Technical Yearbook 2023

DECEMBER

La Bri – transfer of knowledge promotes positive self-esteem By Santi Basson

Nkosana April Dube (senior cellar assistant) and Irene de Fleuriot (general manager and head winemaker) from La Bri.

Franko Davids (cellar assistant), Glen Isaacs (winemaker), Irene de Fleuriot (head winemaker) and Nkosana April Dube (senior cellar assistant).

In October 1694, the Huguenot refugee Jacques de Villiers, also known as Jacob, received land situated close to the mountains, in the southeastern part of the Franschhoek Valley. However, Jacob farmed for several years before he finally received the title deeds in 1712. He called his farm La Bri, which may have been derived from the French word, l’abri, meaning “shelter”. La Bri is approximately 24 hectares, with 13.5 hectares under vines and 17 people employed by the estate. According to Irene de Fleuriot, general manager and head winemaker, one of the exceptional features of La Bri is that the people who work here do not simply leave the service of the estate. Nkosana Dube, a regular participant since 2017 in the Cellar Assistants Programme, has been employed in the La Bri cellar for the past seven years. Nkosana, an extrovert with a huge smile, is known as Dube amongst his colleagues and all who know him well. Originally from Kimberley, he had a close association with the Western Cape and the wine industry since childhood. In 1999 he was employed as a temporary worker at a well-known cellar in the Franschhoek Valley, but he was soon promoted to a permanent position in the tasting room. During his time in the tasting room, he completed some of the Cape Wine Academy courses, but his heart was still in the cellar, as he has a keen interest in the winemaking processes. Dube’s dream of being able to work in a cellar again came true when he was employed in 2017 as a cellar assistant at La Bri. Since then, Dube has

completed all of the Wine Training SA SKOP courses and is currently enrolled in the NQF 3 learnership in winemaking. According to Dube, there was a time many years ago when he was not interested in increasing his knowledge, as he doubted himself and he was afraid of failure. However, many people believed in Dube and encouraged him, which made a huge difference in changing his mindset. It is not unique to experience a fear of failure and many cellar assistants will confirm that they have a fear of the unknown; a fear of failure and that lack of self-confidence is a constant struggle for them. The success of many cellar assistants can certainly be attributed to the mentors who believed in their potential and constantly encouraged them to aim for and successfully achieve their goals. La Bri has a unique approach to addressing the challenges experienced in knowledge transfer. According to Irene, once employees have completed all available training, the estate aims to find new ways to transfer knowledge successfully. The lack of available training in cellar assistants’ mother tongue remains a serious problem because, as cellar assistants in the industry can attest to, this often leads to a lack of self-confidence and increases fear. La Bri approaches the development of potential leaders in a sensitive manner, believing that there should be empathy and an understanding of the unique circumstances of each person employed by the estate. However, according to Irene, it is also necessary to maintain a sense of humour to successfully manage situations.

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TECHNICAL YEARBOOK 2023