Even though she once despised wine because her brother would get drunk, Nondumiso Pikashe from Gugulethu has made a success of her own handcrafted wines.

She thinks more people could tap into the industry.

Officially started in 2006 after a first attempt failed in 2004, Ses’fikile wines is 100% owned and controlled by women and the wines are handcrafted by a team of female winemakers in Worcester, reports GroundUp, the community news organisation.

“The idea was to break into the wine market… an industry that is male dominated. Together with friends in 2004, we turned the idea into reality, but because of certain obstacles and politics between us as friends, the business failed,” said 48- year-old Pikashe.

After resurrecting her business, she met Gerald van der Vat, who owns a winery in Worcester. She told him about her vision for Ses’fikile, which means “we have arrived”, and he was keen to help her start up by allowing her to use his winery.