Miles Mossop confesses to having been 'a bit of a wiId child'. In fact, as often the case, he was an extremely bright, talented young man in search of something that sufficiently engaged his mind and provided an environment in which to roam and experiment.
Vintage 12
Miles Mossop found it in winemaking, courtesy of three men: his late father Tony Mossop; top Cape vintner Gyles Webb; and Rand Merchant Bank chairman GT Ferreira, owner of Tokara where Miles began his career in 2000.
Tony Mossop's great great-grandfather founded a tannery in 1846 along the Liesbeek River in Cape Town, now an office site called Tannery Park. Tony joined the business, becoming chairman of a conglomerate of tanneries called Mossop-Western Leathers. More importantly, he was an avid wine lover, one of the early Cape Wine Masters, a respected wine judge, author, and proponent of port, who established his own small bodega in Calitzdorp, called Axe Hill.
But all Miles wanted to do was surf. Nevertheless, aptitude tests had indicated engineering as a course of study. After his conscription stint in the army (Youngsfield, the sports camp in Cape Town) he turned down an offer to crew on a yacht to the Caribbean and, encouraged by his parents, went to university. Accepted for building science and quantity surveying at the University of Cape Town, he opted instead for commerce at Stellenbosch 'because of the great student life!'
He failed his first year and switched to geology and geochemistry, completing the degree in 1995. But it was not for him. 'One needed an honours to get a job. Plus I’d learnt that geologists spent their time analysing rock samples for potential mining sites in the middle of nowhere, invariably far from the ocean!'
Instead, the viticulture and oenology course at Stellenbosch University had caught his fancy and, with some input from his father, he enrolled. He graduated, with his second B.Sc. degree, in 1998: as Dux student.
Among his final year classmates was former stockbroker Teddy Hall [a Guild member]. 'A few of us got together and we'd make appointments with winemakers for cellar tours and tastings. Teddy, quite a bit older than us, wasn't shy, asking the most challenging questions. Apparently, the winemakers started dreading our visits!'
That year proved seminal in other ways. His father helped arrange an internship with Gyles Webb at Thelema, a prime property on top of the Helshoogte Pass up against the Simonsberg. Webb and winemaking partners had just built the Spice Route cellar near Malmesbury in the Swartland, an emerging viticultural hot spot.
That's where I met Eben Sadie.' Now owner of cult Eben Sadie Family Wines and a small cellar in Priorat, Spain, this maverick young vintner and fellow free spirit became a good friend and surfing buddy. Miles, meanwhile, still had his eye on distant horizons: Down Under.
He faxed (pre-email) his CV to umpteen Australian wineries. 'I got exactly two responses. The one was from a small winery in Margaret River, Western Australia. I was desperate to go. Many of winemaker/author/ wine judge James Halliday's Australian Wine Companion's Top 100 Wines were from the area... and the surf's pretty good!'
But only Tim Knappstein in Clare Valley, South Australia could take him. Part of the Petaluma group of wineries overseen by leading vintner Brian Croser in McLaren Vale, Knappstein is home to cabernet sauvignon, merlot, wooded sauvignon blanc and riesling. Both Halliday and Croser had previously been guest judges on South African wine panels and were familiar with the Cape.
'I've gone off sauvignon blanc; most are too tart. I'm enjoying white blends, rieslings and Bordeaux-style reds.'
After his 1999 working stint in Australia, he surfed in Indonesia for a month. 'The best surfing spot in the world, without a doubt!' He broke away to meet up with his family at international wine fair Vinexpo in Bordeaux and explore the Loire, before travelling to Greece and Turkey.
From there it was to California for the northern hemisphere vintage at Far Niente in the Napa: cabernet, merlot and chardonnay country. 'And that's where I wanted to stay. San Francisco is the greatest city on earth.'
But neither his father nor Webb was done with him yet. 'Dad had been scouting around. I was on my way back to South Africa, having practically accepted another winemaking position, when he called to say Gyles was looking for someone to help him start up a new winery. I wasn't sure what to do. Dad just said: "Call Gyles!'"
Smoked or Norwegian salmon in a creamy dill sauce on tagliatelle recipe by Miles Mossop paired with Tokara Director's Reserve White wine....
Upside-down plum pudding recipe by Miles Mossop and served with fresh cream and paired with Kika Miles Mossop Wine....