Ex Animo Wine Co.

THE COLD SOAK: May 2026 Wine sales are down. New labels keep launching. Nobody seems quite sure what AI is going to do to wine media. And somewhere in the middle of all that, South African wine keeps getting better. This month, David Clarke and Christian Eedes discuss the state of the industry following the Vinpro/FIA Summit, the growing challenge of attracting new drinkers, and whether wine is be...

THE COLD SOAK: brought to you by the Ex Animo Wine Club ( exanimo.co.za/wineclub/ )  Once a month, we sit down to talk about everything that went down in South African wine. New releases, industry gossip, bold moves, questionable decisions—we've got opinions on all of it. Hosted by Ex Animo Wine Co. director, David Clarke, with winemag.co.za editor, Christian Eedes , the podcast brings togethe...

THE COLD SOAK: brought to you by the Ex Animo Wine Club (exanimo.co.za/wineclub/) Once a month, we sit down to talk about everything that went down in South African wine. New releases, industry gossip, bold moves, questionable decisions—we've got opinions on all of it. Hosted by Ex Animo Wine Co. director, David Clarke, with winemag.co.za editor, Christian Eedes, the podcast brings together two re...

Hello and welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co. Podcast. I’m David Clarke, and today is our annual SONA — our State of the Nation Address — where we take a step back and look at where South African wine really stands right now. I’m joined by Christian Eedes of Winemag.co.za, and together we unpack the bigger picture — how producers are navigating a tougher market, where quality is rising, which regions...

Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. In this episode, David Clarke chats with Winemag.co.za Editor and Wine Reviewer, Christian Eedes. This is the 4th annual Wine SONA (State of the Nation) discussion. In it, David poses questions to Christian about the state of SA wine in 2025, such as: - How do we...

Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. In this episode, David Clarke talks with respected wine farmer, Johan Reyneke speaks about his approach to regenerative wine farming. Johan speaks about how biodynamic methods have helped to grow top quality grapes while also nurturing the land, animals and people...

Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. In this episode, David Clarke talks with ‘Poenie’ Lourens’ from Lourens Family Vineyards. Poenie grew up in Paarl, near Stellenbosch, but doesn’t come from a winemaking family. Poenie’s wines are catching some attention from the reviewers and it is clear that he i...

Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. In this episode, David Clarke talks with Chris Alheit about his multi-award-winning wines. Chris’ white wines, founded on an unmatched understanding of Chenin Blanc grapes. These wines are elegant, sophisticated and unsurprisingly - multi-award-winning. Chris tell...

Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. In this episode, David Clarke chats with the powerhouse couple of South African Cap Classiques: Ann and Pieter Ferreira. The pair have been at the forefront of fine sparkling wine, and their knowledge and understanding of the style is unparalleled. *A video versio...

Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. In this episode, David Clarke chats with Ex Animo producers across the Western Cape to check how their harvests are progressing. This podcast was recorded in February 2024.

Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. In this episode, David Clarke chats with Winemag.co.za Editor and Wine Reviewer, Christian Eedes. This is the third annual Wine SONA (State of the Nation) discussion. In it, David poses questions to Christian about the state of SA wine in 2024, such as: What was t...

*A video version of this interview is available on YouTube* Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. In this episode, David Clarke brings together four winemakers from the Upper Hemel-en-Aarde Valley who specialise in Pinot Noir. The microclimate of the valley makes this one of the finest sites in South...

*A video version of this interview is available on YouTube* Welcome to the Ex Animo Wine Co Podcast: a series of interviews and discussions with winemakers and great minds from the world of wine. In this episode, David Clarke talks with Craig Hawkins of the groundbreaking natural wine label TESTALONGA. Loved for his relaxed approach to wine making, Craig is one of THE names in natural wine in Sout...

Tickets to Wine SONA 2023: https://www.exanimo.co.za/product/wine-sona-2023-with-christian-eedes-one-ticket/ Today on the podcast we have updates from the winemakers we work with about harvest 2023. Early signs look really great for '23 as a vintage. John Seccombe was clearly having a bad day - Was great to hear Koen in his element after all the drama he had late last year. Some Pinot Blanc being...

