Alfred Kudzanai Muswaka

THE 12 APOSTLES HOTEL & SPA & NEDERBURG Heritage Heroes * BUNNAHABHAIN : Candidate Wine Steward

Alfred Kudzanai Muswaka (25) was born and raised in Harare, Zimbabwe. Like many other Zimbabweans who work in the Hospitality Industry, Alfred was forced to drop out of university due to financial constrains (he was studying towards a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting at the University of Zimbabwe). He relocated to Cape Town in a quest to gain employment to fund his studies further.

Muswaka found a job as a banqueting waiter for weddings and corporate events company, Blend (November, 2011). What was supposed to be merely a means to pay the bills turned into his great passion, even though at that stage all he knew about wine was the clear contrast between ‘white and red’. It was touring the wineries that saw his interest in wine grow considerably, and he felt the urge to learn more about wine.

He eventually secured a permanent job as a waiter at the award-winning Roundhouse Restaurant in Camps Bay (January. 2012), where he quickly rose through the ranks to become senior waiter. The need for further growth and career development saw him join The Twelve Apostles Hotel and Spa (December, 2013), where he is now being mentored by Head Sommelier and esteemed wine judge Gregory Mutambe.

Muswaka has shown great zeal in learning about wine and, sponsored by The Twelve Apostles Hotel, also did exceptionally well in his Front of House course at the Cape Wine Academy, which he completed in (2015). Gregory Mutambe, in a quest to further expose the young sommelier to the industry, has invited him to various tastings, including the South African Wine Tasting Championships in 2015, in which Muswaka put his palate to the test against some of the country's best and managed to do very well for a wine novice.