Master Winemaker 100: Natasha Williams
Natasha Williams, winemaker at South Africa’s Hasher Family Wines, features in this year’s Master Winemaker 100 guide. She tells db about opening wine to all, the mountains of her childhood and how Pinot Noir teaches humility.
It was a childhood spent in the small town of Saron, surrounded by the mountains of Tulbagh, that instilled in Natasha Williams a profound love of nature. The youngest of three children, she thrived on endless outdoor adventures, from mountain treks to working alongside her father on the farm. It was during her second year studying molecular biology at Stellenbosch University that Williams developed a deep curiosity about wine. She nurtured this via travels through France and California, developing a special interest in single-vineyard wines and minimal intervention techniques. In 2023, Williams came home to join Hasher Family Wines, quickly connecting with this part of the Upper Hemel-en-Aarde Valley and the values of co-owners Céline Haspeslagh and Frederik Herten.
A wise person once told me that patience reveals more than action ever could. I’ve learnt that nature has its own rhythm and you can’t rush what’s meant to unfold.
A great wine should bring people together. It breaks barriers and becomes a universal language.
A great winemaker should guide nature gently and know when to step back.
Perfection is being fully present, noticing small changes in the vines and understanding what the land is telling you – in winemaking and in life.
The thing I’d most like to change about the wine world is the idea that wine belongs to a certain group of people. It should feel welcoming, not intimidating.
I wish I could tell the consumer who drinks my wine that every bottle is a memory. It tells a very intimate story of the soil, the place, the small choices that shaped it and the people you share it with.
The last time I asked a sommelier for advice, I wanted to understand what makes a wine and vintage great from their perspective, how the consumer experiences vintage in a glass.
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If I couldn’t be a winemaker, I’d be a scientist. That was my first dream, to study molecular biology and understand how things transform. In a way, winemaking brought me back to that curiosity, just in a more human, sensory way.
I wish our vineyards could speak. Every block has its own personality and story. My job is to listen and translate that.
My next ambition is to keep expressing the Upper Hemel-en-Aarde Valley region as best and honestly as I can in our wines, and to do it better with every vintage.
If I won the lottery, I’d use it to create opportunities for young people from small towns like mine to explore winemaking. I know how one open door can change the course of a life.
If there were more hours in the day, I’d spend them exploring different wine regions. I love travelling and I think to experience a wine in its natural setting makes it more memorable.
When it’s all going wrong, I think back to my childhood in Saron, surrounded by mountains and open sky. It reminds me to stay grounded and keep perspective.
My desert island wine would be Pinot Noir. It teaches humility. It never behaves the same way twice, and that’s what I love about it. It’s expressive, unpredictable and endlessly revealing.
Natasha Williams’ Master medals
Ernest Pinot Noir 2023, The DB Autumn Tasting 2025
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