South Africa

Dr Erna Blancquaert

Erna is a South African viticulture Academic and Researcher at the University of Stellenbosch. Erna’s academic position is pioneering, as she is the first female Person of Colour to obtain a PhD in viticulture, not only in South Africa, but across the entirety of the African continent. Erna’s journey in wine began at a young age growing up in Paarl, South Africa, surrounded by vines. In such a milieu, Erna got to experience first-hand the excitement of the grape harvest, and along with reading the descriptors found on the back of wine bottles, this instilled in her a fascination for the scientific side of grapevine and wine. She was always in the top 10 at school, and went on to defy the expectations of all around her as she went to university and pursued her academic career. While an undergraduate, Erna studied under Dr. Victoria Carey, an educator whose passion for viticulture struck a chord, as did her ground-breaking presence in a largely male-dominated field. Erna would later go on to do her MSc under Dr. Carey’s supervision. She conducted her PhD under the supervision of Prof Alain Deloire, Dr Jorge Ricardo-Da Silva and Dr Anita Oberholster, examining effects of light and temperature on tannin structure and phenolics evolution in Cabernet Sauvignon. Erna’s achievements have come about in spite of “numerous barriers to further progress, ranging from cognitive, gender and racial biases as well as structural hurdles”, and sadly many of these barriers still remain in place. Erna refuses to be quiet about such uncomfortable truths, and she sees it as her responsibility to help as many People of Colour as possible in her field to succeed within the international wine community.