Viticulturist

KWV; Paarl; On-site; ZAR 540,000 - 900,000; Full time

Job summary

KWV in Paarl, South Africa, seeks an emerging viticulture professional to assist the Chief Viticulturist with grape sourcing, procurement, and planning. You will guide growers, support vineyard management, and ensure intake quality while building strong supplier relationships and representing KWV across the industry.

The role emphasizes technical foundation growth, commercial acumen, and stakeholder management, with opportunities to travel and contribute to sustainable wine production.

Qualifications

• Relevant tertiary qualification in Viticulture & Oenology.
• 3–5 years' experience in viticulture and wine procurement, within a large organization would be ideal/advantageous.
• Technical knowledge of vineyards, soils, terroir and their impact on wine quality.
• Familiarity with quality management systems, food safety standards and sustainability requirements.
• Strong analytical, strategic and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent communication, negotiation and relationship management skills.
• Computer literacy, with SAP experience being advantageous.
• Well-developed reporting and presentation skills.
• Well-developed sensory (taste and smell) assessment skills for evaluating grape and wine quality.
• Valid driver's licence and willingness to travel extensively.
• Physically able to work in vineyards, including walking on uneven terrain and spending extended periods outdoors.

Responsibilities

• Grape Supply Management: Support growers through technical guidance and regular engagement.
• Grape Supply Management: Support the sourcing of grapes to ensure production requirements are met
• Grape Supply Management: Monitor and manage grape quality from vineyards through to intake.
• Grape Supply Management: Manage vineyard sample schedules and data capture while ensuring sampling accuracy
• Grape Supply Management: Collaborate with winemakers to plan and execute grape intake schedule and harvest planning
• Grape Supply Management: Manage all administrative activities relating to grape contracting and intake.
• Grape Supply Management: Monitor supplier compliance to KWV standards and 3rd party accreditations

Skills

Analytical thinking

Strategic planning

Negotiation skills

Relationship mgmt

Communication skills

SAP experience

Data analysis

Reporting & presentation

Vineyard knowledge

Education

Tertiary qualification in Viticulture & Oenology

Tools

SAP software

Job description

The appointed individual will support the Chief Viticulturist in sourcing and procuring grapes to meet KWV’s production targets, ensuring an optimal balance between quality, volume, and cost in alignment with KWV standards

The incumbent will provide technical guidance to growers, support vineyard management and harvest planning, manage viticulture information systems, and nurture long-term supplier relationships while professionally representing KWV across the industry

This role is ideal for an emerging viticulture professional who is looking to build on their technical foundation while developing commercial acumen and stakeholder management skills.

• Relevant tertiary qualification in Viticulture & Oenology.
• 3–5 years' experience in viticulture and wine procurement, within a large organization would be ideal/advantageous.
• Technical knowledge of vineyards, soils, terroir and their impact on wine quality.
• Familiarity with quality management systems, food safety standards and sustainability requirements.
• Strong analytical, strategic and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent communication, negotiation and relationship management skills.
• Computer literacy, with SAP experience being advantageous.
• Well-developed reporting and presentation skills.
• Well-developed sensory (taste and smell) assessment skills for evaluating grape and wine quality.
• Valid driver's licence and willingness to travel extensively.
• Physically able to work in vineyards, including walking on uneven terrain and spending extended periods outdoors.

Key Responsibilities:

Grape Supply Management:

• Support growers through technical guidance and regular engagement.
• Support the sourcing of grapes to ensure production requirements are met
• Monitor and manage grape quality from vineyards through to intake.
• Manage vineyard sample schedules and data capture while ensuring sampling accuracy
• Collaborate with winemakers to plan and execute grape intake schedule and harvest planning
• Manage all administrative activities relating to grape contracting and intake.
• Monitor supplier compliance to KWV standards and 3rd party accreditations

Technical Vineyard Management:

• Execute KWV’s vineyards management practices under guidance from the Chief Viticulturist
• Manage information systems and technology applications for viticulture and vineyards.
• Promote sustainable and cost-effective vineyard management practices that optimise grape quality.

Compliance & Sustainability:

• Ensure ethical sourcing practices and identify any potential non-compliance.
• Ensure compliance with Integrated Production of Wine (IPW), ethical (WIETA and BSCI) standards as well as monitor adherence to environmental, food safety and Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) standards

Stakeholder Engagement:

• Build and maintain effective relationships with grape growers.
• Cultivate cross-functional partnerships across Operations—including Winemaking and Supply Chain—as well as Sales and Marketing to drive shared objectives.
• Represent KWV professionally through the support the Sales & Marketing teams by participating in wine tastings, industry forums and customer engagements.

Preference will be given to suitably qualified candidates from underrepresented groups aligned with our Employment Equity Plan.

Please note that any personal information that you shared will be used for the purposes of applying for a role with KWV as advertised above. This information may be shared with authorized Warshay Investments (Pty) Ltd (“KWV”) representatives (internal and contracted external parties) as required. Should you have any questions related to how we process your personal information, please refer to the privacy policy.