Award-winning wine(maker) with an environmental and social conscience.
As the daughter of renowned Swiss winemaker Jacques Germanier, one could say that it’s Merlot, not blood, that runs through Sophie’s veins. Like red wine on a white tablecloth, her father’s passion for winemaking left an indelible mark upon the landscape of her childhood, so it was no plot twist that, in 2014, she decided to move from Switzerland to South Africa to take the reins of the family business, Germanier Wines, in the historic, sundrenched, and bountiful winelands of Paarl.
Here, on the outskirts of Cape Town, in sweeping vineyards and fragrant cellars, Sophie witnessed the grand unfurling of the winemaking artistry her father had so adored, imbuing her with as fervent a passion for both wine and the environment. With special attention paid to organic and sustainable farming, production, and export practices, this passion became the momentum behind her own unique wine range, which she proudly debuted in 2020: ‘Organic Wine by Sophie Germanier’.
“It is my mission to create quality and affordable organic wines whilst caring for the earth and its inhabitants.” — Sophie Germanier.
At first, ‘Organic Wine by Sophie Germanier’ featured three wines produced, of course, with an environmental and social conscience: one white and one red blend — a Sauvignon Blanc Sémillon and Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot Shiraz — and a Grenache Noir Rosé. This year, however, Sophie has expanded the range with the Chardonnay 2021, which serves up a gorgeous juxtaposition of lemon peel and buttery brioche on the nose and palate, and the Shiraz Mourvèdre Viognier 2021, a Rhône-inspired blend bursting with floral aromas, peppery notes, and rich black plum on the palate. With a rating of 90 points, this latter wine landed ‘Organic Wine by Sophie Germanier’ a prestigious IWSC Silver Award.
When asked about her approach to creating wine blends, Sophie pointed toward her access to high-quality varietals and that through their combination, she is able to achieve certain covetable flavour and aroma profiles that are hard to find in other wines. “It is this approach that differentiates my wines from others, and that’s important,” she says.
Additionally, all of Sophie’s wines are certified organic and 100% vegan-friendly, so no pesticides, herbicides or synthetic fertilizers are used to farm the grapes and no animal products to produce the wine (through “fining”), while sulfites are kept to a bare minimum in the cellar. Her wines are also WIETA-certified, the gold standard in fair labour practices, making them environmentally and socially sustainable.
“My vision is to have consumers move towards drinking more wine that is conscious about the environment and society as a whole. Through the creation of organic, sustainable wines that place quality and consciousness at the forefront of their values, Organic Wine by Sophie Germanier will build towards that vision.”
It’s not only winemaking that tugs at Sophie’s heartstrings. After absorbing tomes of knowledge on wine production and exporting from the family business, she became attracted to trading wine as a negociant, a wine merchant or wholesaler. Once again, sustainability is a primary theme in what Sophie does, and so, while meeting the demand of the various markets within South Africa and around the world, she ensures that her operations run as sustainably as possible with the smallest possible carbon footprint.
Today, Sophie Germanier is an award-winning winemaker and a rapidly-ascending star in the South African wine industry, but also a champion for the environment and the palates of environmentally and socially conscious wine lovers everywhere!