Louis Strydom

Winemaker & Managing Director
Ernie Els Wines
Louis Strydom is the hands-on and dedicated premium winemaker for Ernie Else Wines and a member of the Cape Winemakers Guild.

“In my heart, I am a real farmer. That’s my first passion; farming with vineyards and transforming that into something beautiful in a bottle. And that is how my passion for wine grew.”

After graduating from Elsenburg College in Stellenbosch, Louis joined the team at Saxenburg Wine Estate, working several vintages overseas too. In 1998, Louis joined Rust en Vrede Wine Estate. His focus was on consistency in every sense of the word. His skill in winemaking quickly drew the attention of those in the industry and he began to receive awards for his wines. In December 2004, Louis left Rust en Vrede to pay more attention to the Bordeaux blend wine called Ernie Els, which received two 93/100 ratings in Wine Spectator for its first two vintages, as well as being the first South African red wine to reach such a high score. In 2009, Louis received a Gold award in the International Wine Challenge for his Cabernet Sauvignon Lapa 2007 that he made during his time at Guardian Peak. Through his hands-on approach, Louis’ blended red wines are unique in every sense of the word. His complete dedication and focus on producing premium wines is evident in the quality of wines he produces.

Educating others within the wine industry is part of who Louis is and he is always willing and eager to share his knowledge in order to help others grow. Due to this quality of his, as well as his incredible winemaking skills, he was invited to join the CWG where he served as the Chairperson for a number of years and is currently the Chairman of the CWG Development Trust. As a result of his involvement in the CWG, Louis also takes on a protégé each year, and assists in their education and training to become winemakers themselves. He is also a trustee of Wine Training South Africa and a director of Vititec.