Great Heart Wines
グレート・ハート・ワインズ
South Africa's employee-owned, terroir-driven wine project
About Great Heart Wines
Great Heart Wines is an employee-owned wine brand launched in 2020 by Chris and Andrea Mullineux of Mullineux & Leeu Family Wines, conceived during the COVID-19 lockdown as a way to give their vineyard workers, cellar hands and winemaking team a direct financial stake in the business. Any staff member who has worked with the company for two years or more automatically becomes a shareholder, sharing directly in the profits from every bottle sold. The wines are made at the Mullineux family's home cellar in the Riebeek Valley (Riebeeksrivier ward) of the Swartland by winemaker Gynore Hendricks, a Cape Winemakers Guild Protégé Programme graduate who trained under Chris and Andrea before becoming Assistant Winemaker at Mullineux and Leeu Passant. Fruit is sourced from sustainably farmed, low-intervention vineyards across Swartland, Stellenbosch, Helderberg, Elgin and Franschhoek, and the range spans old-vine Chenin Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Rhône-style red blends. The brand's emblem, the African wagtail, symbolizes selflessness and community — a fitting mark for a project where the people who grow and make the wine share directly in its success.
Who Is This For?
For drinkers who want serious, terroir-focused South African wine and appreciate knowing their purchase directly benefits the vineyard workers and cellar staff who made it.
Wines of Great Heart Wines
No cuvées registered yet.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Who founded Great Heart Wines?
- Great Heart Wines was founded in 2020 by Chris and Andrea Mullineux of Mullineux & Leeu Family Wines, conceived during the COVID-19 lockdown as a way to give their team a direct financial stake in the business.
- Who makes the wines?
- The wines are made by winemaker Gynore Hendricks, a graduate of the Cape Winemakers Guild Protégé Programme who trained with the Mullineuxs before becoming Assistant Winemaker at Mullineux and Leeu Passant.
- Where are Great Heart Wines produced?
- The wines are produced at the Mullineux family's home cellar in the Riebeek Valley (Riebeeksrivier ward) of the Swartland, South Africa.
- What grape varieties does Great Heart Wines work with?
- The range includes old-vine Chenin Blanc and Rhône-style red blends from Swartland, Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon from Stellenbosch and Helderberg, Pinot Noir from Elgin, and Cabernet Franc from Franschhoek.
- What does the wagtail on the label represent?
- The African wagtail symbolizes selflessness and community, reflecting Great Heart's ownership model in which staff who have worked with the company for two years or more become shareholders and share in its profits.