Black Elephant Vintners is a wine company that produces and distributes premium wines from selected vineyards and wineries in the Franschhoek valley.

Beer, Wine & Spirits

Black Elephant Vintners

Raymond, originally with a background in finance, got into the wine industry out of curiosity. After a seven-year tenure at Standard Chartered Merchant Bank, Raymond moved to South Africa. He loves the ocean and decided to settle in Cape Town. Here Raymond collaborated in the establishment, growth and eventual exit of Prodigy Asset Management. After he moved to Jozi in 2002, he met his business partner and co-creator, the “black” in Black Elephant, Kevin Swart. They co-founded and managed institutional stockbroker, Noah Financial Innovation until July 2011, when they relinquished their controlling interest to Religare Capital Markets.


Raymond Ndlovu

This lanky and laid-back winemaker is originally from Paarl. He spent his first five years on the infamous Robben Island. He completed his schooling in Paarl and went to Elsenburg to study Viticulture. After working at various cellars, at home and abroad, he returned to Elsenburg to further study Winemaking. He graduated top of his class. At Warwick estate, his passion for creating complex red wines was ignited. He learned of his love for bubbles at Môreson.


Jacques Wentzel

Kevin, multitalented like the other two rebels, qualified as a Civil Engineering Technician from Natal Technikon. After working in Durbs for a bit, he realised this wasn’t for him and moved to Johannesburg to join a Venture Capital firm, EPI Investments. He spent 23 years in the financial services industry, including time as a Trader on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, during which time he co-founded and managed Noah Financial Innovation, a local stockbroking firm. The company was sold in 2011 to Religare Capital Markets, allowing Kevin the opportunity to re-evaluate and find new inspiration.


Teams at Black Elephant Vintners

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