OMG, yesterday I was the happiest person in Dodoma....we discovered that Dodoma is an emerging wine region and managed to arrange a wine tour with the whole group. We rented a bus for 100,000 Tshs...which worked out to about $10 each...it took about and hour to get there on a fairly bumpy dirt road for most of the way but we saw a few villages and a pack of donkeys...yes, the real kind! I would add a picture but it is not working right now...(grrr very frustrating!!)
So we met with Adam Njovu the general Manager of the CETAWICO (Cantina Sociale di Dodoma) and he spent an incredible amount of time with us explaining the history of the birth of the winery and how it has grown over the last 4 years. We noticed that there were no vineyards near the winery and learned that they actually buy the grapes from the local farmers who are incented to harvest grapes in the Dodoma area....Adam will actually make field visits to test the grapes to ensure they have enough sugar content. They hope that within time more farmers in the area will start to grow grapes. The winery is actually held by an Italian company and Adam did some training in Italy. They export 70% of their finished product to South Africa and a good 25% to local distilleries for the distribution of hard liquor (this gets rid of any spoiled wine and reduces the amount of waste). Adam let us try Sharyde, Sharyde Reserve, Presidential & Presidential Reserve in both the vat and the barrel.....very generous tastings and we didnt want to leave. The funny part was that this was Sandip's first ever try at wine....what a way to start! We took photos of him to commenmorate his entrance into the world of wine - no turning back now! Of course we bought a few bottles to bring home but chances are they may not make it!
What a great afternoon!
So we met with Adam Njovu the general Manager of the CETAWICO (Cantina Sociale di Dodoma) and he spent an incredible amount of time with us explaining the history of the birth of the winery and how it has grown over the last 4 years. We noticed that there were no vineyards near the winery and learned that they actually buy the grapes from the local farmers who are incented to harvest grapes in the Dodoma area....Adam will actually make field visits to test the grapes to ensure they have enough sugar content. They hope that within time more farmers in the area will start to grow grapes. The winery is actually held by an Italian company and Adam did some training in Italy. They export 70% of their finished product to South Africa and a good 25% to local distilleries for the distribution of hard liquor (this gets rid of any spoiled wine and reduces the amount of waste). Adam let us try Sharyde, Sharyde Reserve, Presidential & Presidential Reserve in both the vat and the barrel.....very generous tastings and we didnt want to leave. The funny part was that this was Sandip's first ever try at wine....what a way to start! We took photos of him to commenmorate his entrance into the world of wine - no turning back now! Of course we bought a few bottles to bring home but chances are they may not make it!
What a great afternoon!
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