite highlights. Juggling different words for flavor descriptors can be daunting, but the heart of the wine comes directly from the winemakers themselves and the closer we feel to their story the better the wine shows in the glass.
Ntsiki Biyela of Aslina winery in South Africa is one of these gems of a story that not only touches the heart, but that also embodies the beauty behind our will to succeed at the thing that brings joy to life. In 2016 Ntsiki was recognized as the very first Black female winemaker in South Africa amidst a sea of mostly white males dominating the industry since the end of apartheid. She was able to accomplish this despite substantial struggles and by simply wielding her natural passion for becoming a great winemaker. She accomplished this in spades.
Raised in a rural village of KwaZulu-Natal, Ntsiki labored as a domestic worker until she was awarded a scholarship to study winemaking at Stellenbosch University and dove headfirst into winemaking after receiving her BSc in Viticulture and Oenology. She travelled throughout Bordeaux and Tuscany gaining ever more knowledge and eventually worked with winemaker Helen Keplinger who was head winemaker at Bryant Family Vineyards (amongst others). In 2016 Ntsiki planned to make her own wines under her own label dedicated to her grandmother who inspired her to pursue her passions at all costs.
Incorporating her deep personal understanding of South African soils and ancient farming traditions she learned in her native village, Ntsiki imparts her heart, soul, and history into these magnificent wines. The bottle chosen for this month is one of her favorites as she gave a wry grin explaining to me “this is the wine I tend to quality check every day until my employees tell me to stay away - otherwise it will be gone!”. This sustainably farmed unoaked Chenin sees a portion of its juice rest for 8 days on its skins adding to this already highly textured wine while instilling incredible dimension. Notes of dried lemon, honeysuckle, lanolin and chamomile waft from the glass unfolding into a palate full of yellow pear, lemon zest, mandarin, and just a touch of tannin allowing all of the flavors to linger on the palate. Pair with a bloomy rind goat cheese or an outdoor hammock!