Leading South African wine and spirit producer and distributor, DBG (Pty) Ltd, has announced that Stephan Joubert has been appointed as its new group winemaker, succeeding JC Bekker. He will be taking up this position on 1 June.
Stephan, who previously held the position of group viticulturist and has been with DGB for 12 years, is a highly-rated viticulturist and industry contributor who has been leading the company’s premium wine development initiative. He was also in charge of all grower relations and grape buying throughout the Western Cape, as well as managing the DGB farms and outside projects. Most recently, Stephan was personally involved in the acquisition of the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir farm, Highfield that DGB purchased in Elgin last year.
The new incumbent holds a BSC Agriculture degree in Winemaking and Viticulture, as well as an Honours degree in Viticulture from Stellenbosch University, and worked locally and abroad as winemaker and viticulturist before joining the DGB team in 2006. He is passionate about understanding the diverse terroir influences on wine, and enjoys savouring a glass or two with his wife and spending time with his two children in the outdoors.
Stephan is very excited about DGB’s drive to premium and ultra-premium wines which all begins in carefully selected terroir and well-managed vineyards, and given his holistic understanding of the wine value chain, hopes to add value in this regard in his new role. “Contributing towards DBG becoming an increasingly influential player in the premium wine market is something I keenly look forward to. Working with such an excellent team and structures certainly makes this goal all the more attainable.”
According to Tim Hutchinson, group CEO of DGB, Stephan was a natural choice for the position given his wide-ranging experience and expertise, and the continuity he brings to the job. “I am very confident that Stephan will work very closely with every one of our winemakers to ensure that we continue to enhance the premium quality of our wines and to react to changing consumer preferences with a goal as to ensure that premium wines are an ever-increasing share of our business,” he said.
