Pardon Taguzu was born and raised in Zimbabwe, far away from the traditional wine regions of the world. Wine wasn’t something he grew up with, and a career in wine certainly wasn’t the obvious direction for his life.

But after moving to South Africa, everything started to change. An encounter with Chenin Blanc opened the door to a completely new world and what started as curiosity soon developed into a serious passion for wine.

Pardon worked his way into the hospitality and wine industry and developed himself as a sommelier, wine professional, wine judge and eventually winemaker and entrepreneur.

Together with three fellow Zimbabwean sommeliers, he became part of the first team to represent Zimbabwe at the World Blind Tasting Championship in France.

Their journey was so extraordinary that it became the subject of the award-winning documentary Blind Ambition, bringing their story and their love of wine to audiences around the world.

But Pardon’s journey didn’t stop there.

Today, he is based in the Netherlands, where he has worked in high-level gastronomy and Michelin-starred restaurants. At the same time, he has continued to build his own place in the international wine world.

And perhaps the most personal chapter of that journey is Dzimbahwe Wines, his own wine project, connecting his Zimbabwean roots with the knowledge, experiences and relationships he has built throughout his career.

So today we’re going to talk about much more than what is inside the bottle.

We’re going to talk about Zimbabwe, South Africa, becoming a sommelier, competing on the world stage, Blind Ambition, making wine, and what it takes to build your own future in this fascinating industry.

Pardon Taguzu, welcome to The Wine Talks.