Michael D. Huband

1 week ago | thedrinksbusiness.com | Michael D. Huband

Catena Zapata’s latest fine wine, Birth of Cabernet, examines the noble grape’s heritage with an early modern twist. db journeyed to a medieval crypt to discover more. Already well known for its fine wines – notably Nicolás Catena Zapata and Malbec Argentino – Catena Zapata has started 2025 with a bang, launching Birth of Cabernet to join its upper echelons of its range.

1 month ago | news.wine.co.za | Michael D. Huband

After growing up on a grape farm near Rawsonville in South Africa’s Western Cape, Johan Jordaan studied winemaking at Elsenburg Agricultural College in Stellenbosch before taking an assistant winemaker role at Slanghoek, where he quickly took charge of red winemaking. In 2007, Jordaan took this expertise to Spier as senior red winemaker, before succeeding his mentor Frans Smit to become cellar master here in 2021. What job did you imagine yourself doing when you were seven years old?

1 month ago | thedrinksbusiness.com | Michael D. Huband

Johan Jordaan, cellar master at Spier, tells db about following in his father’s footsteps, Karoo lamb cutlets and how wine should stand apart from mass-produced products. After growing up on a grape farm near Rawsonville in South Africa’s Western Cape, Johan Jordaan studied winemaking at Elsenburg Agricultural College in Stellenbosch before taking an assistant winemaker role at Slanghoek, where he quickly took charge of red winemaking.

1 month ago | thedrinksbusiness.com | Michael D. Huband

Christophe Prieux, owner of Champagne Gardet, guides db through the upcoming events and cuvées marking its 130th anniversary. How do you think Gardet has grown and changed over its 130 years? It’s fair to say that the company hasn’t experienced any growth in terms of volume. At the end of the 19th century we produced 1 million bottles, which is still our production today. But it has never been the house’s intention to increase its volume beyond our capacity, to the detriment of quality.

1 month ago | thedrinksbusiness.com | Michael D. Huband

The cellar master at Champagne Collery tells db about reading Hemingway, the dangers of trends and his desire to showcase Champagne’s “forgotten grapes”. A Champenois through and through, Julien Lefevre honed his winemaking craft through a combination of work for Champagne powerhouse Moët & Chandon and a stint as an oenologist for specialist sparkling wine consultancy Oenotechnic.