Ricardo Cloete

Raised in the small Namaqualand villiage of Steinkopf, Ricardo Cloete has come a long way from home to fulfil his dreams of becoming a winemaker after falling in love with the Western Cape and its winelands. He began his journey at Elsenburg Agricultural College where he completed his Bachelor degree of Agriculture Cellar Technology in Viticulture and Oenology.

Raised in the small Namaqualand villiage of Steinkopf, Ricardo Cloete has come a long way from home to fulfil his dreams of becoming a winemaker after falling in love with the Western Cape and its winelands. He began his journey at Elsenburg Agricultural College where he completed his Bachelor degree of Agriculture Cellar Technology in Viticulture and Oenology.

Upon graduating and completing a harvest with Goudini Winery he made the cut for the Cape Winemakers Guild Protégé Programme, a mentorship scheme to develop talented young winemakers and viticulturists. During his 3-year internship, Ricardo worked side-by-side with accomplished winemakers at Kanonkop Wine Estate, De Grendel Wine Estate and Edgebaston Family Vineyards. As a protégé, he was fortunate to experience his first international harvest in Burgundy, France and was chosen as one of the judges at the Young Wine Show.

Ricardo enjoys the harvest time most as it is always a bustling and exciting time that brings about various surprises and challenges. He is especially intrigued by the concept of grapes telling a story, from the vineyards to the science behind crafting a wine. The complexity of creating a unique product for someone to enjoy is his true vocation that he embraces with dedication, passion and hard work.

When creating a wine Ricardo believes that the location of the vineyard is paramount for a particular grape variety to best express itself - a belief that melds seamlessly with Fleur du Cap’s philosophy of Regional Excellence. The Fleur du Cap winemaking team strives to unlock the natural expression inherent in the best grapes from select parcels of vines grown in a diverse range of locations each selected for their unique combinations of soils, climate, aspect and orientation that is best suited to the particular grape variety throughout the Western Cape.

When Ricardo is not mastering his craft, he is still entirely devoted to wine. He spends his leisure time tasting, judging and discussing wine with his peers and regularly jumps into his car to explore different wineries and their wines on the weekends. When he is not broadening his wine knowledge Ricardo can be found taking part in hikes and nature explorations as he has a great love for the outdoors.