ADSactly Travels - Wait. We Have a Winery in East Africa? New Latitude Wines
Wait. We Have a Winery in East Africa? New Latitude Wines
It is the crazy ideas that wow the world. Everyone thinks that you are crazy for pursuing something and then when it works, they all say how brilliant you are. We need to keep testing and learning. We need to bring the crazy ideas to fruition because they might just work.
One man was crazy (or brilliant) enough to try and plant vineyards in East Africa on the Equator. It had not been done before on this region, in this scale and certainly not for wine production. We all know that East Africa is not exactly a wine producing region. One man decided to go against what everyone told him and he planted some vines in the early 90’s.
Leleshwa Wine Farm from a distance. This was during the dry season. Image
A closer look. Image
He was well travelled and would always receive wines as gifts from his friends abroad. He would bring the wine with him whenever he visited his family in Kenya. His friends would give him the wines and say something like,”this is from my vineyard in…” He heard this so many times and longed for a time when he could also give his friends wine from his farm in the Great Rift Valley region of Kenya.
After seeking some consultation from experts, they told him that the grapes would not do well in the equator because there are few defined seasons. However, in places like South Africa, the conditions are perfect. He did not believe this. He would only believe it after he tried.
He defied all odds and initially intended to make wine for his family and friends’ consumption. His initial aspiration was to make about 100 bottles per year. He planted the grapes and after a few years, he had his first harvest. The grapes did surprisingly well.
Juicy grapes about to ripen. Image
Vines heavy with fruit.
Because grapes take so long to grow, he had planted some more just in case. With help, he made his first vintage. He gave people the wine and he got great feedback. He had never intended to go commercial but when the demand became high, he saw an opportunity. He took this seriously and got winemakers and staff in. He also expanded his farms. He constructed a bigger winery and years later, Leleshwa wines are on many shelves in Kenya and other regions. The name Leleshwa comes from an indegenous tree in the area and in the wine farm.
Think about the world map. Back then, people thought that vines would only grow on the latitudes between 30 and 50. However, Thailand inspired the term “New Latitude” wines because they proved that farmers can also grow vines along or near the equator. Some countries along the equator are trying to make wine. An example is Colombia.
The Leleshwa winery has even won different accolades in the wine field. The most impressive thing is that the wine is competing with global wines.
Mesh nets to keep away birds from eating the crop. Image
This is how they install the mesh nets. Workers busy on the farm. Image
Zooming out. See how big the farm is. Image
As the only winery in the country, Leleshwa Winery has received a lot of coverage and piqued interests from people all around the world. They have a Sauvignon Blanc, a sweet red, a sweet white and a sweet rosé. The sweet rosé is amazing and is made from the Shiraz/ Syrah grape.
We visited the wine farm and walked as we got educated on the viticulture and winemaking. We had a picnic by the farm where we got to try different tapas with the sweet rosé. The rosé was a hit among many because it was very easy drinking and sweet.
That day it was so hot and they gave us umbrellas to take on the trip. Image
The Farm tour
Before the wine: Everyone listening keenly.Image
After the wine: Cheers guys!
We then headed for a late lunch by the field where we were surrounded by vineyards and a forest. We got to pair food and wine. The starter was their Sauvignon Blanc and a light chicken salad. This pairing was impressive because they were both very light. In the world of wine and food pairings, lighter foods go with lighter wine. We then had the main which was a juicy ribeye and some mashed potatoes. For dessert, we had strawberry sorbet and equatorial nuts chocolate. We paired the chocolate with the sweet white wine which was a new brand in their portfolio.
Main: Rib eye and mashed potatoes. Image
The Very Late Lunch set up. Image
As the sun set, we listened to mellow music and sipped more wine until it was time to go back home. I am so excited that there is a winery in Kenya and this is the pioneer for hopefully many more. This puts my country on the map when it comes to wine.
Authored by @jeanwandimi
Pictures by @jeanwandimi and @njoromuts of Sylarstudios
Click on the coin to join our Discord Chat
Witness proposal is here:
Go To Steem Witness Page
In the bottom of the page type: adsactly-witness and press vote.
Use small letters and no "@" sign. Or, click here to vote directly!
Thank you!
Really a low hat for all that you did to realize your dream ... a very good example for the beautiful proverb The real challenge is to convince oneself morning and evening to be the person to whom one aspires ...
thanks for sharing your story :)
True, it was nice to read it. Also thank you.
Good of him to ignore the naysayers and apply himself to his passion .A passion that ultimately came thru for him
This post is fascinating, @jeanwandimi! The photos, by you and @njoromuts, are informative and evocative. I congratulate you on a successful piece.
I manage the beer and wine department at a grocery supermarket in central Texas. I've learned some about grape varietals and grape farming. I've read about the techniques used at other tropical vineyards. I'm very curious about the Leleshwa operation.
The vineyard land looks fairly flat, with some regular low mounding between the rows, and a cover plant "holding" the mounds. This mounding is good practice, I think, helping with dew collection during droughts, and runoff control during rains. It raises a question: Before the vineyard was planted, was this land tilled?
More precisely, how long was it tilled, how often, and how long did it go without tilling before grapes were planted? Some have suggested that grapes are more successful in the tropics where tilling has been minimal, due to interaction between grapevine roots and the hyphae of beneficial fungi in relatively undisturbed soil.
Your article made me very curious about the people involved, so I visited the wine producer's website. It identified Pius Ngugi as the founder, and his son Mbugua Ngugi as the current vineyard manager. For their family, nut growing has long been the mainstay of their business. The website also had a Yummy Magazine article naming James Farquharson as one of the brand's early winemakers — he had already acquired some fame at Stellenbosch in South Africa — and Emma Nderitu as the current head winemaker.
Were nuts grown on the same land before grapes were grown there?
The other question that arises involves the grape varietals that are planted at Leleshwa. Sauvignon Blanc and Shiraz are mentioned in your article. The website also mentions the use of Merlot for blending. I would love to know what other varietals are grown there.
In any case, thanks very much for awakening my curiosity with a superb article!
Wow. This is a very thoughtful response. Let me ask the winemaker a few of these questions and get back to you. But all your facts are accurate.
I love that. It’s sad, but it’s true. I guess it’s also a bigger reward for you proofing yourself to others evethough you absolutely don’t have to. This “man’s” story is a perfect example of “If you put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything”. Even though these so called experts told him it’s senseless to do such a thing, he didn’t give up and went with his instincts, as you mentioned “He defied all odds”. He definitely became an inspiration for many. I could tell, you had a great time while spending time at his winery. From wine tasting to food such as 🥩 with delicious dessert. I personally am a great wine lover occasionally. Once in a while we visit winery around us.
Great and inspirational story!
That is true. And I am glad he did that otherwise we would not have such great wine. Thanks for reading.
the best
And that's why we shouldn't bother about distractions when we are working towards achieving our goals. All we should focus is the success ahead of us. Very nice wine.
So big grapes land farm, it seem very delicious wine, thanks for sharing to us informative and usefull article, i like it and upvote and resteem your post to more than 1300 my follower, greeting friendship from me @abialfatih in aceh indonesia
Hey. Thanks for reading. Cheers.
good post, you deserve a good ranking, I follow you.
wow. informative post....very nice drink...
my dear friend @adsactly..
thank you for sharing your post..
your post was very motivational. it will inspired one to success in his life by doing that what he or she wanted to do. Even i am the one who inspired by your post😊.Thanks a lot for this tipe of post.💜💜💜💘💘💘