Finding Forty

Celebrating Birthdays, Black Owned Wineries, and Bottles

It’s officially summer in the northern hemisphere and I’m home in sweet Carolina where I’ll complete my 40th lap around the sun. Forty is the only number whose letters appear in alphabetical order and minus forty degrees is the only temperature that’s the same in both Fahrenheit and Celsius, highly appealing to my American x British identity where it’s always two temperatures inside my mind. Fun forty facts aside, apart from being one of my favorite Dave Mathews Band songs, I’m unsure what significance the number has in store for me. I know I’m ready for it, I’m happy, healthy, very much in love, and have spent the past year planning a party to celebrate with the people I cherish most on this planet. I like the way the number looks and sounds, round and marble solid, ready to hold what’s to come. In the spirit of figuring out what forty means to me, I want to share 40 bottles of wine I’ve loved, a travel update, and the origin story that shaped my love of wine, recently published via Cwene, a slow fashion brand founded by Fiona Dallanegra. You can browse their stunning caftans, hear about how my love of wine developed, and take-away 5 pieces of advice I’d give to my 20 year old self.

CWENE (kw-ene) meaning woman or an alternative form of quene (“queen”).

Western Cape Wineries

Semillon grapes at Steenberg Wine Farm in Constantia, South Africa

This Spring I fulfilled a life-long dream of visiting the Western Cape Winelands in South Africa and riding the Franschhoek Wine Tram. We stayed in Cape Town, Stellenbosch, Constantia, Franschhoek, and visited 8 wineries, all of which I highly recommend:

• Lanzerac Estate

• Tokara Winery

• Black Elephant Vintners

• Babylonstoren

• Vrede en Lust

• Boschendal

• Steenberg Farm

• Savage Wines

A personal passion that is a through-line of the ‘Modern Wine’ brand is inclusion, diversity, equity, and belonging. I incorporate those values into my work by highlighting and supporting global majority, LGBTQ+ and other marginalized populations in the wine industry. Black South Africans make up more than 80% of the population, yet Black-owned wine brands accounted for less than 1% of liters sold domestically (and an even smaller share of liters exported) in 2020. Despite the challenges imposed by historical inequity, the Black wine community is making its mark on the industry, and we, as consumers, are positioned to propel their success. Through the lens of Black Elephant Vintners, a hip, modern, winery, I shed light on the history of winemaking in South Africa as well as it’s exciting and hopeful path forward. 🖤🐘

40 Bottles

As a wine professional one of the most difficult asks I come across is recommending bottles. Taste is subjective and if you and I were to drink the same bottle in the same moment we would have very different experiences. The way we encounter wine is dependent on so many factors like where you are, who you’re with, and what type of mood you’re in. Wine is a living thing which evolves and changes over time meaning there will be not only be variations from bottle to bottle, but minute to minute.