Jocelyn presenting her Cabernet Franc and Divergent wines at a lunch in Banghoek Valley, Stellenbosch in January 2023. Vintage 2021s available soon at exanimo.co.za

A quick update on the 2022 harvest in South Africa from 11 winemakers. John Seccombe, Thorne & Daughters Mick Craven, Craven Jocelyn Wilson, Hogan Niels Verburg, Luddite Koen Roose, Spioenkop Tyrrel Myburgh, Joostenberg Ann Ferreira, Pieter Ferreira Bernhard Bredell, Scions of Sinai Craig Hawkins, TESTALONGA Jessica Saurwein, Saurwein Craig Wessels, Restless River

Today on the podcast we have Christian Eedes of winemag.co.za – a wine website that was born out of a magazine published in South Africa from 1993 to 2011. Their tagline is “Everything to do with South African Fine Wine”. He is, to my mind, one of the most important voices in South African wine criticism. This week saw the annual State of the Nation Address (or SONA for short) by President Ramapho...

Today on the podcast we have Jocelyn Wilson winemaker and owner of Hogan Wines, based in the Banhoek area of Stellenbosch. I chatted to Jos a couple of months ago, ahead of the release of her new vintages later this month. But the conversation – and it really is a conversation rather than an interview – isn’t really about the new wines. I really wanted to get Jossie’s story on record – she is one...

Today on the podcast we have James Downes, farmer, viticulturist and part owner with his brother Stuart, of Dunman Way Farm, home of Shannon Vineyards in Elgin. In short, James is a total weapon. His knowledge of the terroir of his farm, and of Elgin in general is extremely engaging and informative. Combine this with an inquisitive mind, a sharp intellect, a thirst for learning and desire to be be...

Today on the podcast we have Peter-Allan Finlayson, winemaker and co-owner of the very successful Crystallum label, and now winemaker of his father-in-law’s Gabriëlskloof wines – both based in Bot River. I first met Peter-Allan, or as most people know him, Fin, when he was pouring his wine at the same small booth as Chris and Suzaan Alheit at Cape Wine 2012. He was the first “young gun” winemaker...

Today on the podcast, we have a bit of a change – instead of me talking to a guest, this time I was in the guest’s seat of The Vincast podcast based in Melbourne, hosted by The Intrepid Wino – a.k.a. James Scarcebrook, and is all about wine, wine culture and wine people. Each episode he chats with someone from a different field in the wine industry, to gain some insight into their experiences, phi...

Today on the podcast we have Duncan Savage – owner and winemaker of Savage Wines. He made his name through the first decade or so of the 2000s as the winemaker of Cape Point Vineyards. Duncan’s production facility (originally set up by Tim Martin) is in the industrial Cape Town suburb of Salt River – I interviewed him there, in the now vacant warehouse above his winery. Note: there is an echo and...

Today on the podcast we have Johan Malan, Director of Wine at the historic Simonsig Estate in Stellenbosch. As you will hear in this episode, Johan is very easy to talk to, humble, and has a rather infections giggle. While he is justifiably proud of what Simonsig has achieved over the years, he is very far from resting on his laurels – as exhibited by The Grapesmith wines we reference. Simonsig is...

Today on the podcast we have Kurt Moore, CEO of SALBA – the South African Liquor Brand owners Association. According to their website, their sole objective is to represent their members, who are manufacturers and distributors of liquor products in the liquor industry of South Africa, on issues of common interest. Their members include an extensive list of heavy-hitting liquor industry stalwarts: D...

Today on the podcast we have Higgo Jacobs. Higgo has been a key figure in the South African wine industry for a decade. A certified sommelier, he was part of the founding board of the South African Sommelier Association (SASA). He was also the Chairperson for SASA for 4 years, standing down in early 2019. Higgo no longer works as a sommelier and has been a consultant for hire to the industry for a...